This bailout quagmire is complicated stuff and as Paul Krugman has said the bill is not perfect by any means but better to pass something then to risk having the country plunge into a deep, wrenching depression (yes, it is that bad).

But don't take my word for it, to help coax you in your thinking, all you have to know is many of the House Republicans that reversed course earlier this week and decided to vote down the bailout had reportedly been inundated by furious calls from listeners of the likes of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. If the Limbaughs and Hannitys are against the bailout, you know it can't be all that bad.

Again, it's flawed and will need lots of reworking in the many weeks ahead, but it's a first step and time is of the essence. Libor continues to shoot skyward, indicating banks are growing increasingly unwilling to loan to each other, further exacerbating an already bad liquidity problem. But the root cause of the liquidity freeze is the solvency issue, namely that banks do not trust the balance sheets of their brethren thanks to the toxic vehicles they own. Sell the damaged goods at deep discounts to rid it from the balance sheet and lending funds should begin to flow again.

To gain a better understanding I recommend reading this and this.