text:
(CNN) -- Heavy snow pummeled much of the East Coast on Wednesday, battering states for the second time in a week and forcing many people to stay home from school and jobs.

Several cities had record snowfalls.

The storm canceled or delayed flights in several cities, kept federal workers home for a third straight day in Washington, and taxed local government budgets as cities and counties scrambled to pay for snow removal, overtime, salt, supplies and equipment.

In Washington, the snow was falling at a rate of 2 inches per hour at one point in the afternoon, CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras said. Forecasters predicted that Washington winds would gust to 50 mph overnight.

A blizzard warning was to be in effect in the Washington area until 7 p.m., the National Weather Service said. Blowing snow caused such poor visibility at midday that snowplows temporarily parked by the side of the road, authorities said.

Forecasters predicted that the storm would dump a total of 8 to 10 inches inside the Capital Beltway (Interstate 495), with higher amounts to the north.

Watch the forecast on the storm's trek

"Even if you're in a SUV, it's difficult to get around," Washington Police Chief Cathy Lanier said. "You can't see the Capitol dome through the snow," even standing a few yards away.

Share your winter weather photos, videos

Government buildings were eerily quiet. The Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service buildings were shut. No one answered the door at the Justice Department, though the attorney general's office said work was still being done at key counterterrorism offices.

The U.S. Postal Service said it was experiencing delays in processing mail.

Subway service was expected to be limited Thursday to underground stations, and bus service was expected to be suspended on Thursday.

Federal agencies were to be closed Thursday, too, and non-emergency employees were to be granted the day off.

This winter already has become the snowiest on record for Washington and its suburbs, as well as Baltimore, Maryland, and Wilmington, Delaware, the National Weather Service said. It's also on pace to become the snowiest season on record in other cities, including Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Blizzard warnings also were in effect Wednesday for Asheville, North Carolina; Newark and Atlantic City, New Jersey; Baltimore, Maryland; Dover, Delaware; New York and nearby Long Island; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Under a blizzard warning, the following conditions are expected to be seen for three hours or longer: wind speeds of 35 mph or more and considerable falling and/or blowing of snow with visibility near zero (less than one-fourth mile), the weather service said.

In Atlantic City, the landmark Boardwalk -- lined with shops, restaurants and casinos -- remained open despite the snow.

New York was to be under a blizzard warning until 6 a.m. Thursday, but the snow was expected to stop falling late Wednesday night. Forecasters predicted wind gusts up to 50 mph and predicted the city will have received 12 to 20 inches of snow by the time the storm ends.

In Pennsylvania, all of Interstates 76, 78, 83, 176, 476 and 676, as well as state road 581, were closed Wednesday because of blizzard conditions, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said on its Web site. Part of I-81 was closed, it said.

Interstate 80 near Clearfield, Pennsylvania, was shut after two pileups -- one involving 17 cars and the other involving seven cars, said Rich Kirkpatrick from the state's Department of Transportation. One person died and another person was seriously injured, police said.

Philadelphia was under a blizzard warning until midnight, and could have as much as 20 inches of snow by the time it stops, forecasters said.

In Boston, Massachusetts, snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches an hour were expected along the Interstate 95 corridor into the evening. A winter storm warning was in effect until 1 a.m. Thursday, with final snow totals of 5 to 10 inches, the weather service said.

Thousands of flights were delayed or canceled to and from airports in Baltimore, Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Washington, airlines reported.

East Coast storm grounds thousands of flights

"We're working, and we're plowing as best we can, and then once the winds diminish some, we'll be able to start hauling snow off the airfield as we've been doing for six days now," said Tara Hamilton, spokeswoman for Washington Dulles International and Reagan Washington National airports, both of which closed Wednesday.

The airports did not plan to reopen until about 7 a.m. Thursday.

New York area airports were operational Wednesday afternoon, but airlines canceled most flights in and out of LaGuardia, Newark Liberty International and John F. Kennedy International airports.

Rajesh Moorjani, one of the stranded travelers at the Newark, New Jersey, airport, had flown from India on Tuesday night, intending to get a connecting flight to California. On Wednesday, he was getting used to the idea of being stuck on the East Coast for a day, CNN affiliate WABC reported.

"I'm just kind of trying to get in touch with old classmates, ex-colleagues ... trying to put a message on Facebook saying: 'If anybody is in New York, let's get in touch,' " he told WABC.

WABC: Storm socks New Jersey

Amtrak was still providing limited service for Boston, New York and Washington.

But most passenger rail service south of Washington was canceled. "The massive storm has resulted in downed trees and power lines on portions of CSX freight railroad tracks south of Washington resulting in continued service cancellations in Virginia, and the Carolinas," the rail line's Web site said.

Bus travelers fared no better. "Pretty much everything out of Virginia, New York, D.C., etc. at this time has been canceled," said Maureen Richmond, director of media relations for Greyhound, which transports 22 million passengers per year.

"We're operating where we can, based on weather and road conditions," she said. She urged would-be passengers to call the company's ticketing line.

Due to improved weather conditions in the Chicago, Illinois, area, airlines were reporting no delays at O'Hare and Midway International Airports.

Many businesses in Greenwich, Connecticut, about 30 miles northeast of New York City, closed early Wednesday, in part to allow workers to travel home before the worst of the storm hit. Diane Garett planned to keep her bookstore open, but she gave her employees the day off, WABC reported.

"I just felt it was just safer if they stayed home," she told WABC. "Plus a lot of their children are home from school. So I didn't think it was right to ask them to come to work."

Hardware store owner Troy Usnik was taking somewhat of a breather Wednesday in snowy Philadelphia. The owner of 10th Street Hardware said he sold well over 100 shovels and 200 to 300 bags of salt Tuesday.

"Today seems kind of quiet, but there was a mad rush yesterday. Sales were brisk. Last night was a panic and everyone who didn't have it came out to buy shovels and salt."

Early Wednesday, the snow turned to sleet in Philadelphia, but roads were passable and buses were driving along emergency routes, Usnik said. The National Weather Service predicted 9 to 13 more inches of snow.

New York deployed 1,600 salt spreaders to care for 65 miles of roads, CNN meteorologist Rob Marciano said.

The winter of 2009-2010 has become the snowiest on record for:

â¢ Baltimore, which has received at least 72.3 inches of snow this winter

â¢  Washington, where Dulles airport has received 72 inches of snow this winter and Reagan National airport has received 54.9 inches

â¢  Wilmington, Delaware, which has received at least 59.5 inches of snow this winter, breaking its previous record of 55.9 inches.

CNN's Sean Morris, Nicole Saidi, Steve Kastenbaum, Scott Spoerry, and Jean Shin contributed to this report.

text: CNN

text: Heavy

text: snow

text: pummeled

text: much

text: of

text: the

text: East

text: Coast

text: on

text: Wednesday

text: battering

text: states

text: for

text: the

text: second

text: time

text: in

text: a

text: week

text: and

text: forcing

text: many

text: people

text: to

text: stay

text: home

text: from

text: school

text: and

text: jobs

text: Several

text: cities

text: had

text: record

text: snowfalls

text: The

text: storm

text: canceled

text: or

text: delayed

text: flights

text: in

text: several

text: cities

text: kept

text: federal

text: workers

text: home

text: for

text: a

text: third

text: straight

text: day

text: in

text: Washington

text: and

text: taxed

text: local

text: government

text: budgets

text: as

text: cities

text: and

text: counties

text: scrambled

text: to

text: pay

text: for

text: snow

text: removal

text: overtime

text: salt

text: supplies

text: and

text: equipment

text: In

text: Washington

text: the

text: snow

text: was

text: falling

text: at

text: a

text: rate

text: of

text: inches

text: per

text: hour

text: at

text: one

text: point

text: in

text: the

text: afternoon

text: CNN

text: meteorologist

text: Jacqui

text: Jeras

text: said

text: Forecasters

text: predicted

text: that

text: Washington

text: winds

text: would

text: gust

text: to

text: mph

text: overnight

text: A

text: blizzard

text: warning

text: was

text: to

text: be

text: in

text: effect

text: in

text: the

text: Washington

text: area

text: until

text: p.m.

text: the

text: National

text: Weather

text: Service

text: said

text: Blowing

text: snow

text: caused

text: such

text: poor

text: visibility

text: at

text: midday

text: that

text: snowplows

text: temporarily

text: parked

text: by

text: the

text: side

text: of

text: the

text: road

text: authorities

text: said

text: Forecasters

text: predicted

text: that

text: the

text: storm

text: would

text: dump

text: a

text: total

text: of

text: to

text: inches

text: inside

text: the

text: Capital

text: Beltway

text: Interstate

text: with

text: higher

text: amounts

text: to

text: the

text: north

text: Watch

text: the

text: forecast

text: on

text: the

text: storm

text: 's

text: trek

text: Even

text: if

text: you

text: 're

text: in

text: a

text: SUV

text: it

text: 's

text: difficult

text: to

text: get

text: around

text: Washington

text: Police

text: Chief

text: Cathy

text: Lanier

text: said

text: You

text: ca

text: n't

text: see

text: the

text: Capitol

text: dome

text: through

text: the

text: snow

text: even

text: standing

text: a

text: few

text: yards

text: away

text: Share

text: your

text: winter

text: weather

text: photos

text: videos

text: Government

text: buildings

text: were

text: eerily

text: quiet

text: The

text: Department

text: of

text: Treasury

text: and

text: the

text: Internal

text: Revenue

text: Service

text: buildings

text: were

text: shut

text: No

text: one

text: answered

text: the

text: door

text: at

text: the

text: Justice

text: Department

text: though

text: the

text: attorney

text: general

text: 's

text: office

text: said

text: work

text: was

text: still

text: being

text: done

text: at

text: key

text: counterterrorism

text: offices

text: The

text: U.S.

