Paul Gentile's Aug. 28 column on private insurance admonishescredit union leaders to “cut out the politics and look at the realissue.” On this point I believe Paul is right, since that has beenNAFCU's aim all along in advocating that every credit union,regardless of charter type, be federally insured.

We did not come to that decision lightly, nor has it beenespecially popular. And if we were concerned about “politics,” wecertainly could have taken a much easier road–one that avoided thebumps from critics who say we are meddling where we ought not tobe. But for us, the “real issue” boils down to safety and soundnessand the integrity of our industry. NAFCU believes America's creditunion members deserve to have the safest possible coverage fortheir deposits, and only a federal deposit insurance system canprovide that.

The NAFCU Board takes its responsibilities very seriously. Wemust not only represent the views of our members, but we also havean obligation to take an industry leadership role, which at timesresults in our taking what might be unpopular positions. With theprivate insurance issue, that certainly has been the case.