Well I'll try. Is it good for you. If you are some other large financial institution that made big mistakes in buying up those failing subprime loans and not reselling them then yes it is good for you. If you are average Joe sixpack that has a fixed mortage and aren't up to your neck in debt then no it isn't good for you as long as you aren't planning on retiring in the near future (less than 10 years) and living off your 401K. If you are retiring soon and your retirement plan is a 401K and it is stock based then the bail out may be good for you at least in the short term. There will be an uptick in the stock market following the announcement of the bail out plan passing. Weather or not the bail out plan actually fixes the problem is yet to be seen but the uptick in the stock market will be your chance to divest yourself of your stocks and invest in bonds. This is playing out like the stock market crash in the late 20's and early 30's. Investor confidence was restored just before the final down ward spiral. Thoes that managed to get out saved some coin.

Here's an amusing/chilling article from Glen Beck on our possible future

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/01/beck.future/index.html

Let them go chapter 11 IMHO. Let the share holders and execs pay for it instead of taxpayers. If you look at the current bill now its so full of earmarks and other [censored] to get it signed its no wonder no one trusts washington!

Lots of banks out there that never got involved in this crap, like my bank. Clients might whine when I require them to have a stake of ownership in a com'l property, equipment, etc, and when they do I refer them to the front page of their favorite newspaper.

So many of those a-hole lenders completely disregarded sound banking practices, and they deserve to hang for that, financially.

Owning stock is a gamble--- if you choose the wrong institutions to invest in why should I pay??

Dogfish....
I haven't read all the prior posts so excuse me if this has been covered. I heard some people on the tube that seemed to understand the situation stating that a bail-out will prolong the tight money situation and if the market was allowed to run it's course, the market should correct itself in about 2 years.

Any thoughts on that point?

The current bill is now over 100 pages long. They threw in everything including the kitchen sink to make the turd smell like a rose. Bend over and take it like a man. Thanks G.W for confirming that you are the worst Presiden EVER. Just in case we had any dobuts. Feeding us a crap sandwich
http://michellemalkin.com/2008/10/01/the-senate-votes-crap-sandwich-20/

Lets be honest here...the main reason for this bail out is to not scare away the foreign investor. The foreign investors are crucial to Wall street. If they lose big monies in their investments here, they will put their dollars in other countries. I believe I heard that 40% of the liquety in Wall street is foreign money.

Got Pork! Somebody needs to go to

(This letter was sent to Congress on Wed Sept 24 2008 regarding the Treasury plan as outlined on that date. It does not reflect all signatories views on subesquent plans or modifications of the bill)

To the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate:

As economists, we want to express to Congress our great concern for the plan proposed by Treasury Secretary Paulson to deal with the financial crisis. We are well aware of the difficulty of the current financial situation and we agree with the need for bold action to ensure that the financial system continues to function. We see three fatal pitfalls in the currently proposed plan:

1) Its fairness. The plan is a subsidy to investors at taxpayers’ expense. Investors who took risks to earn profits must also bear the losses. Not every business failure carries systemic risk. The government can ensure a well-functioning financial industry, able to make new loans to creditworthy borrowers, without bailing out particular investors and institutions whose choices proved unwise.

2) Its ambiguity. Neither the mission of the new agency nor its oversight are clear. If taxpayers are to buy illiquid and opaque assets from troubled sellers, the terms, occasions, and methods of such purchases must be crystal clear ahead of time and carefully monitored afterwards.

3) Its long-term effects. If the plan is enacted, its effects will be with us for a generation. For all their recent troubles, America's dynamic and innovative private capital markets have brought the nation unparalleled prosperity. Fundamentally weakening those markets in order to calm short-run disruptions is desperately short-sighted.

For these reasons we ask Congress not to rush, to hold appropriate hearings, and to carefully consider the right course of action, and to wisely determine the future of the financial industry and the U.S. economy for years to come.



Signed (updated at 9/27/2008 6:00PM CT)

Acemoglu Daron (Massachussets Institute of Technology)
Ackerberg Daniel (UCLA)
Adler Michael (Columbia University)
Admati Anat R. (Stanford University)
Ales Laurence (Carnegie Mellon University)
Alexis Marcus (Northwestern University)
Alvarez Fernando (University of Chicago)
Andersen Torben (Northwestern University)
Baliga Sandeep (Northwestern University)
Banerjee Abhijit V. (Massachussets Institute of Technology)
Barankay Iwan (University of Pennsylvania)
Barry Brian (University of Chicago)
Bartkus James R. (Xavier University of Louisiana)
Becker Charles M. (Duke University)
Becker Robert A. (Indiana University)
Beim David (Columbia University)
Berk Jonathan (Stanford University)
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Bittlingmayer George (University of Kansas)
Blank Emily (Howard University)
Boldrin Michele (Washington University)
Bollinger, Christopher R. (University of Kentucky)
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Camp Mary Elizabeth (Indiana University)
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Jones Charles M. (Columbia Business School)
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