Today is an Anniversary of Sorts

It makes the one-year anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers, and thus the beginning of the downturn of this economy which shows little signs of rebounding.

And what is the president doing about it?

Instead, he is proposing a hodge-podge of minor measures which will do nothing to rein in the speculative activities of the banks and hedge funds. His Consumer Financial Protection Agency would merely establish a new agency to oversee consumer credit without giving it any powers beyond those presently spread out among a number of different regulators. In any event, this proposal is a dead letter because it is fiercely opposed by the banks.

His proposal to regulate the vast, unregulated derivatives market—a key component of the so-called “shadow banking system”—has so many loopholes that even the New York Times complained in an editorial Monday that it is toothless.

The main features of his proposal would give the Federal Reserve greater power to oversee the financial markets and establish a new mechanism for bailing out failing financial institutions, including non-bank firms. The underlying premise is that no serious restrictions can be placed on the banks, so new rules must be put in place to deal with the next crisis.

In other words, he isn't doing or going to do anything to alienate the very people and corporations responsible for the financial mess.

More about this dubious anniversary.