text: Postal

text: Service

text: said

text: it

text: was

text: experiencing

text: delays

text: in

text: processing

text: mail

text: Subway

text: service

text: was

text: expected

text: to

text: be

text: limited

text: Thursday

text: to

text: underground

text: stations

text: and

text: bus

text: service

text: was

text: expected

text: to

text: be

text: suspended

text: on

text: Thursday

text: Federal

text: agencies

text: were

text: to

text: be

text: closed

text: Thursday

text: too

text: and

text: non

text: emergency

text: employees

text: were

text: to

text: be

text: granted

text: the

text: day

text: off

text: This

text: winter

text: already

text: has

text: become

text: the

text: snowiest

text: on

text: record

text: for

text: Washington

text: and

text: its

text: suburbs

text: as

text: well

text: as

text: Baltimore

text: Maryland

text: and

text: Wilmington

text: Delaware

text: the

text: National

text: Weather

text: Service

text: said

text: It

text: 's

text: also

text: on

text: pace

text: to

text: become

text: the

text: snowiest

text: season

text: on

text: record

text: in

text: other

text: cities

text: including

text: Atlantic

text: City

text: New

text: Jersey

text: and

text: Philadelphia

text: Pennsylvania

text: Blizzard

text: warnings

text: also

text: were

text: in

text: effect

text: Wednesday

text: for

text: Asheville

text: North

text: Carolina

text: Newark

text: and

text: Atlantic

text: City

text: New

text: Jersey

text: Baltimore

text: Maryland

text: Dover

text: Delaware

text: New

text: York

text: and

text: nearby

text: Long

text: Island

text: and

text: Philadelphia

text: Pennsylvania

text: Under

text: a

text: blizzard

text: warning

text: the

text: following

text: conditions

text: are

text: expected

text: to

text: be

text: seen

text: for

text: three

text: hours

text: or

text: longer

text: wind

text: speeds

text: of

text: mph

text: or

text: more

text: and

text: considerable

text: falling

text: and/or

text: blowing

text: of

text: snow

text: with

text: visibility

text: near

text: zero

text: less

text: than

text: one

text: fourth

text: mile

text: the

text: weather

text: service

text: said

text: In

text: Atlantic

text: City

text: the

text: landmark

text: Boardwalk

text: lined

text: with

text: shops

text: restaurants

text: and

text: casinos

text: remained

text: open

text: despite

text: the

text: snow

text: New

text: York

text: was

text: to

text: be

text: under

text: a

text: blizzard

text: warning

text: until

text: a.m.

text: Thursday

text: but

text: the

text: snow

text: was

text: expected

text: to

text: stop

text: falling

text: late

text: Wednesday

text: night

text: Forecasters

text: predicted

text: wind

text: gusts

text: up

text: to

text: mph

text: and

text: predicted

text: the

text: city

text: will

text: have

text: received

text: to

text: inches

text: of

text: snow

text: by

text: the

text: time

text: the

text: storm

text: ends

text: In

text: Pennsylvania

text: all

text: of

text: Interstates

text: and

text: as

text: well

text: as

text: state

text: road

text: were

text: closed

text: Wednesday

text: because

text: of

text: blizzard

text: conditions

text: the

text: Pennsylvania

text: Department

text: of

text: Transportation

text: said

text: on

text: its

text: Web

text: site

text: Part

text: of

text: was

text: closed

text: it

text: said

text: Interstate

text: near

text: Clearfield

text: Pennsylvania

text: was

text: shut

text: after

text: two

text: pileups

text: one

text: involving

text: cars

text: and

text: the

text: other

text: involving

text: seven

text: cars

text: said

text: Rich

text: Kirkpatrick

text: from

text: the

text: state

text: 's

text: Department

text: of

text: Transportation

text: One

text: person

text: died

text: and

text: another

text: person

text: was

text: seriously

text: injured

text: police

text: said

text: Philadelphia

text: was

text: under

text: a

text: blizzard

text: warning

text: until

text: midnight

text: and

text: could

text: have

text: as

text: much

text: as

text: inches

text: of

text: snow

text: by

text: the

text: time

text: it

text: stops

text: forecasters

text: said

text: In

text: Boston

text: Massachusetts

text: snowfall

text: rates

text: of

text: to

text: inches

text: an

text: hour

text: were

text: expected

text: along

text: the

text: Interstate

text: corridor

text: into

text: the

text: evening

text: A

text: winter

text: storm

text: warning

text: was

text: in

text: effect

text: until

text: a.m.

text: Thursday

text: with

text: final

text: snow

text: totals

text: of

text: to

text: inches

text: the

text: weather

text: service

text: said

text: Thousands

text: of

text: flights

text: were

text: delayed

text: or

text: canceled

text: to

text: and

text: from

text: airports

text: in

text: Baltimore

text: Boston

text: New

text: York

text: Philadelphia

text: and

text: Washington

text: airlines

text: reported

text: East

text: Coast

text: storm

text: grounds

text: thousands

text: of

text: flights

text: We

text: 're

text: working

text: and

text: we

text: 're

text: plowing

text: as

text: best

text: we

text: can

text: and

text: then

text: once

text: the

text: winds

text: diminish

text: some

text: we

text: 'll

text: be

text: able

text: to

text: start

text: hauling

text: snow

text: off

text: the

text: airfield

text: as

text: we

text: 've

text: been

text: doing

text: for

text: six

text: days

text: now

text: said

text: Tara

text: Hamilton

text: spokeswoman

text: for

text: Washington

text: Dulles

text: International

text: and

text: Reagan

text: Washington

text: National

text: airports

text: both

text: of

text: which

text: closed

text: Wednesday

text: The

text: airports

text: did

text: not

text: plan

text: to

text: reopen

text: until

text: about

text: a.m.

text: Thursday

text: New

text: York

text: area

text: airports

text: were

text: operational

text: Wednesday

text: afternoon

text: but

text: airlines

text: canceled

text: most

text: flights

text: in

text: and

text: out

text: of

text: LaGuardia

text: Newark

text: Liberty

text: International

text: and

text: John

text: F.

text: Kennedy

text: International

text: airports

text: Rajesh

text: Moorjani

text: one

text: of

text: the

text: stranded

text: travelers

text: at

text: the

text: Newark

text: New

text: Jersey

text: airport

text: had

text: flown

text: from

text: India

text: on

text: Tuesday

text: night

text: intending

text: to

text: get

text: a

text: connecting

text: flight

text: to

text: California

text: On

text: Wednesday

text: he

text: was

text: getting

text: used

text: to

text: the

text: idea

text: of

text: being

text: stuck

text: on

text: the

text: East

text: Coast

text: for

text: a

text: day

text: CNN

text: affiliate

text: WABC

text: reported

text: I

text: 'm

text: just

text: kind

text: of

text: trying

text: to

text: get

text: in

text: touch

text: with

text: old

text: classmates

text: ex

text: colleagues

text: trying

text: to

text: put

text: a

text: message

text: on

text: Facebook

text: saying

text: If

text: anybody

text: is

text: in

text: New

text: York

text: let

text: 's

text: get

text: in

text: touch

text: he

text: told

text: WABC

text: WABC

text: Storm

text: socks

text: New

text: Jersey

text: Amtrak

text: was

text: still

text: providing

text: limited

text: service

text: for

text: Boston

text: New

text: York

text: and

text: Washington

text: But

text: most

text: passenger

text: rail

text: service

text: south

text: of

text: Washington

text: was

text: canceled

text: The

text: massive

text: storm

text: has

text: resulted

text: in

text: downed

text: trees

text: and

text: power

text: lines

text: on

text: portions

text: of

text: CSX

text: freight

text: railroad

text: tracks

text: south

text: of

text: Washington

text: resulting

text: in

text: continued

text: service

text: cancellations

text: in

text: Virginia

text: and

text: the

text: Carolinas

text: the

text: rail

text: line

text: 's

text: Web

text: site

text: said

text: Bus

text: travelers

text: fared

text: no

text: better

text: Pretty

text: much

text: everything

text: out

text: of

text: Virginia

text: New

text: York

text: D.C.

