Discipline. Consistency. Ethics. Straightforward concepts so easily bent. The global economic meltdown-including the bankruptcy of two of Detroit's three automakers-could have been avoided by using the practices described in The Little Red Box of Management Tools. Instead, many companies violated their implied contract with society and opened the door to massive government intervention. If this intervention continues it may well re-make the U.S. economy in ways that deny its capitalist roots, severely hamper its ability to remain globally competitive, burden succeeding generations with massive public debt, and undercut the lifestyle Americans are accustomed to.