In October 1871, Chicago, the nation’s fourth largest city, experienced a fire that destroyed one third of the city, including the business district, along with 30,000 homes, leaving 150,000 homeless. Over 35 different insurance companies were forced to go out of business, sustaining insurmountable losses on claims from the fire. Not one of these insurance companies was offered, not did they ask for, a federally funded bailout.

Chicago began immediately to rebuild, aided by the generosity of America’s people. The federal government’s contribution towards rebuilding the city, was nothing, not one cent. Why? Such a procedure was against the law of the land, known back in the day as the Constitution of the United States of America. The state of Illinois also contributed nothing toward the rebuilding, also because it was prohibited by the state constitution.

Why is that federal legislators have found it necessary to bail out AIG Insurance Corp., whose only problems were bad investment practices? If CEO Edward M. Liddy had gambled away AIG assets by betting them all on "double zero" on a roulette table, would Uncle Sam still be bailing them out?

If a recent election was, as they said, "about the economy, stupid," the voters should have been paying more attention to Rep. Ron Paul. He is the only legislator in our country’s Capitol with the knowledge of economics and the integrity to stop the insanity.

— William Rogers, 4247 Wood Creek Road,

Town of Verona