Blame greedy bankers. Blame Alan Greenspan's careless stewardship of the US Federal Reserve. Blame feckless homeowners who took out loans they could never expect to repay. Blame politicians and regulators everywhere for closing their eyes to the approaching tempest.
All of the above are culpable. I am sure there are even more villains lurking out there. Sometimes, though, it is worth looking through the other end of the telescope. The wreckage of the financial system holds up a mirror to the changing geopolitical balance. It offers advice, and a warning, as to what the west should make of the emerging global order.
Until quite recently, the talk was about the humbling of America's laisser faire capitalism. The US government's $700bn bail-out was the price to be paid for past hubris.
By Philip Stephens
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