"The forces interested in keeping a large company afloat, he argue, are far greater than those that wish to see it perish. He'd present the students with the fo

"The forces interested in keeping a large company afloat, he argue, are far greater than those that wish to see it perish. He'd present the students with the following hypothetical situation. First, he'd say, let's locate our major factory in an earthquake zone. Then let's infuriate unions by paying executives large sums of money while cutting wages. Third, let's select a company on the brink of bankruptcy to supply us with an essential irreplaceable component in our production line. And fourth, just in case our government is tempted to bail us out when we get into trouble, let's bribe a few indiscreet foreign officials. That, Milken would conclude, is precisely what Lockheed had done in the late 1970s." This isn't something localized to banks. (The quote is from Liar's Poker, a really enjoyable read IMO)