Looking for Someone to Blame?

In an article headlined “The Man Who Crashed the World” Michael Lewis profiles Joe Cassano, the former head of A.I.G.’s Financial Products unit. Lewis interviewed employees at the beleaguered F.P. unit and writes that most believed that “if it hadn’t been for A.I.G. F.P. the subprime-mortgage machine might never have been built, and the financial crisis might never have happened.” Lewis traces the unit’s downfall to Joe Cassano, who took over in 2001. AIG F.P. “was now run roughly by a man who didn’t fully understand all the calculations and whose judgment was clouded by insecurity.” [%comments]