Gratifying to see McClatchy running a major piece on the corrupting effect of the current campaign finance system.    Talk about having an effect at the the margin!  Every US citizen should write their senators and congressman and ask how much they have received in contributions from failed or bailed-out institutions since 2000.  Cc your state's newspaper of record.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

More from the same article.

...experts interviewed by McClatchy said that inaction by the Congress helped set the stage for the current crisis.

Some state regulators, recognizing early signs of trouble in housing markets, sought help from Congress when the Bush administration adopted rules barring states from enforcing tough laws targeting predatory lending -- the practices that were enabling unqualified applicants to obtain subprime mortgages.

With Wall Street serving a key role in buying, bundling and reselling subprime mortgages, state officials couldn't get Congress to intervene, said John Ryan, the executive vice president of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors."

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

Which is why we need to end this bullshit of organizations donating money.  People should be allowed to donate (up to a certain limit of no more than $1-2,000 IMO), but corporations/PACs/etc are not people.  They don't have a vote, so they shouldn't be allowed to donate.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.