The fourth flaw was the market's over-reliance on ratings as a short cut to assessing risk.

ECONOMIST: Securitisation

And politicians in India, often cursed by their constituents for flocking to disasters to show their concern, compare rather well with a US president whose first big gesture after Katrina's damage became evident is to cut a five-week vacation short by two days to give the matter his full attention.

BBC: NEWS | Programmes | From Our Own Correspondent | Lessons in dealing with disaster

It seems to me that the best way of seeing what the investment institutions are proposing is as a short cut to something that's not a million miles from an IPO - since these are exactly the kind of funds that would buy the shares in a stock market flotation.

BBC: Investors want to buy RBS's Williams & Glyn's

Today's hearing was cut short early after a parliamentary move by Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) forced all Senate hearings to suspend for the day.

CNN: Fund-Raising Panel Changes Course