Former Fed chief Greenspan used to croon like a smitten teenager every time he was asked about subprime loans or adjustable rate mortgages. And, as New York Times columnist Floyd Norris points out, (Greenspan) “praised the growth in the derivatives market as a boon for market stability, and resisted calls to use the Fed’s power to increase regulation.” Of course, he did. It was all part of Maestro’s “New Economy”; trickle-down Elysium, where the endless flow of low interest credit merged with financial innovation to create a Reaganesque El Dorado. There are no regulations in this version of Eden, not even “Don’t bite the apple”. Anything goes and to heck with the public, they can fend for themselves.