The US Financial Meltdown.

In his op-ed column titled All Fall Down, Thomas Friedman provides a rather succinct account of the chain of financial missteps that the US financial environment was able to permit in recent years. This is a good reminder, and an analysis, that some form of regulatory oversight is required to prevent such meltdowns from occurring. Thus, the ideological "hands-off" approach of some politicians regarding the economy is very flawed. 

What is always required is some sort of oversight to ensure that the resources in a system are deployed properly. Why else do we have operating systems overseeing resources in a computer system?

Squanderville and Thriftville, 2005.

A recent news item is an attempt by a Chinese [state] corporation to buy Unocal, beating out the bid by the American company, Chevron. And, there is a newer news item today that says that Chevron may be prepared to outbid the Chinese corporation, CNOOC.
The immediate thought that comes to mind is Warren Buffett's fable on Squanderville and Thriftville.

Is America becoming the Squanderville that Buffett described so beautifully?