[Red Badger]

Derivatives should be made illegal...........

[veracious]

I did a web study on the _value_ of everything in the world; found nothing comprehensive but a reasonable estimate seems to be $1 Quadrillion (1,000 Trillion).

[andy58-in-nh]

Much of America would never have been built without financial derivatives such as futures and options contracts, due to excessive risk. Of course, some derivatives are more exotic and non-linear in design, but they are hardly dangerous in and of themselves.

The problem isn't really the instruments - rather, it is one of excessive leverage and socialization of risk. When governments assume the risk of adverse financial events in place of private parties (the big banks, for example), moral hazard inevitably follows, and disaster beyond that.

[RckyRaCoCo]

Whoever allowed the bankster gangsters to be joined at the hip to the equally corrupt federal gov.(that prints fiat money...with the taxpayer holding the bag)...should rot in hell.

Together what they do is equivalent to me taking stacks of $100 bills(printed from my Lexmark)and buying property and other investments with it(throw in some charity gifts to hide the smell of course).

If I do it, and get caught, I go to jail(gov. calls THAT counterfeiting)....unless I've got political friends...then I simply share my ill-gotten-gains with them and we simply enjoy our wine and prostitutes...with the taxpayer(AKA suckers)stuck with the tab.

What Bernie Madoff did was romper room stuff compared to the evil %$#@ that has yet to hit the fan.

These scumbags need to be exposed....drained of all their wealth(their families be damned)...then hung.

[Neidermeyer]

If there were rules they’d be OK ,,,

1.) You must have an insurable interest.
2.) You must have reserves of at least 10% of your gross exposure.
3.) Derivative contracts must be publicly acessible for viewing.