[legion]

I make no secret of being a conservative libertarian. I believe that in most instances the free market is best for rewarding good management and punishing bad.

We have this theory called "too big to fail". It basically says that once a company gets so big, letting it fail will have a more adverse economic impact than propping it up with taxpayer money. I think its a load of BS. It creates an environment where corporate management knows it does not have to deal with the consequences of its decisions. A 'moral hazard' if you will.

Companies who make bad deals with their unions should be punished for the mismanagement by being forced to abide by those contracts. Same with pensions and health insurance. The only time a company should be relieved of its pension duties is when it ceases operations and actually goes out of business.

An argument can be made that the airline industry is "critical" and therefore we must prop up those companies on the verge of failure, but these are not the only companies! There are profitable airlines...they can and will pick up the slack if the "major carriers" are allowed to fail.

The problem is these people are pitching corporate welfare as a 'conservative' issue. I am a conservative, and I don't believe many things should be subsidized, individuals or corporations.

I say let United crash and burn under its own mismanagement. It will make airlines cautios to give in to bad union contracts. It will make them more careful about how pensions are managed. It will make corporate managers accountable for their mismanagement.