The continuing revelations of corrupt corporate governance enabled by political campaign contributions is deepening daunting doubts about the credibility of U.S. equity markets and political leadership. The corruption is creating a widening crisis of confidence and is the sort of pernicious pathogen that can inflict a debilitating blow to the United States' leadership in economic globalization. Guido Rossi, a former Italian telecom chairman said, 'What is lacking in the U.S. is a culture of shame. No C.E.O. in the U.S. is considered a thief if he does something wrong. It is a kind of moral cancer."