So I'm pretty smart but...

...on some things, I've got the brains of a slug. Economics would be one of them. I know bloggers are supposed to have at least rudimentary knowledge of everything they post about, but it seems to me that one of the assets of the form is it allows you to interact with people who are smarter than you. We have some sharp-ass commenters on this board, and a couple who I've noticed who are really sharp on the econ end of things.

So here's the deal: I've been following this business with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. There's one thing I don't understand here--Isn't it inherently dangerous to have half the mortgages in country controlled by two entities? If it is in fact dangerous, have there been criticism that suggest other ways of doing business? If so, what are some of those other ways?

And now I throw it out to you, my illustrious commenters