I hate corporate bailouts. But as Oncelor stated, in this case they are a necessary evil. The costs to not do them would be complete devastation of our economy.
That said, I think they should have done more to limit executive pay/bonuses and in many cases fire boards of directors and top execs.
As for what else could we do.... well that comes back ultimately to politicians changing the rules. When they took away the safeguards put in place during the Depression (due to the Rockefellers/Kennedies etc... abuse of the system) they opened the doors for the same type of runaway corruption and greed among the financial institutions, lenders and borrowers.
What do we need to see immediately...
1) Re-implement Glass Steagall
2) Without question re-implement the uptick rule.
3) Regulation and transparent reporting by Hedge Funds. Put them under the SEC and NASD just like the rest of the investment world.
As for the autos... I really don't like this particular bailout, especially if they don't get rid of Wagoner at GM. I do like the fact that the unions have made some good concessions, but the overall business model needs a complete overhaul. It has been shown to be a failure for the last three decades (at least). When we see the relative success of foreign autos made in the US, there is clearly a tremendous room for improvement. Giving money to the same people and expecting them to do something different is especially naive.
