"Not to dredge back into aincient history, but what do you call the S&L bailout?"

Correcting the mistake initiated by the Carter administration and a Democratically controlled Congress when they deregulated a financial industry but kept federal guarantees in place (
Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act.) Reagan should have corrected it when he first took office, and may well have tried. The bailout wasn't giving money to the rich, it was giving the money that everyday people had in savings and checking accounts back to them when the S&L's went under. You cannot guarantee a financial institution's practices and not regulate them.

"Dick Cheyney allows a subsidiary of a company he once ran to waltz into a government contract to rebuild oil fields in Iraq. Heck, we may even have started the darn war just so he those contracts would be necessary."

Good grief! Are you drunk? Haliburton didn't need a war to have continued success in the business world. ....and they are an American company. Would you suggest that a French or German or Russian company be given those contracts?!?

"And what about all of the pork that goes into nearly every bill that passes Congress: unnecessary defense contracts, or farm subsidies."

On that we agree, to a point. There is way too much pork added to Congressional bills. What is pork is what we would probably disagree on in some cases. I don't think we spend enough on defense, particularilly when it involves salaries paid to those who serve in our armed forces. There are farm subsidies that make no sense at all to me.

Bob