At hearings in Washington, the executives testifying had scathing views on credit rating agencies. “They precipitated this crisis of confidence,” said one. “They did not look hard enough at the quality and capabilities of the management teams,” said another. An executive from Standard & Poor’s, one of the big three credit rating agencies, responded: “I think we’re an easy scapegoat.”

These quotes are not from the recent heated Congressional hearings about the credit crisis, although many similar sentiments have been doing the rounds. The comments were made at hearings seven years ago, when energy traders faced a series of sharp rating downgrades on the heels of the bankruptcy of Enron.