The more I think about this bailout, the more uncomfortable I become. Do we need to do something? Yes. Do we need to move with some pace? Yes. Do we need to do what the Bush Administration is pushing for? Not so fast my friend. Remember, this is the administration that has routinely screwed up two car parades. Perhaps a sober pause to consider options is in order?

First off, there’s the principle. We believe (and I certainly believe) in a market-based economy. So, we’re going to protect the financial institutions and home owners who made bad decisions from the market? How does this square with our system? What sort of precedent does it set? We’re simply going to raise a huge pile of money and hand it over to the very people who created this problem with their greed and bad judgment? Yeah, that sounds like a GREAT IDEA. Thank you sir, may I have another?

Here’s the key question: Why should we hand over a pile of cash to the same morons who created this crisis?

Perhaps there is another alternative we should consider? Let’s create a Resolution Trust Company-like entity and capitalize it with say $100B. Let’s put a trusted Financial expert in charge of the company with a Board of Directors representative of shareholders. Let’s have that company start buying the paper in a reverse auction like mechanism where other institutions can participate (if they’d like – and they won’t.) Let’s give each taxpayer stock in said company such that when the housing market does return from the brink, there is a possibility for recovering funds from the company (heck, put the returns in Social Security in trust for the public.) If $100B isn’t enough, authorize another capitalization round like any other company would.

Meanwhile, re-regulating some of the market activities might be a good idea since the industry has proven it is incapable of governing itself. While we’re at it, some accountability from the financial industry would be a good thing. The executives leading these companies shouldn’t profit from their malfeasance – perhaps even, criminal inquiries are in order. Golden parachutes shouldn’t be available to those who led the country into this mess. If we’re not going to help the individual home owner and we’re not going to help the employee who’s job is now gone, then those in charge should suffer the same consequences.

This preserves the transparency, accountability, and market economy we know and love. It doesn’t set any weird precedents. And it provides for some upside to the people who will fund this bailout, us. Let us not simply hand over another Trillion dollars to the idiots who got us into this mess in the first place, please!