text: etc

text: at

text: this

text: time

text: has

text: been

text: canceled

text: said

text: Maureen

text: Richmond

text: director

text: of

text: media

text: relations

text: for

text: Greyhound

text: which

text: transports

text: million

text: passengers

text: per

text: year

text: We

text: 're

text: operating

text: where

text: we

text: can

text: based

text: on

text: weather

text: and

text: road

text: conditions

text: she

text: said

text: She

text: urged

text: would

text: be

text: passengers

text: to

text: call

text: the

text: company

text: 's

text: ticketing

text: line

text: Due

text: to

text: improved

text: weather

text: conditions

text: in

text: the

text: Chicago

text: Illinois

text: area

text: airlines

text: were

text: reporting

text: no

text: delays

text: at

text: O'Hare

text: and

text: Midway

text: International

text: Airports

text: Many

text: businesses

text: in

text: Greenwich

text: Connecticut

text: about

text: miles

text: northeast

text: of

text: New

text: York

text: City

text: closed

text: early

text: Wednesday

text: in

text: part

text: to

text: allow

text: workers

text: to

text: travel

text: home

text: before

text: the

text: worst

text: of

text: the

text: storm

text: hit

text: Diane

text: Garett

text: planned

text: to

text: keep

text: her

text: bookstore

text: open

text: but

text: she

text: gave

text: her

text: employees

text: the

text: day

text: off

text: WABC

text: reported

text: I

text: just

text: felt

text: it

text: was

text: just

text: safer

text: if

text: they

text: stayed

text: home

text: she

text: told

text: WABC

text: Plus

text: a

text: lot

text: of

text: their

text: children

text: are

text: home

text: from

text: school

text: So

text: I

text: did

text: n't

text: think

text: it

text: was

text: right

text: to

text: ask

text: them

text: to

text: come

text: to

text: work

text: Hardware

text: store

text: owner

text: Troy

text: Usnik

text: was

text: taking

text: somewhat

text: of

text: a

text: breather

text: Wednesday

text: in

text: snowy

text: Philadelphia

text: The

text: owner

text: of

text: Street

text: Hardware

text: said

text: he

text: sold

text: well

text: over

text: shovels

text: and

text: to

text: bags

text: of

text: salt

text: Tuesday

text: Today

text: seems

text: kind

text: of

text: quiet

text: but

text: there

text: was

text: a

text: mad

text: rush

text: yesterday

text: Sales

text: were

text: brisk

text: Last

text: night

text: was

text: a

text: panic

text: and

text: everyone

text: who

text: did

text: n't

text: have

text: it

text: came

text: out

text: to

text: buy

text: shovels

text: and

text: salt

text: Early

text: Wednesday

text: the

text: snow

text: turned

text: to

text: sleet

text: in

text: Philadelphia

text: but

text: roads

text: were

text: passable

text: and

text: buses

text: were

text: driving

text: along

text: emergency

text: routes

text: Usnik

text: said

text: The

text: National

text: Weather

text: Service

text: predicted

text: to

text: more

text: inches

text: of

text: snow

text: New

text: York

text: deployed

text: salt

text: spreaders

text: to

text: care

text: for

text: miles

text: of

text: roads

text: CNN

text: meteorologist

text: Rob

text: Marciano

text: said

text: The

text: winter

text: of

text: has

text: become

text: the

text: snowiest

text: on

text: record

text: for

text: â¢

text: Baltimore

text: which

text: has

text: received

text: at

text: least

text: inches

text: of

text: snow

text: this

text: winter

text: â¢

text: Washington

text: where

text: Dulles

text: airport

text: has

text: received

text: inches

text: of

text: snow

text: this

text: winter

text: and

text: Reagan

text: National

text: airport

text: has

text: received

text: inches

text: â¢

text: Wilmington

text: Delaware

text: which

text: has

text: received

text: at

text: least

text: inches

text: of

text: snow

text: this

text: winter

text: breaking

text: its

text: previous

text: record

text: of

text: inches

text: CNN

text: 's

text: Sean

text: Morris

text: Nicole

text: Saidi

text: Steve

text: Kastenbaum

text: Scott

text: Spoerry

text: and

text: Jean

text: Shin

text: contributed

text: to

text: this

text: report

question: Which area is under a blizzard warning?

answer: Asheville, North Carolina; Newark

text: Asheville, North Carolina; Newark

question: Two main Washington airports aren't set to reopen until what day ?

answer: Thursday.

text: Thursday.

question: Washington airports aren't set to reopen until when?

answer: 7 a.m. Thursday.

text: 7 a.m. Thursday.

question: Many Interstate highways closed in which state ?

answer: Pennsylvania,

text: Pennsylvania,

question: Who said this winter is snowiest on record for several cities?

answer: National Weather Service

text: National Weather Service

question: Where are many Interstate highways closed?

answer: Pennsylvania,

text: Pennsylvania,


text:
(CNN) -- Huddled on the top floor of her home after waist-deep water inundated the lower story, Doranne Lim is bothered by the debris -- and the smell.

Residents remove mud from a home Monday as waters recede in Marikina City, suburban Manila.

"My house is super, super messy," she said, speaking from her home in the eastern Manila suburb of Pasig City. The mud left behind by receding floodwaters -- caused when the nearby river flooded its banks -- is "really smelly."

Her car won't start, probably because the engine is flooded. Her microwave and refrigerator won't function. Most of her possessions have been moved upstairs.

Still, as one of the more than 1.8 million affected by recent floods, the 28-year-old Lim is counting her blessings. Her power is back on and she believes she can salvage most of her furniture. In addition, people she knows are still searching for missing friends and relatives in the flooding.  Are you there? Share your story or pictures

"My office mate, she lives in a village with actually really nice houses," Lim said. "She was sitting on her roof for 15 hours. They didn't save anything, nothing."

The floodwaters were beginning to subside in some areas Monday after a weekend that saw Manila hit with torrential rainfall caused by Typhoon Ketsana, which has since strengthened into a typhoon. Officials said the Philippine capital saw its heaviest rain in more than four decades. The water swallowed whole houses and buses. At least 240 people are dead, officials say.  See incredible images of the flooding Â»

Lim said she is cleaning up the smelly mess, but no one she knows has begun fixing the damage -- because another typhoon could be bearing down on the island nation in several days. Tracking maps show Tropical Storm Nineteen approaching the Philippines later this week.

Lim submitted a photo to CNN's iReport site of people traveling down a flooded road -- a main thoroughfare -- in Pasig City. Some are wading through thigh-deep water; others are being pulled on rafts. Some opportunists are charging others money to pull them on rafts, she said.

At the end of the road is a church and a market, she said. The market is not flooded, but is "really, really muddy," she said. "Most of the vendors in the market said they are going to sleep in the market tonight because they don't have any place to go."

Manila, on the island of Luzon, and the nearby province of Rizal bore the brunt of the storm. People like Lim's office mate huddled on rooftops Sunday waiting on army helicopters to pluck them to safety. Others used ropes to wade through waist-deep muddy waters.  Watch how people of Manila are coping Â»

Power and water supply failed in some areas. Roads were rendered impassable, making rescue efforts challenging. Rescue crews were handing out food rations.

"Right now the challenge is to find out how many people have actually died and how many people we have to take care of in terms of people who've been displaced," said Richard Gordon, the chairman of the Philippines National Red Cross. He estimated up to 300,000 people have been displaced on the island of Luzon alone.

Another Pasig City resident, Arturo Fidelino, said 80 percent of his village was flooded. He counts himself lucky that his home was not inundated, but his family had to evacuate and move in with his in-laws because nearby streets were impassable. Fidelino said he and his wife have to get to work, and their 14-year-old daughter has to get to school.

Fidelino said his family was stuck in their home for two days, before a relative who owns heavy machinery was able to remove them.

"It's our first time to experience that kind of flood," he said, estimating it could take about a month for the waters to completely recede.

He said many of his neighbors remain stuck in their homes, as the homeowners' association organizes a removal effort. Other Pasig City residents were evacuated to temporary shelters set up in a municipal hall or gymnasium, he said.

Officials worried that if the rains return, they could bring more floods if reservoirs burst.

"We're hoping that there will be no more breaching of the dams," Gordon said. "That's one of the things that are very disconcerting to many people right now."

Fidelino said many Filipinos aren't sure if the flooding was caused by the typhoon or by the opening of dams. "It was so sudden," he said. "It was sort of a flash flood."

The floodwaters contained all sorts of animals as well -- snails, snakes, Lim said. Two crocodiles escaped from the zoo, she said -- "it's funny, but it's scary."

"I'm happy that I'm a lot better off than so many other people I see on TV, clinging to electric posts, electric wires, so they won't be carried away (by the water)," she said. "I have friends who are still missing their siblings, missing their dogs."

Both she and Fidelino said residents have banded together to help one another. Lim said that after her electricity was restored, she got on Facebook, where she saw numerous posts from people seeking missing friends or loved ones. Members of the media and even the government were trying to help on the social networking site, asking them to send more information.

Some people are putting together "relief bags" of food and other items to distribute to those in shelters, while others were bringing canned goods, Lim said. "Everyone is united right now to help feed everyone," she said.

Others are just trying to feed themselves. John Gonzalez, 11, has been pushing a trolley through his flooded neighborhood in Manila's Marietta Romeo village for two days.

