$25 billion for US automakers: not a bailout

I've previously castigated the US Big 3 automakers, saying that they should either get through the crisis themselves or die. Alex Taylor, writing for Fortune Magazine has a different take: that they should get the bailout because it's mainly the US government's fault that the automakers are in such straits. After all, Congress could have and should have passed a gas tax years ago, which would have inhibited consumption and forced innovations in fuel efficiency. Of course, Congress did not do so.