If you have been wondering why this current American-led financial crisis has been mostly focused on the collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with the disappearance of any strictly investment focused firms (rather than investment banks) on Wall St., then you need to think about how we deal with housing subsidies in this country. Housing subsidies are great for those of us in the middle and upper classes of earning power because we can afford to purchase a home, and in doing so we not only invest in appreciable assets (home prices have generally been excellent American investment vehicles over the long run) but also gain the mortgage interest tax benefits of owning a home.

My company recently released a website to educate consumers about the benefits of using online bill payment to reduce the risks and hassles of paying your bills via snail mail (aka the US Postal Service). The new site is called eBill Place, and it's really just meant to inform, not necessarily sell the services of the many different financial services and banks in the US that offer online bill payment services. If you do not pay your bills online, and especially if you are afraid of eBills (hint hint, my wife!), then you should read up on the benefits of doing so at this site. I wouldn't work at this company if I didn't believe in what they are trying to do, which is primarily to make some money while helping people pay their bills faster, more safely, and more easily than ever before. (It also happens to reduce the financial hassles we go through with the companies that we all deal with, in my experience.)

This is a 20 minute panel discussion with Larry Lessig and a couple of other Internet pioneers and visionaries that will inform you about some of the big picture issues facing the Internet today.  At about 4:30 into the video, Larry Lessig talks about a discussion he had in the past with Richard Clarke about the possibility of draconian legislation in the form of a cyber-Patriot Act that could greatly restrict how we use the Internet today. Interesting stuff, but take it with a big grain of salt - they are hypothesizing for the most part in this video, not talking pure facts.