"The flood went above the height of a man," he said. "Way above our heads. Today, the water just comes to my mouth. That's why we are out looking for food."

CNN's Dan Rivers contributed to this report from Manila, Philippines.

text: CNN

text: Huddled

text: on

text: the

text: top

text: floor

text: of

text: her

text: home

text: after

text: waist

text: deep

text: water

text: inundated

text: the

text: lower

text: story

text: Doranne

text: Lim

text: is

text: bothered

text: by

text: the

text: debris

text: and

text: the

text: smell

text: Residents

text: remove

text: mud

text: from

text: a

text: home

text: Monday

text: as

text: waters

text: recede

text: in

text: Marikina

text: City

text: suburban

text: Manila

text: My

text: house

text: is

text: super

text: super

text: messy

text: she

text: said

text: speaking

text: from

text: her

text: home

text: in

text: the

text: eastern

text: Manila

text: suburb

text: of

text: Pasig

text: City

text: The

text: mud

text: left

text: behind

text: by

text: receding

text: floodwaters

text: caused

text: when

text: the

text: nearby

text: river

text: flooded

text: its

text: banks

text: is

text: really

text: smelly

text: Her

text: car

text: wo

text: n't

text: start

text: probably

text: because

text: the

text: engine

text: is

text: flooded

text: Her

text: microwave

text: and

text: refrigerator

text: wo

text: n't

text: function

text: Most

text: of

text: her

text: possessions

text: have

text: been

text: moved

text: upstairs

text: Still

text: as

text: one

text: of

text: the

text: more

text: than

text: million

text: affected

text: by

text: recent

text: floods

text: the

text: old

text: Lim

text: is

text: counting

text: her

text: blessings

text: Her

text: power

text: is

text: back

text: on

text: and

text: she

text: believes

text: she

text: can

text: salvage

text: most

text: of

text: her

text: furniture

text: In

text: addition

text: people

text: she

text: knows

text: are

text: still

text: searching

text: for

text: missing

text: friends

text: and

text: relatives

text: in

text: the

text: flooding

text: Are

text: you

text: there

text: Share

text: your

text: story

text: or

text: pictures

text: My

text: office

text: mate

text: she

text: lives

text: in

text: a

text: village

text: with

text: actually

text: really

text: nice

text: houses

text: Lim

text: said

text: She

text: was

text: sitting

text: on

text: her

text: roof

text: for

text: hours

text: They

text: did

text: n't

text: save

text: anything

text: nothing

text: The

text: floodwaters

text: were

text: beginning

text: to

text: subside

text: in

text: some

text: areas

text: Monday

text: after

text: a

text: weekend

text: that

text: saw

text: Manila

text: hit

text: with

text: torrential

text: rainfall

text: caused

text: by

text: Typhoon

text: Ketsana

text: which

text: has

text: since

text: strengthened

text: into

text: a

text: typhoon

text: Officials

text: said

text: the

text: Philippine

text: capital

text: saw

text: its

text: heaviest

text: rain

text: in

text: more

text: than

text: four

text: decades

text: The

text: water

text: swallowed

text: whole

text: houses

text: and

text: buses

text: At

text: least

text: people

text: are

text: dead

text: officials

text: say

text: See

text: incredible

text: images

text: of

text: the

text: flooding

text: Â

text: Lim

text: said

text: she

text: is

text: cleaning

text: up

text: the

text: smelly

text: mess

text: but

text: no

text: one

text: she

text: knows

text: has

text: begun

text: fixing

text: the

text: damage

text: because

text: another

text: typhoon

text: could

text: be

text: bearing

text: down

text: on

text: the

text: island

text: nation

text: in

text: several

text: days

text: Tracking

text: maps

text: show

text: Tropical

text: Storm

text: Nineteen

text: approaching

text: the

text: Philippines

text: later

text: this

text: week

text: Lim

text: submitted

text: a

text: photo

text: to

text: CNN

text: 's

text: iReport

text: site

text: of

text: people

text: traveling

text: down

text: a

text: flooded

text: road

text: a

text: main

text: thoroughfare

text: in

text: Pasig

text: City

text: Some

text: are

text: wading

text: through

text: thigh

text: deep

text: water

text: others

text: are

text: being

text: pulled

text: on

text: rafts

text: Some

text: opportunists

text: are

text: charging

text: others

text: money

text: to

text: pull

text: them

text: on

text: rafts

text: she

text: said

text: At

text: the

text: end

text: of

text: the

text: road

text: is

text: a

text: church

text: and

text: a

text: market

text: she

text: said

text: The

text: market

text: is

text: not

text: flooded

text: but

text: is

text: really

text: really

text: muddy

text: she

text: said

text: Most

text: of

text: the

text: vendors

text: in

text: the

text: market

text: said

text: they

text: are

text: going

text: to

text: sleep

text: in

text: the

text: market

text: tonight

text: because

text: they

text: do

text: n't

text: have

text: any

text: place

text: to

text: go

text: Manila

text: on

text: the

text: island

text: of

text: Luzon

text: and

text: the

text: nearby

text: province

text: of

text: Rizal

text: bore

text: the

text: brunt

text: of

text: the

text: storm

text: People

text: like

text: Lim

text: 's

text: office

text: mate

text: huddled

text: on

text: rooftops

text: Sunday

text: waiting

text: on

text: army

text: helicopters

text: to

text: pluck

text: them

text: to

text: safety

text: Others

text: used

text: ropes

text: to

text: wade

text: through

text: waist

text: deep

text: muddy

text: waters

text: Watch

text: how

text: people

text: of

text: Manila

text: are

text: coping

text: Â

text: Power

text: and

text: water

text: supply

text: failed

text: in

text: some

text: areas

text: Roads

text: were

text: rendered

text: impassable

text: making

text: rescue

text: efforts

text: challenging

text: Rescue

text: crews

text: were

text: handing

text: out

text: food

text: rations

text: Right

text: now

text: the

text: challenge

text: is

text: to

text: find

text: out

text: how

text: many

text: people

text: have

text: actually

text: died

text: and

text: how

text: many

text: people

text: we

text: have

text: to

text: take

text: care

text: of

text: in

text: terms

text: of

text: people

text: who

text: 've

text: been

text: displaced

text: said

text: Richard

text: Gordon

text: the

text: chairman

text: of

text: the

text: Philippines

text: National

text: Red

text: Cross

text: He

text: estimated

text: up

text: to

text: people

text: have

text: been

text: displaced

text: on

text: the

text: island

text: of

text: Luzon

text: alone

text: Another

text: Pasig

text: City

text: resident

text: Arturo

text: Fidelino

text: said

text: percent

text: of

text: his

text: village

text: was

text: flooded

text: He

text: counts

text: himself

text: lucky

text: that

text: his

text: home

text: was

text: not

text: inundated

text: but

text: his

text: family

text: had

text: to

text: evacuate

text: and

text: move

text: in

text: with

text: his

text: in

text: laws

text: because

text: nearby

text: streets

text: were

text: impassable

text: Fidelino

text: said

text: he

text: and

text: his

text: wife

text: have

text: to

text: get

text: to

text: work

text: and

text: their

text: old

text: daughter

text: has

text: to

text: get

text: to

text: school

text: Fidelino

text: said

text: his

text: family

text: was

text: stuck

text: in

text: their

text: home

text: for

text: two

text: days

text: before

text: a

text: relative

text: who

text: owns

