From the Newark, N.J. Star-Ledger — Originally published Friday, March 13

“Why isn’t someone in jail?”

If you heard that once, you heard it countless times as evidence mounted that criminal misconduct as well as simple incompetence may have been at the heart of the colossal Wall Street collapse …

Well, now, someone finally has been jailed — Bernard Madoff, the poster boy for bad behavior among the over-paid, under-regulated mandarins of the marketplace. But Madoff’s move from the penthouse to the jailhouse must be the beginning of the process, not the end.

Interest centers for now on how long a stretch Madoff will get. But that’s the least of the unresolved issues, since it’s unlikely he’ll ever live as a free man again.

More important is how he managed to keep the scam alive for almost 20 years without being detected. Also, how he managed it all alone …

If, indeed, he actually did it all alone.

… But there’s a consideration in the scandal more important than Madoff and his money. It’s the Securities and Exchange Commission. How could it have missed this massive fraud? And what else during Wall Street’s walk on the wild side has the SEC overlooked? …