Why is this even allowed?

Question

http://www.yahoo.com/s/930499

"Troubled mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac reported a shocking loss in the second quarter that bodes ill for the US taxpayer after the government's huge rescue package"

I don't understand why taxpayers are responsible for bailing out a private company. This does not compute.

Answer 1

Because if we don't bail them out now it's going to hurt us more in the long run.  

Answer 2

Because allowing major companies to shut down will cause a lot of job loss and the country would lose more money in the end if they had to pay out welfare etc to those people. Also, for many other complicated reasons I won't get into, but try to be succinct and say - return business is better than new business. It would be a huge hassle resulting in bigger losses.

Answer 3

I agree with you its a way of milking the taxpayers of there hard earned to save the fat cats of the land the embarrassment of going under if they didn't take risks in the first place we would all be better off,the alternative to this dilemma is that when a company is successful they don't help anybody but themselves look at Shell,BP ,etc etc the profit margins are soaring and the government does nothing to cap them and the commoners have to pay through the nose at the pumps its all wrong and nobody wants to do anything about it

Answer 4

I thought the government did and it helps everyone with mortages

Answer 5

they shouldn't be...but somehow are.

well the article said something about

"Freddie Mac and twin Fannie Mae, government-chartered, shareholder-owned mortgage firms that underpin roughly half the US housing market, were thrown a federal lifeline a week ago amid the worst housing crisis in decades."

i dont know if they're playing favorites

or its because fannie and freddie are BIG that they throw these life-lines out.

but.. even so, taxpayers always pay for everything anyway, such the term.. 'tax' and 'payer'

Answer 6

Freddie mac is not a private company.

Answer 7

well the tax payers have to pay for everything really.

but yea thats one of the few things i dont like about us government,