“In truth, markets had been trying to work since 1984, with Continental Illinois, desperately sending signals that the modern financial system was shot through with untenable risks that required a renewal of long-held regulatory principles. But government bailouts thwarted real market information at every turn. Washington allowed failure only when it didn’t threaten systemic risk, as in the case of Enron, and did not learn the subtler lessons that such failure provided.”

From After the Fall:  Saving Capitalism from Wall Street- and Washington by Nicloe Gelinas

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