McCain made a point of saying on 60 minutes that the financial meltdown was a result of Wall Street violating Adam Smith's Social Contract. Have I got my philosophers mixed up, or does McCain have his head up his ass? What is the connection between Rousseau's Social Contract and Adam Smith? I don't remember Smith's invisible hand theory requiring anything from individuals except doing what is in their own best interests. The free market works efficiently when everyone does what is best for them, not what is best for society. The whole idea of the invisible hand is that if we allow a truly free market to exist, it will result in the most efficient allocation and distribution of resources. How does this square with Rousseau's theory? I don't think it does at all. Since when is there supposed to be a social contract in capitalism? Isn't that the whole point of regulation? Maybe I'm wrong, but I am betting that McCain is way off base again, just like when he said inflation and a recession are inextricable. Any first year Econ major knows they actually work like a teeter totter and that you can't effectively fight both at once with Keynesian economics.