What Should Be Done About Underwater Mortgages?

In case you missed it, last week the Washington Post had this interesting article describing a meeting between President Obama and seven of the world's most prominent economists. The meeting took place over 13 months ago. Nearly all of the economists told the President that the government hadn't done enough to effectively forgive the mortgage debt of homeowners who are underwater on their mortgages. No major program of the kind suggested was implemented, and the economists still believe that the effects of the mortgage crisis continue to slow economic recovery.