Briac

* Trying to convince your "Main Street" pals to support the bailout? Here's a compelling argument. * Of course, the bailout plan we've all come to know is not the same one being voted on by the Senate today. I'm not so much talking about raising the FDIC cap, so much as this: "The legislation also includes a 'Mental Health Parity' provision, which would require health insurance companies to cover mental illness at parity with physical illness." I totally support that provision... in a different bill. * Buyout firms are having a very tough time finding leveraged loans, which often leaves mezzanine debt as the next best thing. * Surviving the credit crisis: A guide for entrepreneurs. * Calcanis on startup depression. Wilson chimes in. * Economist Joe Stiglitz on the worst case scenario.

* Wilbur Ross on Congress: "I think the people who voted against it should be ashamed of what they did. In order to save a $700 billion investment -- not spending, but investment --they caused investors a trillion dollars. That means for each of the guys that voted against it, it cost the investing public $4 million today." * Credit crunch concerns: Om worries about Valley tech companies, Martin worries about cleantech companies and Erik worries about VCs (and their fund commitments). * Next up on the FDIC watchlist: National City and Sovereign (hey, Sovereign's my bank. Crap). * Heller Ehrman: Anatomy of a dissolution. * The 25 Most Influential People on the Web. Lots of usual suspects like Barry Diller and the Google guys, but it was great to see Jeff Clavier in there...

*NYT says Wall Street RIP. * Wachovia looks like the next bank to lose its independence, with Citi and Wells Fargo seen as the most likely buyers. Wasn't it just a week ago that the Charlotte-based firm was in talks to acquire Morgan Stanley? * If global markets keep falling this morning, will that cause some House members to rethink their votes today? Clearly some overseas believe this plan is more bandaid than cure, which could be a compelling reason for some at home to jump ship (particularly given the public's dislike of the measure). As an aside, I can't help but wonder if McCain is about to come out against the bill. I know he promised support, but he's a desperate man with a proven disposition toward pandering. * Icahn says the bailout plan should not only include caps on future golden parachutes for executives at participating firms, but also should include clawbacks for folks like Jimmy Cayne and Dick Fuld. Not sure if something that retroactive could pass judicial muster, but I like the sentiment. * VC-backed bust: Uber.com

*Michael Lewis: Time to rescue the bonuses at Goldman Sachs. * Sen. Bob Casey and the Washington Post bogart my presidential debate question. * Terra Firma and Deutsche Bank have settled their "hung loan" case with UBS, which wanted to sell debt in TR/Deutsche portfolio company Tank & Rast. Depending on the still-undisclosed details, it could have big ramifications for other European banks that want to sell "hung" leveraged loans. * VC-backed bust: Hospital Partners of America, which had raised around $70 million from firms like New Enterprise Associates and Tailwind Partners. * Trust in Hank? Greenberg, nor Paulson.

* Daily carnage report: TPG waves dilution rights on WaMu, Blackstone Group gets advisory role on AIG bailout (or AIG life preserver, if you'd prefer), Hank Greenberg still wants to find a private capital alternative for the insurance giant, Lehman Asia is running short on time, Lloyds takes out HBOS and Morgan Stanley remains in merger talks. * Icahn takes aim at the boards of directors: Why Pay So Much for So Little? * Lee Pickard takes aim at the SEC. * Chelsea Clinton returns to hedge world, and winds up at Lehman's bankruptcy hearing.

* All eyes today on AIG, which last night was downgraded by S&P and Moody's. Well, plus there's that Fed meeting and word that Barclays has hopped back into the Lehman hunt. Could you have imagined a week ago that Merrill Lynch would agree to be bought, and it would be considered a relatively small story? * Joe Nocera: What we've got here is a problem of denial. * Dennis Berman: Where was Lehman's board? * Roger Eherenberg: Investment Banking 2.0. * Damn, it does not feel good to be a banker. * VC-backed bust: Wallop, a social networker that had raised around $10 million from

* In case you haven't heard: Lehman bankrupt, BoA buying Merrill Lynch, AIG desperate, WaMu safe by comparison. And that may all be out of date by the time you read this. * As of now, private equity has been mostly left out of the above excitement, with a few exsceptions: TPG obviously owns a stake in WaMu, while reports say that it and KKR tried to buy a stake in AIG, but bailed after the Feds (correctly) declined to provide a financial backstop. J.C. Flowers -- which is advising Merrill Lynch -- also took a shot at AIG, but was rebuffed. * * Kleiner Perkins launches a blog for its iPhone fund. Reserving judgement...

Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann: "I'm convinced that all banks are aware of their responsibility to Lehman, and we will find a solution." * It's official. Hell, it's biological: The U.S. government has been screwed by big oil. * I wonder how many VCs are already in touch with ousted VMWare CEO Diane Green, wondering what her next move will be. * Howard Lindzon: Forced selling is for amateurs.

Steve Jobs proves he's still alive. Wish the interviewer had asked if Jobs had reevaluated anything after reading his premature obituary. In the past, such a gaffe helped create the Nobel Prize (if only Jobs had created something known for killing people)... * John Cook: Can the State of Washington take a bigger bite out of California's venture capital pie? * What Henry Kravis really wants. * Heidi Moore: Can/should the feds step in to bail out Lehman?

* Sarah Palin's Freddie/Fannie comments raise questions. But don't worry, she won't let anyone ask them of her. * Daniel Lyons: Apple is beginning to look like Microsoft circa 1998. * How bad off is the media sector? It's getting outperformed by financials. * Venture Capital Journal: It's time for VCs to modernize their portfolio management, but many cling to their old-fashioned ways (sub req).