The Lesson of Bear Stearns

Panic is old hat on Wall Street. Rarely before, however, has there been a crisis so comprehensive as this one. It first materialized last summer in the shape of a disturbance in the low-rated, or subprime, mortgage market. “Contained,” the regulatory establishment hopefully pronounced. But it has blazed across markets and time zones, with central bankers, politicians, and Treasury functionaries in hot and, to date, futile pursuit.