On the brink of disaster

"Is it better to let Bear Stearns fail and risk setting off a market collapse that costs a million jobs?" The answer, of course, is no. Bear had about $13 trillion of derivatives deals with counterparties, according to its most recent financial filings. If Bear had croaked, large parts of the world could have croaked. And the economic damage could have been catastrophic.

	Bear Stearns Rescue Backed Amid Concerns	Associated Press	Wed Apr 2	0
	Ten Days That Changed Capitalism	Wall Street Journal	Tue Apr 1	0
	US financial system faced collapse, bank regulators tell Senate hearing on Bear Stearns bailout	World Socialist Web Site	Fri Apr 4	1
	World: Economist Reflects On Financial Crisis - RADIO FREE EUROPE / RADIO LIBERTY	rferl.org	Sun Mar 30	0
	Bernanke: Bear Stearns' 'near failure' led to dramatic move	NY Daily News	Thu Apr 3	3