text: heavy

text: machinery

text: was

text: able

text: to

text: remove

text: them

text: It

text: 's

text: our

text: first

text: time

text: to

text: experience

text: that

text: kind

text: of

text: flood

text: he

text: said

text: estimating

text: it

text: could

text: take

text: about

text: a

text: month

text: for

text: the

text: waters

text: to

text: completely

text: recede

text: He

text: said

text: many

text: of

text: his

text: neighbors

text: remain

text: stuck

text: in

text: their

text: homes

text: as

text: the

text: homeowners

text: association

text: organizes

text: a

text: removal

text: effort

text: Other

text: Pasig

text: City

text: residents

text: were

text: evacuated

text: to

text: temporary

text: shelters

text: set

text: up

text: in

text: a

text: municipal

text: hall

text: or

text: gymnasium

text: he

text: said

text: Officials

text: worried

text: that

text: if

text: the

text: rains

text: return

text: they

text: could

text: bring

text: more

text: floods

text: if

text: reservoirs

text: burst

text: We

text: 're

text: hoping

text: that

text: there

text: will

text: be

text: no

text: more

text: breaching

text: of

text: the

text: dams

text: Gordon

text: said

text: That

text: 's

text: one

text: of

text: the

text: things

text: that

text: are

text: very

text: disconcerting

text: to

text: many

text: people

text: right

text: now

text: Fidelino

text: said

text: many

text: Filipinos

text: are

text: n't

text: sure

text: if

text: the

text: flooding

text: was

text: caused

text: by

text: the

text: typhoon

text: or

text: by

text: the

text: opening

text: of

text: dams

text: It

text: was

text: so

text: sudden

text: he

text: said

text: It

text: was

text: sort

text: of

text: a

text: flash

text: flood

text: The

text: floodwaters

text: contained

text: all

text: sorts

text: of

text: animals

text: as

text: well

text: snails

text: snakes

text: Lim

text: said

text: Two

text: crocodiles

text: escaped

text: from

text: the

text: zoo

text: she

text: said

text: it

text: 's

text: funny

text: but

text: it

text: 's

text: scary

text: I

text: 'm

text: happy

text: that

text: I

text: 'm

text: a

text: lot

text: better

text: off

text: than

text: so

text: many

text: other

text: people

text: I

text: see

text: on

text: TV

text: clinging

text: to

text: electric

text: posts

text: electric

text: wires

text: so

text: they

text: wo

text: n't

text: be

text: carried

text: away

text: by

text: the

text: water

text: she

text: said

text: I

text: have

text: friends

text: who

text: are

text: still

text: missing

text: their

text: siblings

text: missing

text: their

text: dogs

text: Both

text: she

text: and

text: Fidelino

text: said

text: residents

text: have

text: banded

text: together

text: to

text: help

text: one

text: another

text: Lim

text: said

text: that

text: after

text: her

text: electricity

text: was

text: restored

text: she

text: got

text: on

text: Facebook

text: where

text: she

text: saw

text: numerous

text: posts

text: from

text: people

text: seeking

text: missing

text: friends

text: or

text: loved

text: ones

text: Members

text: of

text: the

text: media

text: and

text: even

text: the

text: government

text: were

text: trying

text: to

text: help

text: on

text: the

text: social

text: networking

text: site

text: asking

text: them

text: to

text: send

text: more

text: information

text: Some

text: people

text: are

text: putting

text: together

text: relief

text: bags

text: of

text: food

text: and

text: other

text: items

text: to

text: distribute

text: to

text: those

text: in

text: shelters

text: while

text: others

text: were

text: bringing

text: canned

text: goods

text: Lim

text: said

text: Everyone

text: is

text: united

text: right

text: now

text: to

text: help

text: feed

text: everyone

text: she

text: said

text: Others

text: are

text: just

text: trying

text: to

text: feed

text: themselves

text: John

text: Gonzalez

text: has

text: been

text: pushing

text: a

text: trolley

text: through

text: his

text: flooded

text: neighborhood

text: in

text: Manila

text: 's

text: Marietta

text: Romeo

text: village

text: for

text: two

text: days

text: The

text: flood

text: went

text: above

text: the

text: height

text: of

text: a

text: man

text: he

text: said

text: Way

text: above

text: our

text: heads

text: Today

text: the

text: water

text: just

text: comes

text: to

text: my

text: mouth

text: That

text: 's

text: why

text: we

text: are

text: out

text: looking

text: for

text: food

text: CNN

text: 's

text: Dan

text: Rivers

text: contributed

text: to

text: this

text: report

text: from

text: Manila

text: Philippines

question: How many people were killed?

answer: At least 240

text: At least 240

question: How much water?

answer: waist-deep

text: waist-deep

question: What are the survivors thankful for?

answer: power is back on

text: power is back on

question: What do survivors face?

answer: the smell.

text: the smell.

question: What percentage of the capital was under water?

answer: d 8

text: d 8

question: What were the floods caused by?

answer: Typhoon Ketsana,

text: Typhoon Ketsana,


text:
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Security forces patrolled the streets of the eastern Pakistan city of Gojra on Sunday, one day after seven people were killed and 20 injured when Muslim demonstrators set fire to houses in a Christian enclave and fighting broke out, authorities said.

Pakistani human rights activists in Lahore protest on Saturday over the anti-Christian violence in Gojra village.

Police said Muslims were enraged over an alleged desecration of pages in the Quran at a Christian wedding last Saturday, and held a rally to protest such an act.

The Quran is the Muslim sacred text.

Shehbaz Bhatti, federal minister for minorities, told CNN that four women, two men and a child, all Christians, were either killed when their houses were burned or were shot to death.

Some 50 houses were burned down and more than 100 were looted by the protesters, Bhatti said.

The incident occurred in Gojra City, 160 kilometers or around 100 miles southwest of Lahore.

No violence was reported Sunday, Punjab Provisional Minister Rana Sana Ullah told CNN.

There was a demonstration by about a thousand Christians who refused to bury their dead until the government registered a criminal case against those they alleged to have carried out the attacks.

The government would register a criminal case, Sana Ullah said. Registering a case means a criminal investigation will be opened. Sana Ullah added that the government strongly condemned the incident. He said the attack was not a sectarian issue, but rather terrorism. He blamed the incident on attackers with ties to militants in Northwest Pakistan, where the government is carrying out an offensive against Taliban groups.

On Thursday, 15 Christian houses in the region were also torched.

Pakistan is predominantly Muslim but has a small Christian community.

Meanwhile, police in Islamabad reported the Friday arrest of an al Qaeda member thought to be involved in several attacks.

Bin Yamin, a senior police official in Islamabad, identified the militant as Rao Shakir Ali.

He is suspected of being involved in strikes on several targets, such as the Danish Embassy, police and a hotel, and is also suspected of targeting a rally for Chief Justice Iftikhar Chauhdary, authorities said.

The suspect is a resident of Sargodha, which is 165 kilometers (more than 100 miles) northwest of Lahore and has a house in Rawalpindi that has been used to facilitate insurgent acts, police said.

CNN's Tim Schwarz and Journalist Nasir Habib contributed to this report.

