Understandably, the spectre of foreign funds bulk buying Irish houses has rattled nerves. With high rents and scarce mortgages hammering hope for many, the broad anger and demand for action is no surprise. Unfortunately, there is no easy cure. At best, the tinkering with stamp duty for houses is a temporary balm. Arguably, the central relationship in political economy is between debtors and creditors. In truth, much of history is better understood by pondering the endless tug-of-war between borrowers and lenders. The depressing dysfunction of the Irish housing market is no exception. The root of the word credit is the…

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