Waaaagh!

Explaining some of this mess

Ok - I've found myself in a position of having to explain some of this fiasco a couple of times now... and i think charlie rose's show does a great job with the basics, and this forbes piece is a great flashcard primer...

But i want to point you at credit default swaps.

Primer
when they made regulation of this space illegal back in 2000 - they created an environment where people could play shell games with subsidiaries without govt oversight - this thing was a giant fucking confidence game - and it was passed in the lame duck session of the congress at the end of Bill Clinton's term - when there was almost no accountability for anyone's actions.

Buffet was right - this was an economic weapon of mass destruction - and maybe we need to hold the people responsible accountable for their actions. A new wing at gitmo for Harvard MBAs seems in order...