text: ISLAMABAD

text: Pakistan

text: CNN

text: Security

text: forces

text: patrolled

text: the

text: streets

text: of

text: the

text: eastern

text: Pakistan

text: city

text: of

text: Gojra

text: on

text: Sunday

text: one

text: day

text: after

text: seven

text: people

text: were

text: killed

text: and

text: injured

text: when

text: Muslim

text: demonstrators

text: set

text: fire

text: to

text: houses

text: in

text: a

text: Christian

text: enclave

text: and

text: fighting

text: broke

text: out

text: authorities

text: said

text: Pakistani

text: human

text: rights

text: activists

text: in

text: Lahore

text: protest

text: on

text: Saturday

text: over

text: the

text: anti

text: Christian

text: violence

text: in

text: Gojra

text: village

text: Police

text: said

text: Muslims

text: were

text: enraged

text: over

text: an

text: alleged

text: desecration

text: of

text: pages

text: in

text: the

text: Quran

text: at

text: a

text: Christian

text: wedding

text: last

text: Saturday

text: and

text: held

text: a

text: rally

text: to

text: protest

text: such

text: an

text: act

text: The

text: Quran

text: is

text: the

text: Muslim

text: sacred

text: text

text: Shehbaz

text: Bhatti

text: federal

text: minister

text: for

text: minorities

text: told

text: CNN

text: that

text: four

text: women

text: two

text: men

text: and

text: a

text: child

text: all

text: Christians

text: were

text: either

text: killed

text: when

text: their

text: houses

text: were

text: burned

text: or

text: were

text: shot

text: to

text: death

text: Some

text: houses

text: were

text: burned

text: down

text: and

text: more

text: than

text: were

text: looted

text: by

text: the

text: protesters

text: Bhatti

text: said

text: The

text: incident

text: occurred

text: in

text: Gojra

text: City

text: kilometers

text: or

text: around

text: miles

text: southwest

text: of

text: Lahore

text: No

text: violence

text: was

text: reported

text: Sunday

text: Punjab

text: Provisional

text: Minister

text: Rana

text: Sana

text: Ullah

text: told

text: CNN

text: There

text: was

text: a

text: demonstration

text: by

text: about

text: a

text: thousand

text: Christians

text: who

text: refused

text: to

text: bury

text: their

text: dead

text: until

text: the

text: government

text: registered

text: a

text: criminal

text: case

text: against

text: those

text: they

text: alleged

text: to

text: have

text: carried

text: out

text: the

text: attacks

text: The

text: government

text: would

text: register

text: a

text: criminal

text: case

text: Sana

text: Ullah

text: said

text: Registering

text: a

text: case

text: means

text: a

text: criminal

text: investigation

text: will

text: be

text: opened

text: Sana

text: Ullah

text: added

text: that

text: the

text: government

text: strongly

text: condemned

text: the

text: incident

text: He

text: said

text: the

text: attack

text: was

text: not

text: a

text: sectarian

text: issue

text: but

text: rather

text: terrorism

text: He

text: blamed

text: the

text: incident

text: on

text: attackers

text: with

text: ties

text: to

text: militants

text: in

text: Northwest

text: Pakistan

text: where

text: the

text: government

text: is

text: carrying

text: out

text: an

text: offensive

text: against

text: Taliban

text: groups

text: On

text: Thursday

text: Christian

text: houses

text: in

text: the

text: region

text: were

text: also

text: torched

text: Pakistan

text: is

text: predominantly

text: Muslim

text: but

text: has

text: a

text: small

text: Christian

text: community

text: Meanwhile

text: police

text: in

text: Islamabad

text: reported

text: the

text: Friday

text: arrest

text: of

text: an

text: al

text: Qaeda

text: member

text: thought

text: to

text: be

text: involved

text: in

text: several

text: attacks

text: Bin

text: Yamin

text: a

text: senior

text: police

text: official

text: in

text: Islamabad

text: identified

text: the

text: militant

text: as

text: Rao

text: Shakir

text: Ali

text: He

text: is

text: suspected

text: of

text: being

text: involved

text: in

text: strikes

text: on

text: several

text: targets

text: such

text: as

text: the

text: Danish

text: Embassy

text: police

text: and

text: a

text: hotel

text: and

text: is

text: also

text: suspected

text: of

text: targeting

text: a

text: rally

text: for

text: Chief

text: Justice

text: Iftikhar

text: Chauhdary

text: authorities

text: said

text: The

text: suspect

text: is

text: a

text: resident

text: of

text: Sargodha

text: which

text: is

text: kilometers

text: more

text: than

text: miles

text: northwest

text: of

text: Lahore

text: and

text: has

text: a

text: house

text: in

text: Rawalpindi

text: that

text: has

text: been

text: used

text: to

text: facilitate

text: insurgent

text: acts

text: police

text: said

text: CNN

text: 's

text: Tim

text: Schwarz

text: and

text: Journalist

text: Nasir

text: Habib

text: contributed

text: to

text: this

text: report

question: what broke out

answer: fighting

text: fighting

question: how many houses

answer: 50

question: what is predominantly muslim

answer: Pakistan

text: Pakistan

question: Who has a small Christian community?

answer: Pakistan

text: Pakistan

question: Where was the Quran alledgedly desecrated?

answer: Christian wedding

text: Christian wedding

question: How many homes did the Muslims burn?

answer: 50

question: What did the Muslims torch?

answer: houses in a Christian enclave

text: houses in a Christian enclave


text:
(CNN) -- The U.S. Treasury Department will begin selling bonds Wednesday to help the Federal Reserve, which has had to loan out an unprecedented amount of money to businesses because of the credit crisis.

CNN's Ali Velshi says the Fed needs access to large amounts of cash to keep Wall Street confident.

The Fed announced Tuesday it would authorize the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to lend up to $85 billion over two years to insurance giant American International Group. In return, the government will receive a 79.9 percent stake in the company, which has 74 million clients in 130 countries.

The first Treasury auction for the central bank will be for $40 million. The Treasury bills will mature in 35 days, allowing the Fed access to quick cash.

But what does this mean to American taxpayers and an ailing U.S. economy? CNN senior business correspondent Ali Velshi breaks it down.

Q: What does this mean in layman's terms?

A: The Federal Reserve keeps a lot of money in supply to help banks, and basically, when they help them, it means they loan them money. As this credit crisis intensified, the Fed invited more and more banks to come and borrow from it and would accept collateral that was not as high-quality as it would typically accept. The Fed was the lender of last resort for a bank; you paid a premium to borrow money from the Fed, and you had to give them your best collateral.

What's happening now is you still pay a premium, but you can go with lower collateral. The thinking behind that is the more banks feel free to go to the Fed to borrow money, the less likely they are to get money at higher interest from other sources and the less likely they are to fail as a result. In other words, if they feel that there is an ability to borrow money from the Fed -- if they absolutely have to to stay afloat -- that facility is there.

Well, the number of banks that have taken advantage of this has caused the reserve at the Federal Reserve to go from about $800 billion to, by some estimates, as low as $200 billion. And when they do things like the bailout of AIG, that's where that money comes from.  Watch experts discuss what the bailout means for consumers ÃÂ»

So you do the math, and there's some sense that the Fed could run out of money to finance these banks, to give loans. And just the idea that the Fed could run out of that money causes Wall Street to panic because it says, "If four more banks were to fail, the Fed wouldn't have money to bail them out, so we're in a bad situation."

So the thinking is: Let's increase the Federal Reserve's reserve, and that's what this auction is. It's the first in a series of auctions -- this one will be for $40 billion -- where the Treasury on behalf of the Federal Reserve issues bonds that they will sell at auction, the way they normally do, and they'll be for 35-day periods. So the Fed gives out those bonds, and in exchange, gets cash and the Fed sits on that cash and uses it for whatever it needs.

Q: Why would the government bail out a company like AIG but let Lehman Brothers file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection?

A: Speaking frankly, the world can do without another investment firm. If an investment bank fails, any remaining investment bank can hire more people and take their jobs. AIG is not an investment bank. As a principal insurer, it insures consumers, it insures businesses and it insures business ventures, so it's not just that your corner store needs insurance.

AIG insures things like rigs and Hollywood movies and those subprime mortgage-backed securities. The utter failure of business that would ensue from a failure of AIG would be catastrophic and would actually leave the government having to pick up a few things along the way.

The best analogy I've been able to come up with is to use an automaker. When you think about putting an automaker out of business, you put tire makers out of business, you put seat makers out of business, you put all sorts of things out of business. It's the same thing with AIG. There are tentacles. They're just so connected to so many other parts of the economy that the government deemed it more dangerous and potentially more expensive to the economy to have it fail than to give them this loan.

Q: What does this mean to the American taxpayer?

A: If AIG gets the financing it needs, the taxpayer is actually doing OK. The government is charging such high interest to AIG, and they've got a guarantee of 80 percent of the company, so this may not be a bad deal for the government, and the interest is high enough to discourage others from coming cap in hand to the government.

If you realize that maybe the government will bail you out as a last resort but you're going to pay 12 percent interest on the loan, that's expensive. For a business to be paying 12 percent for their money is very expensive.

Q: What sort of interest can an investor expect from something like this?

A: When the Federal Reserve loans money out to banks, these are short loans. They've typically been under a month. They can be extended under new emergency rules, but typically speaking, they're all supposed to be "bridge loans," immediate financing while some sort of problem is sorted out.

The loan to AIG is a 24-month bridge loan, so obviously these 35-day bonds are not great, but the idea is that money that is borrowed by the Federal Reserve in exchange for a bill is as safe as it gets. That is backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.

The government can borrow money probably for less than most people can because this gets sold to investors who want safety. It's not a premium. The government's not going to pay a lot of interest on this, but it's a very safe loan. If you're an investor who's looking for a small but absolutely safe return for 35 days, this might be an option for you.

Q: These bonds are not available to the individual investor?

A: Not at all. It's not something that individuals buy. It's all done commercially.

Q: The U.S. government says it will charge AIG roughly 12 percent interest for this rescue loan, but that's not comparable to what an investor would earn by buying these bonds?

A: Not at all. I don't know what the rate is and that' s because it's an auction -- it's determined that way. I would be surprised if there's any material spread between that and an equivalent Treasury.

If you buy a Treasury, it trades on a daily basis. I'm guessing this is actually more of a straight bond in that you'll buy it and that'll be your rate until you redeem it, but I could be wrong. I don't know the machination of that. It's a safe, safe, safe investment. It's the United States government backing the investment.

Q: And by being a safe investment, it dictates a lower return?

A: Correct.

Q: So the fact that the Fed, by some estimates, is low on cash and having to bail out a weak economy, that doesn't negatively affect the government's bond rating?

A: It doesn't have an effect on the rating. The way things happen at these auctions sometimes is that regardless of the good rating, sometimes they're oversubscribed and sometimes they're undersubscribed. It has more to do with the needs of the market. If the market needs the money, they'll sell quickly. It's not the equivalent of printing new money; it's borrowing more money. The government is simply issuing a loan based on its own credit.

Q: Is the Treasury auction then a result of the weak economy or is it directly linked to the AIG rescue loan?

A: It's directly linked to the moves that the Federal Reserve has taken to shore up financial services, and AIG would be key among those.

Q: The government has said the rescue loan is backed by AIG's considerable assets, which total about $1.1 trillion. If reports are correct that the government is planning on selling off many of these assets to get its money back, why does it need to issue these bonds?

A: Two separate issues. Regarding AIG, the government gets 80 percent of the assets as collateral. They're not free to sell them. The company has to sell them, and as they do so and repay the government, the 80 percent hold can be diminished. You may not need any of that to cover AIG.

