You, me and AIG

We've always known Americans are generous to a fault. But at least the bastards on Wall Street could ask.

This morning it was just Treasury chief Hank Paulson and Fed chief Ben Bernanke, the bailout boppsy twins, tearing up that $123 billion bailout for AIG and replacing it with a $150 billion plan. Sort of like buying a Ford Focus and the dealer handing you the keys to a BMW at the same price.

I think we the taxpayers get a little bigger piece of the insurance giant, which is throat-deep in bad paper from underwriting all the mortgage derivatives that are causing so much trouble. But at this point, no smart investor would want to own any piece of AIG.

After all, this crisis couldn't have happened without the good folks at AIG.

Why will $150 billion work when $123 billion wouldn't? Don't ask, because the twins are just guessing. There are endless trillions of derivatives in play, and most of them have ties to AIG.

When the bailout was approved, the hope certainly was that banks would realize the party was over and start behaving responsibly. They haven't -- witness the stories about bailout funds going for big bonuses and to lobby Congress. It's still business as usual.

I certainly expect the next administration to lay down the law to these clowns. But there's no telling how much more good money the twins will throw after bad by the time these Bush clowns get shown the door.