It appears JP Morgan was interested in buying Bear Stearns primarily because of its prime brokerage business. Should (say) Lehman Brothers fail we'd be talking some serious investment banking (Lehman Brothers is the largest underwriter of mortgage-backed securities), but again still not retail or commercial banking which are the sectors that, if they fail, can send the economy into depression all by themselves.

It'd be nice if the battle were only against the right wingers, not half of the left on top of that — François in Paris