The bond issuance here has got more to do with the fact that the reserves that the Fed keeps have dwindled from about $800 billion to an estimate -- and I should tell you that's an outside estimate, not the Fed's estimate -- of about $200 billion, so they are just looking for methodology to increase the reserve. I don't think it's meant to say that the Fed is losing $85 billion of its $200 billion, and that $85 billion is covered. It's a separate transaction. It's the idea that we need to have enough money to keep Wall Street confident that we can move in and rescue a bank if we have to.

text: CNN

text: The

text: U.S.

text: Treasury

text: Department

text: will

text: begin

text: selling

text: bonds

text: Wednesday

text: to

text: help

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: which

text: has

text: had

text: to

text: loan

text: out

text: an

text: unprecedented

text: amount

text: of

text: money

text: to

text: businesses

text: because

text: of

text: the

text: credit

text: crisis

text: CNN

text: 's

text: Ali

text: Velshi

text: says

text: the

text: Fed

text: needs

text: access

text: to

text: large

text: amounts

text: of

text: cash

text: to

text: keep

text: Wall

text: Street

text: confident

text: The

text: Fed

text: announced

text: Tuesday

text: it

text: would

text: authorize

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: Bank

text: of

text: New

text: York

text: to

text: lend

text: up

text: to

text: billion

text: over

text: two

text: years

text: to

text: insurance

text: giant

text: American

text: International

text: Group

text: In

text: return

text: the

text: government

text: will

text: receive

text: a

text: percent

text: stake

text: in

text: the

text: company

text: which

text: has

text: million

text: clients

text: in

text: countries

text: The

text: first

text: Treasury

text: auction

text: for

text: the

text: central

text: bank

text: will

text: be

text: for

text: million

text: The

text: Treasury

text: bills

text: will

text: mature

text: in

text: days

text: allowing

text: the

text: Fed

text: access

text: to

text: quick

text: cash

text: But

text: what

text: does

text: this

text: mean

text: to

text: American

text: taxpayers

text: and

text: an

text: ailing

text: U.S.

text: economy

text: CNN

text: senior

text: business

text: correspondent

text: Ali

text: Velshi

text: breaks

text: it

text: down

text: Q

text: What

text: does

text: this

text: mean

text: in

text: layman

text: 's

text: terms

text: A

text: The

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: keeps

text: a

text: lot

text: of

text: money

text: in

text: supply

text: to

text: help

text: banks

text: and

text: basically

text: when

text: they

text: help

text: them

text: it

text: means

text: they

text: loan

text: them

text: money

text: As

text: this

text: credit

text: crisis

text: intensified

text: the

text: Fed

text: invited

text: more

text: and

text: more

text: banks

text: to

text: come

text: and

text: borrow

text: from

text: it

text: and

text: would

text: accept

text: collateral

text: that

text: was

text: not

text: as

text: high

text: quality

text: as

text: it

text: would

text: typically

text: accept

text: The

text: Fed

text: was

text: the

text: lender

text: of

text: last

text: resort

text: for

text: a

text: bank

text: you

text: paid

text: a

text: premium

text: to

text: borrow

text: money

text: from

text: the

text: Fed

text: and

text: you

text: had

text: to

text: give

text: them

text: your

text: best

text: collateral

text: What

text: 's

text: happening

text: now

text: is

text: you

text: still

text: pay

text: a

text: premium

text: but

text: you

text: can

text: go

text: with

text: lower

text: collateral

text: The

text: thinking

text: behind

text: that

text: is

text: the

text: more

text: banks

text: feel

text: free

text: to

text: go

text: to

text: the

text: Fed

text: to

text: borrow

text: money

text: the

text: less

text: likely

text: they

text: are

text: to

text: get

text: money

text: at

text: higher

text: interest

text: from

text: other

text: sources

text: and

text: the

text: less

text: likely

text: they

text: are

text: to

text: fail

text: as

text: a

text: result

text: In

text: other

text: words

text: if

text: they

text: feel

text: that

text: there

text: is

text: an

text: ability

text: to

text: borrow

text: money

text: from

text: the

text: Fed

text: if

text: they

text: absolutely

text: have

text: to

text: to

text: stay

text: afloat

text: that

text: facility

text: is

text: there

text: Well

text: the

text: number

text: of

text: banks

text: that

text: have

text: taken

text: advantage

text: of

text: this

text: has

text: caused

text: the

text: reserve

text: at

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: to

text: go

text: from

text: about

text: billion

text: to

text: by

text: some

text: estimates

text: as

text: low

text: as

text: billion

text: And

text: when

text: they

text: do

text: things

text: like

text: the

text: bailout

text: of

text: AIG

text: that

text: 's

text: where

text: that

text: money

text: comes

text: from

text: Watch

text: experts

text: discuss

text: what

text: the

text: bailout

text: means

text: for

text: consumers

text: ÃÂ

text: So

text: you

text: do

text: the

text: math

text: and

text: there

text: 's

text: some

text: sense

text: that

text: the

text: Fed

text: could

text: run

text: out

text: of

text: money

text: to

text: finance

text: these

text: banks

text: to

text: give

text: loans

text: And

text: just

text: the

text: idea

text: that

text: the

text: Fed

text: could

text: run

text: out

text: of

text: that

text: money

text: causes

text: Wall

text: Street

text: to

text: panic

text: because

text: it

text: says

text: If

text: four

text: more

text: banks

text: were

text: to

text: fail

text: the

text: Fed

text: would

text: n't

text: have

text: money

text: to

text: bail

text: them

text: out

text: so

text: we

text: 're

text: in

text: a

text: bad

text: situation

text: So

text: the

text: thinking

text: is

text: Let

text: 's

text: increase

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: 's

text: reserve

text: and

text: that

text: 's

text: what

text: this

text: auction

text: is

text: It

text: 's

text: the

text: first

text: in

text: a

text: series

text: of

text: auctions

text: this

text: one

text: will

text: be

text: for

text: billion

text: where

text: the

text: Treasury

text: on

text: behalf

text: of

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: issues

text: bonds

text: that

text: they

text: will

text: sell

text: at

text: auction

text: the

text: way

text: they

text: normally

text: do

text: and

text: they

text: 'll

text: be

text: for

text: periods

text: So

text: the

text: Fed

text: gives

text: out

text: those

text: bonds

text: and

text: in

text: exchange

text: gets

text: cash

text: and

text: the

text: Fed

text: sits

text: on

text: that

text: cash

text: and

text: uses

text: it

text: for

text: whatever

text: it

text: needs

text: Q

text: Why

text: would

text: the

text: government

text: bail

text: out

text: a

text: company

text: like

text: AIG

text: but

text: let

text: Lehman

text: Brothers

text: file

text: for

text: Chapter

text: bankruptcy

text: protection

text: A

text: Speaking

text: frankly

text: the

text: world

text: can

text: do

text: without

text: another

text: investment

text: firm

text: If

text: an

text: investment

text: bank

text: fails

text: any

text: remaining

text: investment

text: bank

text: can

text: hire

text: more

text: people

text: and

text: take

text: their

text: jobs

text: AIG

text: is

text: not

text: an

text: investment

text: bank

text: As

text: a

text: principal

text: insurer

text: it

text: insures

text: consumers

text: it

text: insures

text: businesses

text: and

text: it

text: insures

text: business

text: ventures

text: so

text: it

text: 's

text: not

text: just

text: that

text: your

text: corner

text: store

text: needs

text: insurance

text: AIG

text: insures

text: things

text: like

text: rigs

text: and

text: Hollywood

text: movies

text: and

text: those

text: subprime

text: mortgage

text: backed

text: securities

text: The

text: utter

text: failure

text: of

text: business

text: that

text: would

text: ensue

text: from

text: a

text: failure

text: of

text: AIG

text: would

text: be

text: catastrophic

text: and

text: would

text: actually

text: leave

text: the

text: government

text: having

text: to

text: pick

text: up

text: a

text: few

text: things

text: along

text: the

text: way

text: The

text: best

text: analogy

text: I

text: 've

text: been

text: able

text: to

text: come

text: up

text: with

text: is

text: to

text: use

text: an

text: automaker

text: When

text: you

text: think

text: about

text: putting

text: an

text: automaker

text: out

text: of

text: business

text: you

text: put

text: tire

text: makers

text: out

text: of

text: business

text: you

text: put

text: seat

text: makers

text: out

text: of

text: business

text: you

text: put

text: all

text: sorts

text: of

text: things

text: out

text: of

text: business

text: It

text: 's

text: the

text: same

text: thing

text: with

text: AIG

text: There

text: are

text: tentacles

text: They

text: 're

text: just

text: so

text: connected

text: to

text: so

text: many

text: other

text: parts

text: of

text: the

text: economy

text: that

text: the

text: government

text: deemed

text: it

text: more

text: dangerous

text: and

text: potentially

text: more

text: expensive

text: to

text: the

text: economy

text: to

text: have

text: it

text: fail

text: than

text: to

text: give

text: them

text: this

text: loan

text: Q

text: What

text: does

text: this

text: mean

text: to

text: the

text: American

text: taxpayer

text: A

text: If

text: AIG

text: gets

text: the

text: financing

text: it

text: needs

text: the

text: taxpayer

text: is

text: actually

text: doing

text: OK

text: The

text: government

text: is

text: charging

text: such

text: high

text: interest

text: to

text: AIG

text: and

text: they

text: 've

text: got

text: a

text: guarantee

text: of

text: percent

text: of

text: the

text: company

text: so

text: this

text: may

text: not

text: be

text: a

text: bad

text: deal

text: for

text: the

text: government

text: and

text: the

text: interest

text: is

text: high

text: enough

text: to

text: discourage

text: others

text: from

text: coming

text: cap

text: in

text: hand

text: to

text: the

text: government

text: If

text: you

text: realize

text: that

text: maybe

text: the

text: government

text: will

text: bail

text: you

text: out

text: as

text: a

text: last

text: resort

text: but

text: you

text: 're

text: going

text: to

text: pay

text: percent

text: interest

text: on

text: the

text: loan

text: that

text: 's

text: expensive

text: For

text: a

text: business

text: to

text: be

text: paying

text: percent

text: for

text: their

text: money

text: is

text: very

text: expensive

text: Q

text: What

text: sort

text: of

text: interest

text: can

text: an

text: investor

text: expect

text: from

text: something

text: like

text: this

text: A

text: When

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: loans

text: money

text: out

text: to

text: banks

text: these

text: are

text: short

text: loans

text: They

text: 've

text: typically

text: been

text: under

text: a

text: month

text: They

text: can

text: be

text: extended

text: under

text: new

text: emergency

text: rules

text: but

text: typically

text: speaking

text: they

text: 're

text: all

text: supposed

text: to

text: be

text: bridge

text: loans

text: immediate

text: financing

text: while

text: some

text: sort

text: of

text: problem

text: is

text: sorted

text: out

text: The

text: loan

text: to

text: AIG

text: is

text: a

text: bridge

text: loan

text: so

text: obviously

text: these

text: bonds

text: are

text: not

text: great

text: but

text: the

text: idea

text: is

text: that

text: money

text: that

text: is

text: borrowed

text: by

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: in

text: exchange

text: for

text: a

text: bill

text: is

text: as

text: safe

text: as

text: it

text: gets

text: That

text: is

text: backed

text: by

text: the

text: full

text: faith

text: and

text: credit

text: of

text: the

text: U.S.

