Goldman can't be blamed alone

Now don’t get me wrong. A bit of Goldman bashing is a good sport, since the firm is one of the biggest and most profitable on Wall Street. And there are plenty of serious questions that need probing regarding products it created and its dealings with the American International Group (AIG).

It’s just that the commission’s first day of public hearings needed to focus less on Goldman and more on the wider rot within the financial system. This misfire made for an inauspicious start for the panel, whose hot seat was filled by Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Morgan Stanley chief John Mack and Bank of America’s newly-minted honcho, Brian Moynihan.