Matt Taibbi comments on the special treatment that Wall Street appears to receive:
… a veritable mountain of evidence indicates that when it comes to Wall Street, the justice system not only sucks at punishing financial criminals, it has actually evolved into a highly effective mechanism for protecting financial criminals. This institutional reality has absolutely nothing to do with politics or ideology — it takes place no matter who’s in office or which party’s in power.
Once the rule of law breaks down, society is lost. We are rapidly approaching the rule of man rather than law. It appears to have been in place for years regarding Wall Street.
A few quotes which have bearing on what we appear to be abandoning: 
The spirit of truth and the spirit of freedom — they are the pillars of society. Henrik Ibsen
Our span of life is brief, but is long enough for us to live well and honestly. Cicero
The first duty of a man is the seeking after and the investigation of truth. Cicero
Where is there dignity unless there is honesty? Cicero
