Risky businessmen

I was happy to discover that the real reason for the British banking crisis has finally been uncovered.

Former top drugs adviser to the government David Nutt has made a controversial claim that the financial crisis was caused by bankers' habitual use of cocaine, the Telegraph reports.

[From Bankers' cocaine use caused financial crisis - ex-govt drug adviser]

This seems as reasonable explanation as I've seen so far, but I think David is missing an additional factor. Scientific studies seem to show that men take more risks in the presence of attractive women, and I imagine that sort of behaviour is amplified considerably under the catalytic impact of Bolivian marching powder.

Beautiful women lead men to throw caution to the wind

[From Men Take More Risks When Pretty Women Are Around | LiveScience]

Basically it all went wrong when they let women in. I wonder what Sheryl will have to say about this? Anyway, as far as I can see, broads and blow are a far more plausible explanation for the catastrophe in the British financial system than the line that Gordon Brown endlessly parroted.

"A crisis that began in America" destroyed the British banking system. If it had not been for sub-prime loans in California and Bush's refusal to bail out Lehmans all would have been well… The banking commission, a strange but surprisingly intelligent group of MPs, peers and – only in England! – His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury, takes the wishful thinking apart with admirable brutality.

[From Bankers carry on unabashed, unscathed and unashamed | Nick cohen | Comment is free | The Observer]

Mr. Cohen is here referring to the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards (the Commission on Banking is something different). Oddly, as far as I could tell, the Archbishop of Canterbury seemed to be the most qualified member of the panel, having been a corporate treasurer in a previous life. Some of the others appear to have either no knowledge of the subject at all (Lord McFall was a chemistry teacher) or a bankster heritage that makes me suspicious of their opinions (Baroness Kramer was with Citibank).

In the future, everyone will be famous to fifteen people.

[posted with ecto]