A case for government intervention?

[Bilge_Rat]

When the U.S. and Canadian government pumped billions of dollars and took over ownership of GM, it looked like a case of throwing good money down the drain. Based on pure free market theories, GM should have been allowed to fail and the market left to more efficient foreign automakers.

Now GM is turning a profit, planning a new stock offering and it looks like the government will eventually make its money back:

DETROIT — A week before its initial public offering, General Motors reported its largest quarterly profit in 11 years on Wednesday, showing that the slimmed-down automaker no longer needed huge sales to generate significant earnings.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/11/bu...1auto.html?hpw

so, is all government intervention in the marketplace bad?
...or is it just one additional tool that can be used on a case by case basis.