This post inspired by a series of articles about bad behavior on Wall Street over the summer.

What makes “too big to fail” or “too big to jail” equal to “license to steal”?  (How) Can the Humanities help restore the social contract, or should we simply acknowledge that we have given up on civilization and get on with the alternatives?  See for example:

• dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/07/23/case-against-sac-leader-hinges-on-e-mail-habits/
• dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/07/23/witness-in-tourre-case-describes-difficulty-in-knowing-deals-friends-from-foes/
• www.nytimes.com/2013/07/21/business/a-shuffle-of-aluminum-but-to-banks-pure-gold.html
• dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/07/17/jpmorgan-in-talks-to-settle-energy-manipulation-case-for-500-million/
• www.nytimes.com/2013/07/11/technology/judge-rules-against-apple-in-e-books-trial.html

Here is a somewhat more thoughtful take on the overall situation: theamericanscholar.org/too-big-to-fail-and-too-risky-to-exist/#.Ue_pK9KNrZc

And somewhat less so:  www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhe3RlzgTiQ

Or, if you have four hours to spare, the 2012 4-part FRONTLINE series, “Money, Power & Wall Street.”  www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/money-power-wall-street/