The founding fathers of the United States of America saw well into the future when they charted the course for the country. Thomas Jefferson the primary author of the Declaration of Independence who was also the President from 1801 to 1809, wrote a Decalogue of Canons for Observation in Practical Life, one of which was, “Never spend your money before you have it.”
Many would no doubt argue that it no longer holds true. The current financial crisis though is forcing people to observe this canon perhaps even more rigorously than it was intended to be.
The following are links to some stories that have helped me understand the current situation better. Trust it helps you too.
Bitten by the global credit crunch – A simple and humorous elucidation of how the lack of regulation has helped feed greedy financial institutions till they could no longer function and how their bad debts are being bought out by the US government. By Mick O’Reilly, Deputy Managing Editor of the Gulf News. October 10, 2008.
The credit crunch and its effects –Brien Donnellon’s article in the March 2008 issue of Swiss News gives the impression that Rating Agencies are also to blame for the current crisis.
Timeline: Global credit crunch – BBC News traces the crisis from April 2007. Published: October 6, 2008.