Volcker Identifies Shattered Illusion of Deregulation

Quote of the weekend comes from Paul Volcker, chairman of President Obama's Economic Recovery Advisory Board and former Fed Chairman. Volcker discusses his regret that he didn't more vocally oppose the deregulation of the financial markets that got us into our current mess:

“You had an intellectual conviction that you did not need much regulation — that the market could take care of itself.... I’m happy that illusion has been shattered” [Paul Volcker, quoted in Louis Uchitelle, "Volcker Pushes for Reform, Regretting Past Silence," New York Times, 2010.07.09].

Bonus conservative teasing: Uchitelle mentions that the financial reform bill is 2400 pages. Why haven't I heard the same outrage from the tea "party" over this hefty legislation that we heard last year when the town-hall shouters would indict the health insurance reform bill as obviously bad by mere dint of its comparable page count? Where are the misspelled-placard-waving patriots warning that Uncle Sam is trying to come between you and your banker? I guess financial reform is too good of an idea for the teabaggers to counterprogram with lies about death panels or some similar oversimplified propaganda.