U.S. markets on Monday swung high, then low, then high again in a dance that mimicked the markets of October when motion sickness was possible.

More Americans filed bankruptcy in October than in any month since changes to U.S. bankruptcy laws in 2005 as unemployment and falling home prices prevented consumers from paying their debts.

Call it déjà vu. Despite reforms intended to make it harder to file for bankruptcy, consumer filings continue to march steadily higher toward the rate they were before legislation was overhauled in 2005.

The goals of the controversial 2005 Bankruptcy Reform were to both lower the number of those filing bankruptcy and also to increase the amount recovered post bankruptcy by forcing consumers into Chapter 13 bankruptcies. Seeing the latest data, it is clear that both of these goals have been failures - however the unique way in which they have failed is worth investigating.

From January to August, national bankruptcy filings reached 954,911, up from 703,732 in the same period of 2008, according to Automated Access to Court Electronic Records. In August, filings were up 22% compared with August 2008.