US Government becomes Wall Street Bank

This story is amazing - i wonder how I can explain the difference between the current US economy and a fascist economy. I will have to think about this some.....

UPDATE: Here is definition of economic fascism from Internet source - its probably too vague but I find this disturbing when you read the following article (Fascists claimed to provide a realistic economic alternative that was neither laissez-faire capitalism nor communism. An inherent aspect of fascist economies was economic dirigisme, meaning an economy where the government exerts strong directive influence, and effectively controls production and allocation of resources.In general, apart from the nationalizations of some industries, fascist economies were based on private property and private initiative, but these were contingent upon service to the state.
Fascism also operated from a Social Darwinist view of human relations. Their aim was to promote "superior" individuals and weed out the weak.In terms of economic practice, this meant promoting the interests of successful businessmen while destroying trade unions and other organizations of the working class. Historian Gaetano Salvemini argued in 1936 that fascism makes taxpayers responsible to private enterprise, because "the State pays for the blunders of private enterprise... Profit is private and individual. Loss is public and social." Finally, fascism was highly militaristic. As such, fascists often increased military spending significantly, and their main reason for economic development was the wish to have a strong economy backing a strong military. Fascist governments encouraged the pursuit of private profit and offered many benefits to large businesses, but they demanded in return that all economic activity should serve the "national interest".) Doesn't this sound like a description of current US economy, that is the bail out of mortgage industry, and also sound like military policies of Pres. Bush, esp the notion of private corporations contracting services for the military?

The Federal Reserve was scrambling to prevent a "contagion" from infecting the nation's financial system when it took unprecedented actions to back a Bear Stearns rescue package and provide emergency loans to big Wall Street firms.

The Federal Reserve released documents Friday providing insights into its private deliberations in March that led to those controversial decisions. The Fed's actions came when credit and financial problems were intensifying, threatening to paralyze the entire financial system and plunge the economy into a recession.

Given the financial markets' fragile condition at that time, the Fed said it felt compelled to intervene because an "immediate failure" of Bear Stearns would bring about an "expected contagion."

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues initially moved on March 14 to provide temporary emergency financing to investment bank Bear Stearns Cos. through an arrangement with JPMorgan Chase & Co. Two days later, as the nation's then-fifth-largest investment bank teetered on the brink of bankruptcy, the Fed agreed to provide backing for up to $30 billion for a deal in which JPMorgan would take over the troubled company.

That same day — March 16 — the Fed said it would let big Wall Street firms go directly to the Fed for emergency loans, a privilege only commercial banks had previously enjoyed. It was the broadest use of the Fed's lending powers since the 1930s.

The Fed's decision to take this action was "based on recent, rapidly changing developments," the documents said. "These developments demonstrated that there had been impairment of a broad range of financial markets" that Wall Street firms rely on for financing.

There was fear that other Wall Street firms could fall into jeopardy, sending problems cascading through the financial system.

Democrats in Congress and other critics contend the Fed's actions are akin to a government bailout and are putting billions of taxpayer dollars at risk.

However, Bernanke has defended the actions, and in appearances on Capitol Hill has said he doesn't believe taxpayers will suffer any losses.

The Fed's financial lifeline in JPMorgan's takeover of Bear Stearns was subsequently changed to $29 billion and — most recently — to $28.82 billion.