"Naive"

I didn't post about this when it came out, and now I don't feel like tracking it down, but recently someone in the Obama administration (Gibbs? Geitner?) called Krugman "naive" for calling for restructuring the big banks. It may be true that Krugman is naive--I highly doubt it--but this is one of those words that is a big red flag for our dear emperor's nekkid-ness.

I think it is an effective taunt for halting needed policy overhauls: politicians are terrified of naivete--probably because they really are naive about so many of the areas overwhich they have power. But they do seem to turn to jelly if you just look down your nose a bit and dismiss calls for your resignation/regulation/general removal from power as "naive" and say that everyone in the know just knows that the world would end if we took this uncomfortable policy action....