A funny thing happened while the government was bailing out Wall Street. Yes, some of those firms had the audacity of dope to pass around big bonuses, and yes there was anger at them by the president, Congress and taxpayers alike, and yes that anger was matched by indignant bankers who couldn t believe their behavior would be regulated. Yes, yes, yes, all that happened. But another thing occurred: people moved money out of non-TARP-bolstered firms to those with the government bailout money. Perhaps this is one of those unintended consequences often talked about: firms that didn't get or take taxpayer money actually lose business because, well, they didn't get or take taxpayer money. And those who had been ailing and got a shot of government relief benefited from their prior, at least we hope prior, bad behavior. You can't necessarily blame the customers. After all, with the Bernie Madoff sting still hurting, many customers might believe the best place to put their money is with a government investment, and with as much money as Wall Street is getting, I'd call those firms that got the TARP money a government investment.
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