In just a few chapters, he outlines the forces that brought the world to the brink of a bust: a house-price bubble boosted by runaway mortgage lending in the rich world, particularly America, a lightly regulated global financial system that found ever-more creative ways to speculate on rising house prices, and macroeconomic policymaking that was far too laid back about the dangers posed by asset-price bubbles.

ECONOMIST: The reasons for the crisis and how to stop it happening again

So following a meeting of the House Committee of the House of Lords, and at their request, I have today written to the senior salaries review body to ask them to review the system of financial support in the House of Lords to increase accountability, transparency and reduce cost.

BBC: In full: Constitution proposals

But the fact that the Public Safety Personnel System is in terrible financial shape convinced Arizona House Speaker Kirk Adams and Senate President Russell Pearce (a retired sheriff) to spearhead reform through the legislature this year.

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Until 2008 growth relied too heavily on consumer spending and house-buying, both of them financed by foreign savings channelled through an undercapitalised financial system.

ECONOMIST: America��s economy is once again reinventing itself

The deal would give LSE its own clearing house at a time when regulators are pushing for greater use of the facilities to protect the financial system.

BBC: LSE cleared by OFT to buy LCH Clearnet

America's financial system has two ailments: it owns a huge amount of toxic securities linked to falling house prices.

ECONOMIST: America's bail-out plan

In conference calls with the White House Brian Wesbury and I fought hard for them to roll back some of the financial regulations which were strangling the system, but the decision was already made.

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The collateral damage from the housing market is already baked in the cake: Expect a continued slump in residential construction activity and employment, lower house prices that will force more subprime lenders to the wall and put strains on the most leveraged parts of the financial system and a slowdown in consumption expenditures.

FORBES: Magazine Article