These banks, and really the rest of the finance industry, made it commonplace to loan to suspect borrowers, or to extend too much credit to borrowers that would clearly have been better served with a more modest loan. While borrowers could have certainly made it work with $200,000 fixed rate loans, lenders got creative, and allowed customers to fall into the trap of unsustainable payments with adjustable rate loans of tens to hundreds of thousands more. This drove up the median price of houses, creating an even larger customer base that would have to accept adjustable rate mortgages to own a home or borrow against their home.

When interest rates eventually rose (who would have thought over the length of a 30 year loan that rates would go up?), massive numbers of borrowers could not continue to pay. Lenders like Wachovia and Washington Mutual had a huge inventory of repossessed homes, with an inability to sell at previously inflated prices, while also being unable to keep up the charade that adjustable rate mortgages would be a safe investment for future homeowners. There seemed to be no way to climb out of the hole they had dug themselves into. They had no recourse, setting up Wamu's public seizure and sale to Chase last week.

Are there any lessons in this? Who knows. It seems that in capitalism, some companies will always seek short term gains rather than long term stability. Our financial system requires ever growing dividends for stock holders, who rail against the sometimes reasonableness of stagnant growth. In a way, we are doomed to repeat the failures of today's financial systems. It may take another form, in another industry, but shaky investments and an avoidance to recognize the worst case scenario will return again. Plus, we are not yet into the clear.

One of the more interesting cities in the Sacramento region has become the sleepy cross-the-river town of West Sacramento. For some reason, the town with a fraction of the population of its easterly neighbor has been able to do things that the big guy next door has been unable to do.

Perhaps the first development to put West Sacramento on the map in the region was when the Money Store zigurrat was built. The pyramid-like structure would be unique in any city, but in West Sacramento, it became the first building in a hoped-for business district expansion.

Then, more importantly, Raley Field was built nearby. Emerging out of the rail yards and industrial buildings, the home of the Triple A Rivercats has become a regular top draw nationwide for fans of minor league baseball.

While the state capital has stuttered and stopped as it tries to develop professional level sports facilities, developers were seemingly able to build Raley Field with little debate or opposition. One can imagine Art Savage and company trying to do the same in one of Sacramento's vacant industrial areas. Some Sacramentans would balk at almost any project, and this one would surely bring out cries of traffic problems, light and noise issues, what else could go there, where else it could go, or that no one should be spending money on sports and it should all go to the poor instead.

This spirit of "just build it" has produced some remarkable results for West Sacramento. Ikea, a unique furniture retailer that would be a boon to any regional city's sales tax receipts, wound up in West Sac. A new, glossy skyscraper has been built next to the zigurrat. Exciting, urban-style apartments have been built near the stadium, and plans exist for the nearby "triangle" area (though progress on that may have stalled). The State of California recently announced plans to build an expanded museum for California Native Americans near the confluence of the American and Sacramento Rivers in West Sacramento--a relocation from a smaller location near Sutter's Fort in Sacramento. Talks have occurred regarding a possible new bridge connecting the two cities over the Sacramento River, but, you guessed it, Sacramento neighborhoods have been the primary opposition.

West Sacramento mayor Christopher Cabaldon recently failed in a primary bid for State Assembly. Luckily for West Sacramento, he remains at the head of the city that owes some of it's development to the mayor's office. Calbadon and the city administration continue to work on improving West Capital Avenue, which has seen a reduction in crime and a destruction of blight in recent years.

There are other challenges for West Sacramento. One is an ongoing effort by the police department to combat gangs, particularly in the neighborhoods of Brite and Broderick. The city, and region, will continue as well to keep an eye on the Port of Sacramento's economics. The port is a job source, and an important resource for transporting goods out and into the Valley. Furthermore, West Sacramento must remain concerned about the deteriorating condition of the levees. Levees surround the city, and it may soon be designated a flood zone. FEMA currently states the levees provide 100 year flood protection.

West Sacramento, with officially 21 years of cityhood history (but about 100 years as a town), has developed on a course that may serve as a good example to other communities in the area. As West Sacramento navigates the problems it faces, it will be interesting to see how its development goes on.