This is the most useful explanation that I have seen. Thank you for putting together something that makes such a crazy situation comprehensible. It shocks me that bankers let themselves get into such severe trouble, because it seems that there should have been many warning signs along the way. Was it simply greed that made them keep going despite the fact that it seemed ill advised? Or were there reasons why they thought the situation would resolve or fix itself before becoming a mess they couldn't get out of on their own? How could this have been allowed to happen? Will anyone be held accountable? Will anyone create benchmarks to use in the future that say "your bank must be this rich to get on this ride" like the ones they post regarding a minimum height on roller coasters? Thank you for taking the time and trouble to put together such a useful video.

I like this...

but.

Henry was at the meeting where it was decided that each expeditioner could carry any lead bars he wanted to, not tell his mates and could profit from getting other people, without Parkas and and crampons to carry some (though they would be tied to the expeditioner), Henry's Heli-Rescue may be working with one of the banks (extra marks for naming the bank)

I'm not so sure that the Brazilians, the Asians and the Arabs will be thrilled to buy from Henry, his buddies have sold them and their friends in Europe some shoddy merchandise recently, hasn't he?

And Deborah's point about the banks deciding their no longer part of this expedition but really are part of the Commercial Bank expedition with lots of little depositers, those guys with neither parkas nor crampons, needs some explaing...

oh, and this is Henry's first time at the controls, his command pilot has been drinking and there is some risk the helicopter may crash....

Having said all that, this is one of the best explanations of the banking mess.

High marks!

Bravo! As a high school teacher who deplores the abysmal lack of basic economics courses throughout public education, your video will capture techies' attention. I shall show it to all my Enligsh 9-12 classes tomorrow. They cannot see how "this thing" can affect their college years, especially the fresmen.
Should you enlarge the viedo, do please add the blizzard mentioned by another reviewer and show how even teenagers in rural areas will be affected in ways they cannot imagine unless shown, as you do, through amusing graphics.
Good on you!

A new video economist star is born.

Okay, maybe the banks are akin to marooned arctic explorers, and Paulson is coming to their rescue. What is lacking from this illustration, though, is the question of why the bankers ever started off on such a dangerous expedition in the first place, and why we (i.e. taxpayers) must pay for them to be rescued via Henry's helicopter. Moreover, the prospect of being rescued through a government bailout if you set off on a dangerous trek will only encourage the banks to keep doing more of the same- moral hazard, no?

This is a neat metaphor, but it is missing the beginning and end of the story.