Our Say: House decides that a gamble beats certain disaster

The House of Representatives got the message on Friday. All it took, in effect, was four days during which it was screamed at nonstop by the Treasury secretary, the head of the Federal Reserve, most of the U.S. Senate, both presidential candidates, media pundits and constituents - particularly the many people with 401(k)s or other reasons to feel anxious about the stock market.

Of course, the loudest voice came from Wall Street, which responded to Monday's 228-205 vote against a federal bailout plan by going into a 778-point swoon. That was loud enough to break windows and rupture eardrums on Capitol Hill.

So the House...