they pulled those tricks because widows and orphans money was regulated so it had to be in 'AAA' products, and the widows and orphans demanded higher returns because 'everybody' else was getting higher returns or they were going to invest they're money elsewhere.

look, by no means am i blaming 'widows and orphans' for this mess, it's just the reasons for it are very complex. even regulation that seems like a great idea, grading investment products, ended up playing some small part in the chaos.