One bailout after another.....

Plan begins to emerge to rescue Citigroup

"U.S. government regulators were nearing approval of a radical plan to stabilize Citigroup on Sunday in which the government would soak up tens of billions of dollars in losses at the struggling bank, according to people briefed on the discussions.

The plan, which emerged after a harrowing week in the financial markets, would mark the government's third effort in as many months to contain the deepening economic crisis. While the negotiations were in flux on Sunday night, the proposal, if applied to other banks, could set the precedent for other multibillion-dollar financial rescues."

Please allow me to provide my own personal interpretations of the bold and italicized sentences above.

1) "the government would soak up tens of billions of dollars in losses at the struggling bank."

My interpretation: our government will misuse more of YOUR tax money to pay for more corporate losses.

2) "the proposal, if applied to other banks, could set the precedent for other multibillion-dollar financial rescues."

My interpretation: don't think that our government is going to stop screwing us in the backside anytime soon.

Many who advocate for these business bailouts balk at the idea of cutting corporate taxes. The claim is that reducing corporate tax rates is corporate "welfare." I'm not so sure there is a difference. For a bailout, the government redistributes back to the corporations taxes which have already been collected. Why not just take less money from corporations (and the citizens) in the first place?

A very dangerous precedent is being set. Businesses will not be competitive or run a tight ship and competition may decrease (and prices will go up) when companies know that they can run to the government for financial help. We will be paying for this, among other government misuses of our tax dollars, for a long time.