The issue is not the stock buyback but the debt binge these companies have gone on to to buy back that stock. This has left them unprepared and exposed for any kind of a downturn. This exposure is being remedied compliments of the tax payer. "Privatize the profits but socialize the risk" seems to be their mantra. The buck only ever seems to stop at the CEO when the going is good. This is why they are being demonized.