Principle #13 - THE FREE MARKET HAS NOT FAILED, THE GOVERNMENT HAS FAILED.
The Free Market is not a fair market.
The governments latest quest to make sure no large companies fail is really the problem. The government's involvement in everyday market activities is the foundation of the current financial crisis.
For example, when Congress and a Statist(someone that wants the Federal Government to control the individual) President passed the Community Reinvestment Act in the late '70s, they created a dangerous practice of telling banks to make loans to people they would normally turn down due to risk. This, along with a lack of oversight, which is different that a lack of regulation, was a recipe for disaster. The social and economic engineering of left-wing,"big government" elected officials and bureaucrats refused to enforce the regulations that were in place to stop a Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae implosion from happening. As a matter of fact, they encouraged Fannie and Freddie making risky loans because home ownership was at a "all-time high" and more low-income folks were now homeowners. This was also fueled by a Federal Reserve that kept interest rates artificially low. Many people in Washington and on Wall Street knew that there was a brick wall at the end of Easy Street, but it was a case of no one wanting to take the punch bowl away while the party was in full swing.
