I don’t buy the too big to fail scare tactic, and it sickens me our “leaders” buy right into it. First it was Bear, then Frannie, then $700 Billion, which apparently did jack squat.
On the consumer side the worst thing is people have to pay cash for things they buy, or pay off their existing credit card balances like responsible members of society – oh the horror!
The business side is a little more serious if they can’t purchase inventory or people don’t receive their paychecks. I’d rather lend money to these businesses than failed ones. And if the banks fail the gov’t should guarantee those laid-off get what they’re owed and can get enough unemployment to survive until they find a job.
All they continue to do is incentivize big, slow, pooly run businesses to get so big, so slow, and so poorly managed that they fail.
Warren Buffet suggested the top execs at these companies should have to pony up some of their own assets to receive tax payer money. I think that’s a great idea. If you’re making over a $1MM a year running a company into the ground and getting my money for help, you need to put your own ass on the line.