Everybody wants a piece of the pie. I said it when the talk of a bailout first cropped up. I said to myself (and others) that companies would come out of the woodworks because they want some of that money too, just because other companies (their competition) is getting it.

The price of oil controls the cost of almost everything. Oil or the some by-product of oil is used somewhere in either the manufacturing process, transportation or energy supply. (farming equipment, fertilizers, insecticides, biocides, fungicides, feed stocks, fuels, intermediates, pharmaceuticals, plasctics, asphalts, roofing and the list is endless).

The price of gas(oil) is falling like a turd in a well. I paid $1.56 a gallon today in Jackson, MS. My brother-in-law works in the oil industry and swears we'll see a 1.25 in the not so distant future. OPEC knows the world revolves (depends) on the US economy and without the US, the world economy suffers. OPEC is reporting of cutting production. He's says that is BS and they are flooding the market with oil. He's been in the business for 40 years. He's no crackpot.

US wages have gone up because of the surge of oil/gasoline record breaking prices in the US. Once this decrease is realized in manufacturing, the prices of food products, medicines, commodities will stabilize and earners will have more money to spend. Hopefully, businesses and banks can hang on until that equilibrium is reached. CEO's and top management making millions can cut their pay for starters.

If folks just knew how much money is wasted because of corporate BS. The company I work for, imo, is very conservative, but good God Almighty, the waste that goes on is staggering. Millions upon Millions are wasted on bad ideas, fluff, wining and dining BS.

I'm mad. The veins on my neck are beginning to bulge. I'd better stop. I think you're right about BIG OIL bailing out the Auto industry, after all, their high price of gasoline didn't help the car makers sell cars.