My standard reply to all of this – there’s enough blame to go around. So – all of the above.
But – I’d add another category – politicians who got rid of Glass Steagall.
I’d put some blame on Phill Gramm, Jim Leach, and Thomas Bliley – sponsors of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley act that gutted Glass Steagall – and some blame should go to President Clinton – who signed it into law. (I’m a bi-partison blamer.)
The GLB act, passed in 1999, blurred the lines between insurance companies, investment banks, and commercial banks. It allowed banks to be active participants in derivitives… I created the structure that turned into the giant shitpile that brought on the economic meltdown.
