Dravyk, the alternative is what? Endless bank failures, a failure of the real estate market, the closing of companies who are unable to get financing, and so on? Yup, it sucks that the greedy banks and investment robber barons will get off (at least in the short term) without true pain, but the only ones who would feel any pain regardless is the public at large. The barons already have their millions tucked away in gold bars, so it isn't going to hurt them. If anything, without a bailout they could end up being even richer relative to americans.
The good news? If the bailout works, the american government could end up holding a trillion dollars worth of loans for a bargain basement price, and when it comes time to sell them they might actually break even.
