Michele, there is not much about that is good. The reasons that we are here are convoluted but this has been a long time in coming.
I’m not sure whether this bailout is workable or just another bandaid.

The original Paulson plan was a bad idea. First it was to slow because time was required to figure out which assets to buy and determine their price. Second is that no one really knows what these assets are worth, so figuring out a price is anyone’s guess.
The capital injection plan solved both problems and was actually the plan preferred by most economists. I liked it better because it also offers tax payers to chance to recover their costs if the banks are worth more in the future. I’m actually surprised and pleased that Secretary Paulson changed direction since he seemed intent on his plan.
One thing people need to understand is that the bad debts are the smaller part of this problem. The leverage in the credit default swaps market is the real killer. Also when Lehman failed it caused several money market funds to break the buck which is why the credit markets froze. In retrospect letting Lehman fail was a bad idea, but I can understand why the government allowed it to happen. They didn’t know just how bad things were under the covers.

The bailout is bad. It was bad when first proposed. It is bad in the new iteration. But doing nothing is worse. Much worse, both in the short term and in the long run.
The thing that I have not heard from any critics is what they would propose that would be any better? I’m at a loss to find a way out of this without massive government intervention. The free market sure wouldn’t pull it off. Neither would a fully private enterprise solution, such as a massive loan/grant from the billionaires in the world.
The only entity with the resources and ability to move fast enough to make a difference is the government. If someone has a better solution, let’s hear it!

And how. Bawney Fwank would say twoo, twoo, twoo. And his fwiends, Kwiss Dodds, and Henwee Waxman. All run by Joge Sowos. And, Bawock Obammer would set up the dictatoship of the pwowatawiat.
In Wussia, Octobah sahpwise, the banks wuh seized fust, then pwivate pwopity and cowectivization of industwy.
The Bolshevik revolution in the US was much different order than old russian soviet union.
Here, the U.S. Industry was long ago collectivized under the EPA (for the environment) The kids were brainwashed in school for decades under the NEA and AFT. The 4th estate in the media became the 5th column. The senator sons of senators, the representative sons of representatives, the mayoral sons of mayors. The county board presidential sons of county board presidents. Thanks to Venezuelan voting machines: Dead people voting, to dead people holding office. Then finally: The presidential sons of a thousand points of light, after the blow-job president outsourced production, turning the stock market into a casino, where Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were knowingly peddling bad paper. So, the banks could be seized. And, much property. The dictatorship of the proletariat might begin with the next election. The purge of the resistive through national health care, and Dr. Kevorkian as surgeon general?

One more thing. From what I’ve read the executives could turn down Secretary Paulson. But if they did and came back later the terms would be worse. Bascially he was driving a hard bargin with them which is typical in business. Putin would have thrown them in jail on trumped up charges.
Even the bank which didn’t need the capital and didn’t want the governments money stands to benefit. Getting captial on favorable terms will let them expand and become more valuable.

NPR had on the woman who heads up FDIC and she said that Paulson is just giving to his “club,” Wall Street. It’s the only thing he knows, meanwhile, people are in foreclosure – 300,000 new ones each month.
I almost want a Republican in the WH when these institutions become nationalized but at least we can say they started it. I can’t see how anyone who’s opposed to insurance bureaucrats making medical decisions for doctors can support politicians proposing fiscal solutions. Politicians aren’t generally known for their financial acumen.
On top of this, the largest SSI COLA in 25 years!
What a perfect storm …

But, hey, oil at $70/barrel is really, really helping the airline industry!

ah, moonshadow… always the optimist!

We got there in the typical Republican way, especially the typical Bush-ite way: Do whatever you want. Don’t worry about permission or legality or even whether it’ll work or not.
Remember, 9/11 changed everything. You just didn’t believe it at the time, though, did you?

If Paulson is Putin, what does that make Bush, who appointed him? Putin’s lapdog?