First it was the banking/financial industry coming to the taxpayers with an open hand. Then came the automakers. The big question remains: Who is next?

The reality is that our nation is facing an economic crisis of levels that haven’t been seen in decades. Unemployment is skyrocketing. Consumer confidence in banks and other institutions is dangerously low. The cost of living keeps increasing.

Sadly, we likely haven’t seen the last of the bailout requests from industries that are feeling the effects of a struggling economy, rising expenses and business climate that won’t allow business-as-usual approaches.

Will it be the steel industry? Maybe retailers? Could it be real estate giants? Or maybe it will be the newspaper industry?

It is hard to predict who will ask the taxpayers to pickup the tab next but we caution Congress on doing so arbitrarily and with little oversight.

We do feel that the banking industry and the automakers needed some government assistance to right the ship, but that doesn’t mean they should get a blank check to do with as they please.

Once an industry takes taxpayer dollars, they are open to oversight and management by the government until the problems are corrected. This should be made very clear.

Even more importantly, we hope to see the business leaders and trade organizations of our country make a concerted effort now to correct the problems before they are out of hand.

Operating in today’s climate will likely take a combination of hard decisions related to expense cuts, reevaluating of every aspect of an operation and the sacrificing of profit levels to which many businesses have grown accustomed.

Bailouts must not become a crutch for business and industry to rely on simply because they have fallen on hard times or refused to make changes that are needed.

Taxpayers can be expected to lend a hand from time to time but shouldn’t be asked to subsidize the profits.