Brad DeLong continued his recent foray into media criticism with a post dedicated to Michael Massing from the New York Review of Books. Massing's critique of Salon blogger Glenn Greenwald raises DeLong's hackles (hackles that are, in all fairness, oft-raised by the traditional media establishment). At one turn, said DeLong, Massing seems to praise Greenwald for his bold refusal to be balanced. At another, he criticizes Greenwald for not being more considerate of "the practical considerations policymakers must contend with," particularly in reference to President Obama's refusal to release the infamous torture photos. DeLong's major gripe, though, is that Massing isn't "making a real critique of Greenwald" and thereby "is performing the kind of journamalism that he has condemned for most of the article."

Paul Krugman points to a pie chart from the National Health Statistics Group, claiming that in the United States, "the government pays substantially more medical bills (47% of the total) than the private insurance industry (35%)." The chart actually indicates public spending amounts to 46 percent, but the crux of his argument holds: The notion that the United States should avoid government participation in the health insurance industry doesn't make much sense, says Krugman, because government participation is already the backbone of the health insurance industry.

Barry Ritholtz wrote a follow-up post after yesterday's National Association of Realtors takedown. This time he examined how to spot a credible industry trade group—as opposed to those that only exist to prop up their interests. "The best way to determine that is to look at the data they release, juxtaposed against any quotes from their spokesman/economist," said Ritholtz. "Are they spinning, sugarcoating or otherwise ‘prettying up' the news release?" Other telltale signs of shifty trade groups? Those whose data analysis produces biased results, rather than "negative as well as positive outcomes." Ritholtz pointed to the American Trucking Association as an example of a trade group with "no spin, no wishful thinking" in its statements. Hmm—realtors are more likely to finesse the truth, while truckers are more likely to give the straight scoop. Who would have thought?

Felix Salmon tips his hat to Rahm Emanuel, claiming that "we've wasted our crisis." Bonds and stock markets may be rebounding, but the concomitant euphoria comes at the expense of "a necessary degree of urgency from the regulatory-reform debate," writes Salmon. In other words, the recession provided an opportunity to reflect on the systemic flaws that made the financial crisis possible and remedy them against future repeats, suggests Salmon. But instead of unpacking our debt and addressing the lack of effective oversight, we're again staring at the foundations of a financial system built on debt instead of equity, with "vastly increase[d] chances that [regulatory changes] will be small and ineffective."