Don’t let facts get in the way

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Re: letter writers Grant Shaw (Nov. 7) and Ann Laman (Nov 15.) It was not the greedy and out-of-control business interests who caused the latest economic disaster. No, it was the liberal Democrats! The basis of their creative imagining is something called the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 (CRA). Now one may read this act over and over and you will find absolutely nothing about the government requiring bankers to lend money to people who cannot pay it back, nor will you see a word about bundling these loans into uninsured “mortgage backed securities.” No matter. Mr. Shaw clearly needs to blame the government for everything and continues to claim — without any evidence whatever — that it was Clinton, liberal Democrats and unnamed “community activists” using the CRA who “created” the demand for housing and “forced” the bankers to make bad loans. Similarly, Ann Laman blames President Carter for “creating the CRA.” Sorry, Ann, but presidents don’t pass laws; Congress does. Not a single knowledgeable economist of any political persuasion supports such a nonsensical explanation. I hope that thoughtful people will engage in some fact-checking and reality testing before deciding where the blame for the economic meltdown lies. WILL SMITH, Auburn