Not many of us will be unaffected by this fiasco. One thing that is true is that the stock market will go up again and much, if not all, of that “lost” money will be regained.

What will not come back is the economy we once enjoyed. I believe we are looking ahead to a fundamental change in how markets are managed. It won’t happen as quickly as most of us would like, because there is still a lot of momentum to continue down the same wrong path. (And that’s going to be true no matter who gets elected next month.)

Certainly, the equity position that the federal government is taking in the largest banks in America that dictates salary controls and will add new expectations upon corporate leaders will have profound effects — some good, some bad. Other corporations will probably see more outside “watchdogging” of top executive salaries and promises or claims being made to the public.

I am most concerned, however, about the general attitude of 1) the public (i.e. investors and IRA owners), who just want to see growth in their stock value no matter how it was generated, and 2) politicians, who just want to push an ideology no matter what the consequences.

In both cases, there is an attitude that consequences are something you blame on someone else rather than any rational acceptance of responsibility for the results of decisions made.

Thanks for your comment. I will take a look at the book you mentioned.