Part 1:
           I was fascinated with the interview that the author did on CNN. It was very informative but also depressing because there were so many warning signs that could have prevented the catastrophe.  In a previous interview in 2005, Mrs. McLean stated that she feared the corporate culture was corrupted by an attitude of get rich quick and get out  I definitely agree with that mindset.  Instead of instilling an attitude of good stewardship of a company and the people who work there, many top executives and CEO's of companies seem to do business in a way that maximizes their stock options, retirement bonuses, and that of the top shareholders.  As long as the stock of the company is doing well and quarterly earnings are being met, any underlining problems at the company as far as long term longevity or the stability of jobs for the lower level workers are ignored.  With the collapse of Enron and World Com, many of the problems that surfaced at Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, and major Wall  Street companies had already been revealed with those two failures and the massive fallout for employees and investors. 
          What made Fannie and Freddie so difficult to understand and foresee was that the top executives and officers were largely unknown.  There was a shroud of secrecy and very little oversight.  To complicate matters even more, the top executives were a mix of people from many different backgrounds, including government appointments.  Furthermore, they operated with a false sense of security since they were essentially backed by the U.S. government.  Surprisingly, the author mentioned that Fannie and Freddie are still the only companies that can still sell bundled mortgages.  Since very few private lenders or banks are willing to underwrite a loan, there is no choice but to go through  Fannie and Freddie. An essential question still persists with these companies; are they there to make money for shareholders or are they commissioned to support the housing market?  Lastly, an interesting paradox of this crises was that many of the "too big to fail firms," got even bigger as a result of the government bailout. Will this all happen again? I really hope not, Americans desperately need a reversal of the economy.  In some respects, we are turning into a third world economic status with the gap between the rich and poor growing wider every year.