“Let me begin with the caveats: I like men,” writes Barnard’s president in today’s Washington Post, “But as the financial debacle unfolds, I can’t help noticing that all the perpetrators of the greatest economic mess in eight decades are, well, men.”

Oh yes, you may have heard many other explanations for the Wall Street crisis: irresponsible lending agencies, insane hedge fund managers, a housing prices bubble,  and so on. But according to Barnard’s president (who was a professor at Harvard Business School before coming to Morningside Heights), though, the problem lies in the nefarious XY chromosome pairing. Male-dominated Wall Street DSpar argues, could have been saved by some female leadership, because “women may be less inclined than men to place the kind of bets that can get them in real trouble.” Oh, and female whistleblowers (on Wall Street or elsewhere) are also never listened to. 

Don’t worry, though, guys: Spar assures you that “I have spent most of my career surrounded by men, and I have no major complaints.”