(Fortune Magazine) -- The heads-down, can-do entrepreneurs, and libertarian-minded financiers who populate the tech industry aren't typically the sorts to long for a government handout. But in the wake of the Treasury Department's $700-billion-plus rescue plan, Peter Thiel speaks for many when he asks a simple question: "What happened to the dot-com bailout?"

Thiel's not serious - at least not entirely. As founder of hedge fund Clarium Capital and VC firm Founders Fund - with early investments in Facebook, Slide, and LinkedIn, among others - he doesn't need anyone's charity. But as far as bailouts go, his point is that rescuing the Valley would have at least sent a positive message. Even the most vapid online pet-food...  full article