Will the American People Be Too Big To Fail?

When the time comes, and it is our actual savings that are on the line, will the government save us? And how?

Here's the news lead to come:

In addition to the $20,000 now owed by every American man, woman and child to Citigroup, AIG, and Goldman Sachs, Americans now owe an additional $20,000 to themselves, for a net obligation of $40,000 per American.

And we're just beginning to see the smoke of a really big fire (as if the conflagration already under way weren't enough). Here's a November 25th Financial Times lead:

‘Problem’ banks stoke fears over FDIC fund
By Saskia Scholtes in New York
November 25 2008 19:29

The list of “problem” banks grew by almost 50 per cent in the third quarter, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation reported on Tuesday, stoking fears that further bank failures could put the agency’s insurance fund under severe pressure.

Sheila Bair, FDIC chairman, suggested more failures were likely in spite of government support for the banking industry. While the US Treasury’s capital purchase programme would bolster bank capital levels and revive lending, she said the scheme was not intended to help banks that were not “viable”, such as those on the problem list.