"[The current crisis has occurred] primarily... because rulers of the exchange of mankind's goods have failed through their own stubbornness and their own incompetence, have admitted their failure, and have abdicated. Practices of the unscrupulous moneychangers stand indicted in the courts of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men... The money changers have fled from their high seats in the temple of our civilization. We may now restore that temple to the ancient truths. The measure of the restoration lies in the extent to which we apply social values more noble than mere monetary profit."

Roosevelt followed up these words in the famous "first 100 days" with the devastating Pecora Congressional Commission, which exposed and documented the Wall Street dirty dealings that had fueled the stock market bubble and collapse. The head of National City Bank (now Citibank) had to resign in disgrace. As a result, the most far-reaching banking regulation ever passed in the U.S.--certainly much tougher than anything now in place, or even proposed by the Obama administration--sailed through Congress.

And more, including a stimulus bill that actually went mostly to putting people back to work. Yes, the further reforms of 1935-36 went much further (Social Security established). But from the very first, Roosevelt fronted a "take no prisoners" attitude to the financial industry and the rich in general, and that helped enormously in gathering public support for his increasingly radical reforms.

Who thinks Obama will be able to pass the equivalent of a newly-created Social Security program in 2011? I'd love to think so, but there's a price to pay for his determined unwillingness to point fingers at villains. And it ain't the bankers who'll be paying it...

So if Salon's story is accurate, Scott's anti-reform advocacy is simply lobbying on behalf of his company. Seems to me that's the story here.

The problem is that that old scandalous shibboleth "Zionism equals racism" is true. ("Zionism equals colonialism equals racism.") As long as Israel is defined by religion (effectively race and class) and denies Palestinian Arabs full citizenship, it will continue to be the problem. Today's Israel is far, far from "good."