When We Loan Money to Corporations why Do they Get to set The Interest Rates? Sometimes at 0%

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CNNMoney is reporting MBIA eliminates quarterly dividend, saving $174M annually.
MBIA Inc. (MBI) said late Monday its board voted to eliminate its quarterly dividend. The Armonk, N.Y.-based bond insurer said the elimination will save roughly $174 million annually, which is the amount that the company paid out in dividends in 2007.MBIA said the action was taken at the recommendation of Chairman and Chief Executive Jay Brown 'to further strengthen the company's financial resources and to increase its operating flexibility.' The dividend was reduced on Jan. 9 to 13 cents, although no dividends were paid out at that rate. 'MBIA will continue to take reasonable and prudent actions such as this dividend elimination in an effort to retain and strengthen our Triple-A ratings,' said Brown in a statement.

The corporations can stop paying interest just in order to keep a AAA rating not to avoid bankruptcy. However, American families who are cashed strapped and on the edge, must endure usery increases in the credit card rates charged by the large banks. The banks can up them on just a whim or the need to increase their own profits. If that's not bad enough, Bank of America has asked congress for a $739 billion bail-out. In practice, taxpayers would almost certainly view such a move as a bailout.
To prevent that, Bank of America suggested creating a Federal Homeowner Preservation Corporation that would buy up billions of dollars in troubled mortgages at a deep discount, forgive debt above the current market value of the homes and use federal loan guarantees to refinance the borrowers at lower rates. If lawmakers and the Bush administration agreed to this step, it could be on a scale similar to the government’s $200 billion bailout of the savings and loan industry in the 1990s. The arguments against a bailout are powerful. It would mostly benefit banks and Wall Street firms that earned huge fees by packaging trillions of dollars in risky mortgages, often without documenting the incomes of borrowers and often turning a blind eye to clear fraud by borrowers or mortgage brokers.
Why is it when we loan money to corporations that they only pay us interest in the form of dividends and increased stock value based on what THEY can afford. Seems pretty lopsided to me. Sometimes, they don't even pay us back the principal. (Enron, etc.)

In Love Affair With Credit Cards Is On The Rocks it is noted how Bank of America (BAC) and other lenders have raised interest rates on credit cards out of fear of rising defaults.Citigroup (C) put a Strange New Definition On "High Risk" by canceling customers who actually paid their bills on time.In regards to Home Equity Lines, Countrywide And Chase Shut Off The Cash Spigot. Now, the Washington Post is noting that Bank of America (BAC) and USAA Federal Savings Bank are following suit.

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