Venturing into The Nation, I am sad to say I was not enlightened in the least bit towards refreshing new ideas. It seems as though the editorial staff is almost gleeful at the turn of events in this country regarding the financial crisis. I was most disturbed by the smiles on the faces of the leaders of the political wing you endorse in Congress when the $850 billion government infusion into the banking system occurred. Isn't it ironic that that money is not even being used for what the Democrats even envisioned? They were hungrily eying the cash as government largesse, an opportunity to increase spending and please their newest dependent, the middle class.

Who is your readership? They strike me as all the A students in school, big on theory, short on production.

Please don't rip us succeeders anymore. We will indeed rise up again if we fall. Take all the wealth in the world. Divide it evenly. Five years from now, the same people will have it back in their pockets.

Ed Guidone
Homeschooler

Chicago, Il

Fellow Americans let's realize one thing--our brilliant money men shoveled in toxic mortgage money at one end and repackaged it, leveraged it and resold it as gold to the rest of the world. The world is pissed!

Here's salvation for the rest of the world and the US as well:

First, we go with the Treasury Secretary we got. Henry, lead us to the promised land: The New New Deal. Dethrone George Bush/Milton Friedman/Arnold Greenspan (Markets work; governments don't), install John Maynard Keynes/FDR (they helped save capitalism the last time).

Memo to Obama: Drop Robert Rubin and Larry Summers and the rest of the free market deregulators on your team. Ditto for the cold warriors and liberal humanitarian interventionists. We need to end our vast overseas empire. Besides, we're broke and charity begins at home. Place Baker, Weisbrot and Kuttner et al. on your economic team.

Just like Nixon who found peace with China, Paulson can lead us to a caring socialism/capitalism. It's possible: we could become a loving Scandinavian country.

Howard Kaplan

Belmont, Ma