Main Street Should Care About Wall Street

This column was written by Michael Kao, CEO and portfolio manager of Akanthos Capital Management, a hedge fund specializing in convertible, capital structure and event-driven arbitrage strategies.

As I watch the surreal economic tableau unfolding, I recognize more and more that one of the key impediments to efforts to stabilize our economy and markets is that many people don't appreciate the umbilical cord that exists between the Wall Street economy and the "real" Main Street economy.

While Treasury Secretary Paulson and Fed Chairman Bernanke have repeatedly sought to find the right salve for the economy, they have thus far diluted their own efforts by trying to punishing the "bad guys" on Wall Street. The farcical showdown in Congress regarding the passage of the TARP again revolved mainly around the need for immediate action versus the need to assuage the moral hazard hawks. ...