It seems hard to believe that here we are a year after Lehman's bankruptcy, and not much has been done to prevent another financial system meltdown.

At first, I was worried Washington would over legislate as a knee-jerk reaction to the financial crisis. As you may recall, last March, the House overwhelmingly approved a 90% tax on bonuses paid to firms that accepted large amounts of federal bailout funding. That bill didn't become law, but public fervor for reform was overwhelming.

Now, I worry about complacency. Nearly everyone agrees that reforms are needed to address the roots of the financial crisis. It's reasonable that some changes, like how to oversee systemic risk, deserve serious debate. But others, like the creation resolution authority to unwind troubled firms, seem to enjoy widespread support. So I can't understand the delay in that agency's creation.

One thing I'd like to point out is that Congress can pass all the laws it wants, but I doubt it will ever be able to change the culture of risk taking on Wall Street. There will always be people on Wall Street who will find ways around the rules, especially if it means making more money.