Ending the Off-Balance Sheet Charade [View article]
It's time that SIV and off balance sheet sheltering be criminalized for the fraud it is. Investor tolerance of this behavior has been stunning. It seems to be a case of, "everyone else is doing it".
We love fractional reserve banking for the ease of credit it provides and are addicted to an inherently fragile system. We will continue to bailout banks as long as we use fractional reserve banking as the dominant system of banking. FDIC insurance does not help this problem and could be argued encourages recklessness. Banks used to at least compete and advertise how safe they were compared to their competitors but this control mechanism has also been dismantled. People want the benefits of a free market system without the risk or discipline.
Ending the Off-Balance Sheet Charade [View article]
Why Did We Bail Out the Banks? [View article]
More Goldman-Paulson Tarnish [View article]