Thank you both!
I’ve felt this situation needed an analogy for a long time. The situation is too impenetrable (even for an MBA in Finance like me) to grasp easily otherwise. Please email it around if you feel it works.
I will definitely use it. I have been so frustrated because I didn’t know how to explain it to people. This is perfect.
I've never specialized in finance, but I realized years ago that the world of hyperfinance was way beyond anything I learned in my MBA program. That alone gave me pause. If the layering of derivatives and obfuscation of risk was beyond my comprehension and comfort, I realized that many, many investors were entrusting their savings to a system which was largely incomprehensible to them. Trust in the financial system is ultimately critical to recovery, but I don't see how it can be restored without some serious housecleaning in Washington and in the financial establishment.