Why it is another crisis in unbridled capitalism, AKA "free markets". Now capitalism is good but when the refs are crooks and those who pay them their bribes pile up the points and never want the game to start over (as in no inheritance tax - remember they already avoided taxes once on that money) then we get more and more imbalance of wealth and resources between people. There is still plenty to go around (though I wish we could agree to make fewer of us for the sake of quality of life and mother nature) but somehow we just can't make it happen. The theory that it will happen by itself (trickle down) if the government just gets out of the game and leaves the big players alone (to do what - perhaps hire their own refs, private police and armies) has been tried even more than under Reagan and we are seeing the results. The discredited economic extremist of course still argue it could all be fixed by even more tax cuts and fewer rules . For them this an issue of moral virtue and they mix it up with with appeals to outlawing abortion and shunning gays but evangelicals are sorting it out that Jesus did after all preach of sharing and that those who followed him must be willing to give up their material inheritance. Yes, that is part of our Christian heritage as well as part of most major religions.

So ultimately what we are faced with is are we going to become a nation that values sharing our burdens or of each person for himself? I'm no Christian but I am an American and it seems an easy choice to me.

capitalism needs regulation to thrive.

It almost seems that the anti regulation ,free market absoulutists believe that regulations were put on the markets in order to fuck with the "big companies" and not to bring some econom ic stability and economic fairness to this country.With out stability that benefits the many ,we have a country of extreems.I'm not against capitalism at all.I'm just against unfetterd capitalism that benefits the very few at the expense of the many and our country.And if the free marketeers can't understand this then we definetly have a huge problem that will not get fixed.