Alot could be done if the government encouraged people to invest in FDIC insured CDs at banks. Then we wouldn’t have to loan the banks as much, and the government wouldn’t be taking on as much debt as it is through the sale of treasuries. Why this simple step is not being pushed is beyond me.

The FDIC mandates are causing banks to not renew on GOOD loans and sell them for pennies on the dollar to investors waiting in the wings. No investor, home buyer, or commercial buyer looks at land sold by developers, builders, homeowners, or businesses, but instead deals with the banks and their foreclosures. This is a vicious cycle, because homeowners, businesses, and developers can’t sell their land because they are competing with the very people who threaten foreclosure.

Something needs to be done to stop the spiral. If nothing is done, we will see the biggest transfer of wealth from the middle class to the upper class. I guess that is the whole point? Not only are the big guys getting money from the government, but they are also getting it in the way of assets and payments from the middle class.

By the way: If you think that our current economic troubles are awe inspiring, you are in for the mother of all future shocks. Think of the housing bubble as the mid ocean disturbance. The real Tsunami is still to come. Now think of the present drop in oil prices as a warning the same as the huge tsunami ebb that lures the unsuspecting to the shoreline. Forget Obama – you’d best be looking for high ground…

If the future administration wants to really do something that is effective, they should, post haste, take necessary steps to stabilize commodity prices. The housing bubble is water over the dam and the damage is already done. Sure, the correction is painful, but the present instability of commodities combined with the spector of peak oil will drown us all if we aren’t careful.

Don Kamp, Canajoharie, NY.

In my opinion, it is the same across the entire economy. How did it get this way? The answer is simple: The Federal Government.

Our federal government is too big and too involved in every aspect of our daily lives and economy. It is getting worse folks.

They forge trade deals; meddle where they should not; alter the natural course of capitalism; morph what was once the American culture; legislate “change” when none is needed; induce fear and panic; and weaken the very fabric of society.

The only way to improve our economy is to produce. We cannot produce anything if we are competing with slaves in the third world–all the while our borders are wide open.

Borders. Language. Culture. We are losing all three.

The deck is stacked agains the U.S. economy and Congress fumbles around as inept as always. We have successive presidents who are equally inept and completely devoid of intellectual capital.

Read the tea leaves. The statistics are irrational and manipulated.

It is interesting that vast sums were handed out by Paulson to several financial companies with no questions asked by the media and Congress was not deeply involved in the decisions. Now, when industrial (working) people are in need of some help, all kinds of reasons are given to let them fail, as it was their own fault. Obviously, the giant financials were also responsible for their problems, but the media did not call for their bankruptcies. Our country will not turn around until we have not bigger government, but good government, which is concerned for all of our citizens, instead of just the well-connected big operators.

Our government has encouraged reckless behaviour by their own refusal to maintain an honest, sensible budget, and not keeping watch on conditions that lead to the financial nightmare we are going through. I do not believe we need to worry about raising taxes on the wealthiest five percent in the country as they have been well taken care of for some time now.