The only way for this nonsense to stop is if one refuses to do business with said companies.

http://money.cnn.com/news/specials/storysupplement/bankbailout/

I shall be closing my account at Branch Bank & Trust Co. which received over $3bln in taxpayer money for being irresponsible and breaching their fiduciary trust with their shareholders by taking ill-advised risks.

If your bank is on here, close your accounts and let them know why. Likewise if one has a credit card (yes, Capital One and Chase are on the list!), look here and cancel, even if it is just your back-up card.

If you have a mortgage (sucker), refinance with a bank not on this list, and be sure to check twice to see if they have been lining your pockets with your money before signing upon the dotted line.

As to non-bank entities such as General Motors, Ford, General Electric, &c, boycott them. From autos to light-bulbs, do not give these crooks a single dime and let them know why, and send a photocopied receipt showing that one purchased a competitor's product to rub their nose in it.

In summary, businesses exist to make money, one way or another. The only way to prevent further pilfering is to make demanding and accepting bailout money a costly matter and a public-relations nightmare. O reader, I see posts on occasion decrying the lack of 'activism' on this board, now is your chance to prove them wrong! Public sentiment is against bailing out such companies so spread this to the four winds and set a wildfire on someone's balance sheet.