Payday loan alternative sounds like a pipe dream

Activists have been going after the lecherous payday loan business for years, trying to get lawmakers to crack down on the high-interest short-term loan sharks that dot urban intersections across America. They’ve mostly failed, foiled by pesky capitalism.

Now a Kansas City group, together with the FDIC, is taking a different tack: Offering a cheaper (but still crazy expensive) alternative to payday loans. It’s a cute plan — but it will never work.