But at least now we know that skies can indeed fall!

Sir Martin Wolf's laudable exercise in citizen responsibility "Why the sky may not be falling", September 5, asks whether, besides Gordon Brown, "anybody else believe the business cycle could be eliminated?" The answer, unfortunately, is yes.

All those financial regulators who empowered credit rating agencies to act as traffic cops directing the flows of funds flashing their risk signs; and believed the tall tale that the risks could be diluted in the global oceans or managed by those able to do so, also believed implicitly that the business cycles could be eliminated and that the sky could not fall.