We're talking here about bailing out startups. The VC investors, founders, and even employees (to a somewhat lesser extent) made a high-risk decision to invest

We're talking here about bailing out startups. The VC investors, founders, and even employees (to a somewhat lesser extent) made a high-risk decision to invest their time and/or money into something that would probably fail. (Also, it's not like a tax-payer funded bailout is the only way these startups can stay afloat... take a bridge load... find an opportunistic investor. Of course the startup investors would much prefer a taxpayer funded bailout because other options will cost them more money and/or a share of the startup. As many are pointing out: they are seeking to socialize the risks and keep the rewards.)