Abstract "Son, your ego is writing checks your body can't cash." (Paramount, 1986) The famous words of Admiral T.J. Cassidy in the high-flying action thriller Top Gun (Paramount, 1986) describe what occurred with Enron. Enron was a giant corporation (some say the largest energy company in the world), who depended on outside credit sources to finance its daily operations. In turn its credit-worthiness depended on its performance as reflected in the Enron's share prices. When the …showed first 75 words of 4921 total…

…showed last 75 words of 4921 total…in the 18th century and which became bankrupted almost overnight by actions of a single person at the end of the 20th. While the Barings' case might have been a freak accident, the collapse of Enron was certainly not, and Enron's disastrous finale might foreshadow the taste of things to come, if the Enron's debacle is indicative of hidden systemic faults. This we and the investors do not know until, and if, similar failures occur.