Readers have the greatest ideas for stories. In fact, we are moving toward a citizen journalist model that puts the readers in charge. One reader wanted us to run a chronology of the financial meltdown — when it started, how it started and what happened along the way. Our specialty is local news, but the Associated Press supplied a wonderful story on the subject and we jumped on it. It ran Monday as the lead story in our home-delivery edition — the best explanation of the crisis that I have seen to date. Many of us are just now learning about terms like commercial paper and bank-to-bank lending. The more we learn, the more we can cope with these times. Please keep your suggestions coming. This story is available on our web site, www.theoaklandpress.com. Just type "Freddie and Fannie paid firm to court senators, kill bill" in the search field.