Commentators Exceed LATimes Columnist

Put this in the "measurements of quality" category. David Lazarus is a syndicated LA Times financial columnist. A recent 4/25/10 column on bank reform legislation made reference to "puppies and kittens." I went looking for other telltales, and found Bank of America yanks Countrywide Financial customers' credit lines.

What's interesting is that reader comments show more sobriety than the columnist's original prose. For example, KathyA says:

"Mr. Lazarus, you seem to want it both ways. In the past, you have (rightly) raked banks over the coals, especially Countrywide (now Bank of America), for risky financial decisions in mortgage lending. You can't expect to be taken seriously when you now criticize these same institutions for making fiscally conservative financial decisions."

Lazarus' complaint is that Bank of America has declined to renew home equity lines at the five-year mark, as the contracts issued by Countrywide permitted. His reaction, over the bank's failure to provide an explanation, seems puzzling. At least, until you draw an analogy of the bank as bartender and home owner as alcoholic. The alcoholic doesn't like being cut off, even if, or perhaps especially if, the reason for severing the drug supply is rational.

In summary, the problem, the way Lazarus has described it, is that Countrywide was a good co-dependent, and Bank of America is not behaving right as a co-dependent properly should.

Snicker snack!