Common sense

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Even today many people are still clutching their heads and wondering ‘How did we ever get into this situation?’ The economic, financial and housing crisis that the world is now experiencing is appalling, and every aspect of every society throughout the world has been affected by the ‘miracle’ of globalization. Worse, this recession (like so many before it) has been overshadowed by the lack of ethical values – which is the most worrying thing about the whole crisis.

The purpose of this paper is nothing less than to appeal to common sense and the principle of prudence (cast aside for reasons of convenience, self-interest or simply greed) in every area of society, but above all in the financial sector, so that we may return to economic growth that is sustainable in the medium and long term. We have to restore ethical values and live in accordance with the truth, rather than a ‘reality’ invented and sustained by a semblance of controlled market disequilibrium. When we go to university we are told that the market cannot be controlled, and that we must adapt to it, managing our businesses or investments in response to the changes imposed on us. However, in recent decades we have seen only too often how the market has attempted to control itself using rules whose effect was to heat up an already overheated economy – as dictated by fallible central regulators.

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