On Wall Street, So Much Cash, So Little Time (nytimes.com)

there's no way there'd be such bidding up of prices for things if the Fed wasn't keeping everybody from facing up to the very real losses on the books of so many institutions.

Yes, many of the buyers raised money raised money a few years ago, but those buyers compete with the banks flooded with cash that they aren't lending out.

We haven't made those with losses face them. We've just stuffed their pockets full of money and sent them back out to do more foolish things.