Bailout is like Firefighting
Source: Washingtonjobpost.com
When Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernake was asked why the Fed is doing bailouts of troubled banks, which may encourage bad behaviour, he compared the current crisis to a neighbor smoking in bed and setting his house afire and said:
"You could punish him very severely by refusing to send the fire department, but the neighborhood is filled with closely-packed houses, meaning your neighbor's negligence would spread and burn down the entire 'hood. The smart thing to do is to put out the fire and save him from the consequences of his own actions,"
