What do you get for the person who has everything? Well, maybe you buy him a piece of history. The U.S. Marshals Service has done all the hard work, and now you can take advantage of it... maybe even at discount prices! Possessions seized from Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff are set to go under the gavel in New York City on Saturday, so bring your checkbook and your appetite for luxury. The money will be used to compensate the victims of Madoff's crimes.

The case of the American car manufacturers being brought to their knees by the housing bubble, sub-prime lending and derivatives developed on Wall Street has been in the press for most of the year. If you believe that these issues are the primary cause of this almost imminent collapse of the industry you must be running one of them.

The truth is that General Motors (NYSE: GM), Ford (NYSE: F) and privately held Chrysler are led by bloated egos, with cars being built by bloated unions that are now begging to be saved by a bloated government. Except for the fact that the federal government can print money at will, it would have declared bankruptcy a long time ago itself.

Another difference between the bloated companies and their unions in comparison to the government is that the companies and unions could only lie and fool themselves for so long -- the government has proven that it can do it forever; and it is in this that it displays its greatest creativity.

It looks like a bailout is on its way from Congress but this may only be putting a terminal patient on life support. I have great concerns that the U.S car industry will go bankrupt next year or soon after the government stops propping it up with a cash infusion. Or perhaps, as some have suggested, it may morph into a single entity, through bankruptcy or otherwise.