Very few people outside Detroit or Washington are actually arguing that an auto industry bailout is a good idea. Here's one who sensibly explains why the apparent alternative — bankruptcy — is also really bad news.

The dilemma here is that neither a bailout nor bankruptcy is an appealing prospect, and it hardly seems necessary to add that neither idea offers a lot of hope.

Whether one supports one side or the other seems to hinge on whether one sees GM, Chrysler, and Ford as long-term ventures worthy of national resources; or whether one believes there's little hope of "saving" them, and a moral hazard in trying to do so.