If anyone out there is still confused as I was about exactly what the subprime loan meltdown is all about, I found the following radio interview with extremely clarifying:

Fresh Air from WHYY: Morgenson Sheds Light on Subprime Mortgage Crisis

Pulitzer Prize-winning business columnist Gretchen Morgenson talks about the subprime mortgage crisis and its effects on the markets and on the economy. Morgenson, an assistant business and financial editor for The New York Times, has covered the financial markets for The Times since 1998.

The key to culture is religion. Daniel Dennett @ TED (Feb 2006)