You need to replace "Stupid business practices" with "unethical, corrupt and greed driven" business practices. The actions of lenders and borrowers that got us into this mess make perfect business sense if the only intent was to maximize profit at all costs.

Bankruptcies, business closures, buyouts, mergers, foreclosures, job movements. All ways an economy rebalances itself, and redirects wealth from bad places to better ones. A true economic correction would be long and painful, but each time we suppress it artificially, the pressure builds up, and the printed money increases. The crash will be even worse next time.

That's a good way to look at it but that's how it's supposed to work, not necessarily how it does work. Government should be able to reduce the amplitude of the business cycle by the prudent use of monetary and fiscal policy but- they've f'd up. The interest rate should not have been allowed to slide to this level and they have to come up with a fair tax system once and for all- instead of tax cuts, increases and rebates. Although an Anarcho-Capitalistic system has it's appeal, it lacks the rule of law

The wealthy won't get laid off and since they pay all the taxes then- federal tax revenue won't plummet and the higher tax brackets will nudge up a bit to prior levels. The effect of the increase in the tax rate might even be offset somewhat due to things like decreasing labor costs.

The wealthy aren't paying for the stimulus package because we are borrowing it. The payments are being deferred. The national debt is an interest only loan and we are borrowing the money to pay the interest. Sound familiar?