Yet recently, even though we've nationalized no banks and undergone no grand reinvention of capitalism, the sense of panic seems to be easing. Perhaps this is a mirage -- or perhaps the measures taken by the U.S. government and other countries have restored normality. Over time we might see that faced with underreacting or overreacting, most governments wisely chose the latter -- and appear to have averted a systemic breakdown. Many experts are convinced that the situation cannot improve yet because their own far-reaching sweeping solutions have not been implemented. Most of us want to see more punishment inflicted, particularly on America's bankers. In fact, there has been much pain, especially in the financial industry, where tens of thousands of jobs have been lost , at all levels. Fundamentally, though, markets are not about morality. They are large, complex systems, and if things get stable enough, they move on. - Joe Fullman