So next up from the economic crisis: no more credit for you, Joe Consumer. Check out this article over on Reuters‘ site. It’s a bit longer on speculation than fact, but this is not the only piece I’ve seen suggesting the banks are going to radically reduce the amount of available consumer credit, and I’ve already been contacted by one of my banks letting me know they’re jacking up my interest rate and fees. If you’re living your life off your credit card and you don’t have a stellar credit score, watch out.

Here’s an idle bit of speculation to ponder, too. How long do you suppose it will be before the insurance companies start dropping clients? All of this stuff is deeply intertwined, and offering insurance requires capital and access to it. Insurance is heavily regulated and there are more stringent requirements on capitlization than the banking industry was coping with, but where do you suppose those funds the insurance companies are required to hold are actually sitting? And how much do you suppose they’re actually worth versus how much they think they’re worth? I have no facts to back this up, just idly wondering how far this unravelling will go.