Epstein on "The Christmas Tree Effect"

In Richard Epstein's weekly column at Forbes.com, he discusses the House's refusal to pass legislation bailing out the financial industry earlier this week:

Well, the gong has struck, now that a closely divided House of Representatives has failed to approve round one of the bailout program. The stock market responded with a deep plunge, as the uncertainty continues. It is too early, however, to write a definitive post-mortem because some new proposal may make it through a suspicious and hostile Congress. But it is instructive to understand at least some of the reasons why this initial effort fell apart.

Read the rest of the column here.