FDIC: Sieve-like

The US taxpayer’s tab for bailing out troubled financial firms and markets is mounting fast. Along with the $300bn or so the Fed has lent the markets, the $29bn dowry it offered JPMorgan to wed Bear Stearns, and the untold billions it may have to pump into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, it may now have to stump up as much as $8bn to pay off depositors at failed bank IndyMac. Sure, this last bit is a form of insurance, not an overt handout. So at first glance, taxpayers may not be too worried. In n...