[CutePuppy]

In other words, Canadian banks did not lend in the subprime market because the government allowed them to not lend in the subprime market.

Or didn't have the laws, rules, regulations and lawyers forcing them to make financially unsound loans... About sums it up.

[haroldeveryman]

Exactly. Also note that the two people chosen by the Democrat Congressional majority to head up the “investigation” of the banking crisis, Barney Frank and Chris Dodd, were the two legislators most closely associated with Fannie and Freddie (whose securitization of the subprime mortgage loans created the toxic assets that led to bank insolvency).

This illustrates the fact that in this day and age, at least, the implicit purpose of government appointed “regulators” is to protect vested interests.