text: government

text: The

text: government

text: can

text: borrow

text: money

text: probably

text: for

text: less

text: than

text: most

text: people

text: can

text: because

text: this

text: gets

text: sold

text: to

text: investors

text: who

text: want

text: safety

text: It

text: 's

text: not

text: a

text: premium

text: The

text: government

text: 's

text: not

text: going

text: to

text: pay

text: a

text: lot

text: of

text: interest

text: on

text: this

text: but

text: it

text: 's

text: a

text: very

text: safe

text: loan

text: If

text: you

text: 're

text: an

text: investor

text: who

text: 's

text: looking

text: for

text: a

text: small

text: but

text: absolutely

text: safe

text: return

text: for

text: days

text: this

text: might

text: be

text: an

text: option

text: for

text: you

text: Q

text: These

text: bonds

text: are

text: not

text: available

text: to

text: the

text: individual

text: investor

text: A

text: Not

text: at

text: all

text: It

text: 's

text: not

text: something

text: that

text: individuals

text: buy

text: It

text: 's

text: all

text: done

text: commercially

text: Q

text: The

text: U.S.

text: government

text: says

text: it

text: will

text: charge

text: AIG

text: roughly

text: percent

text: interest

text: for

text: this

text: rescue

text: loan

text: but

text: that

text: 's

text: not

text: comparable

text: to

text: what

text: an

text: investor

text: would

text: earn

text: by

text: buying

text: these

text: bonds

text: A

text: Not

text: at

text: all

text: I

text: do

text: n't

text: know

text: what

text: the

text: rate

text: is

text: and

text: that

text: s

text: because

text: it

text: 's

text: an

text: auction

text: it

text: 's

text: determined

text: that

text: way

text: I

text: would

text: be

text: surprised

text: if

text: there

text: 's

text: any

text: material

text: spread

text: between

text: that

text: and

text: an

text: equivalent

text: Treasury

text: If

text: you

text: buy

text: a

text: Treasury

text: it

text: trades

text: on

text: a

text: daily

text: basis

text: I

text: 'm

text: guessing

text: this

text: is

text: actually

text: more

text: of

text: a

text: straight

text: bond

text: in

text: that

text: you

text: 'll

text: buy

text: it

text: and

text: that

text: 'll

text: be

text: your

text: rate

text: until

text: you

text: redeem

text: it

text: but

text: I

text: could

text: be

text: wrong

text: I

text: do

text: n't

text: know

text: the

text: machination

text: of

text: that

text: It

text: 's

text: a

text: safe

text: safe

text: safe

text: investment

text: It

text: 's

text: the

text: United

text: States

text: government

text: backing

text: the

text: investment

text: Q

text: And

text: by

text: being

text: a

text: safe

text: investment

text: it

text: dictates

text: a

text: lower

text: return

text: A

text: Correct

text: Q

text: So

text: the

text: fact

text: that

text: the

text: Fed

text: by

text: some

text: estimates

text: is

text: low

text: on

text: cash

text: and

text: having

text: to

text: bail

text: out

text: a

text: weak

text: economy

text: that

text: does

text: n't

text: negatively

text: affect

text: the

text: government

text: 's

text: bond

text: rating

text: A

text: It

text: does

text: n't

text: have

text: an

text: effect

text: on

text: the

text: rating

text: The

text: way

text: things

text: happen

text: at

text: these

text: auctions

text: sometimes

text: is

text: that

text: regardless

text: of

text: the

text: good

text: rating

text: sometimes

text: they

text: 're

text: oversubscribed

text: and

text: sometimes

text: they

text: 're

text: undersubscribed

text: It

text: has

text: more

text: to

text: do

text: with

text: the

text: needs

text: of

text: the

text: market

text: If

text: the

text: market

text: needs

text: the

text: money

text: they

text: 'll

text: sell

text: quickly

text: It

text: 's

text: not

text: the

text: equivalent

text: of

text: printing

text: new

text: money

text: it

text: 's

text: borrowing

text: more

text: money

text: The

text: government

text: is

text: simply

text: issuing

text: a

text: loan

text: based

text: on

text: its

text: own

text: credit

text: Q

text: Is

text: the

text: Treasury

text: auction

text: then

text: a

text: result

text: of

text: the

text: weak

text: economy

text: or

text: is

text: it

text: directly

text: linked

text: to

text: the

text: AIG

text: rescue

text: loan

text: A

text: It

text: 's

text: directly

text: linked

text: to

text: the

text: moves

text: that

text: the

text: Federal

text: Reserve

text: has

text: taken

text: to

text: shore

text: up

text: financial

text: services

text: and

text: AIG

text: would

text: be

text: key

text: among

text: those

text: Q

text: The

text: government

text: has

text: said

text: the

text: rescue

text: loan

text: is

text: backed

text: by

text: AIG

text: 's

text: considerable

text: assets

text: which

text: total

text: about

text: trillion

text: If

text: reports

text: are

text: correct

text: that

text: the

text: government

text: is

text: planning

text: on

text: selling

text: off

text: many

text: of

text: these

text: assets

text: to

text: get

text: its

text: money

text: back

text: why

text: does

text: it

text: need

text: to

text: issue

text: these

text: bonds

text: A

text: Two

text: separate

text: issues

text: Regarding

text: AIG

text: the

text: government

text: gets

text: percent

text: of

text: the

text: assets

text: as

text: collateral

text: They

text: 're

text: not

text: free

text: to

text: sell

text: them

text: The

text: company

text: has

text: to

text: sell

text: them

text: and

text: as

text: they

text: do

text: so

text: and

text: repay

text: the

text: government

text: the

text: percent

text: hold

text: can

text: be

text: diminished

text: You

text: may

text: not

text: need

text: any

text: of

text: that

text: to

text: cover

text: AIG

text: The

text: bond

text: issuance

text: here

text: has

text: got

text: more

text: to

text: do

text: with

text: the

text: fact

text: that

text: the

text: reserves

text: that

text: the

text: Fed

text: keeps

text: have

text: dwindled

text: from

text: about

text: billion

text: to

text: an

text: estimate

text: and

text: I

text: should

text: tell

text: you

text: that

text: 's

text: an

text: outside

text: estimate

text: not

text: the

text: Fed

text: 's

text: estimate

text: of

text: about

text: billion

text: so

text: they

text: are

text: just

text: looking

text: for

text: methodology

text: to

text: increase

text: the

text: reserve

text: I

text: do

text: n't

text: think

text: it

text: 's

text: meant

text: to

text: say

text: that

text: the

text: Fed

text: is

text: losing

text: billion

text: of

text: its

text: billion

text: and

text: that

text: billion

text: is

text: covered

text: It

text: 's

text: a

text: separate

text: transaction

text: It

text: 's

text: the

text: idea

text: that

text: we

text: need

text: to

text: have

text: enough

text: money

text: to

text: keep

text: Wall

text: Street

text: confident

text: that

text: we

text: can

text: move

text: in

text: and

text: rescue

text: a

text: bank

text: if

text: we

text: have

text: to

question: Who is auctioning off this bond?

answer: U.S. Treasury Department

text: U.S. Treasury Department

question: When is this bond auction going to happen?

answer: Wednesday

text: Wednesday

question: Who said the Fed needs more money?

answer: Ali Velshi

text: Ali Velshi

question: When did the US Treasury hold its first bond auction?

answer: Wednesday

text: Wednesday

question: How much is the loan?

answer: $85 billion

text: $85 billion

question: Who said the Feds need more money?

answer: Ali Velshi

text: Ali Velshi

question: What would keep Wall Street confident?

answer: the Fed needs access to large amounts of cash

text: the Fed needs access to large amounts of cash

question: What does "AIG" stand for?

answer: American International Group.

text: American International Group.

question: How much was the loan that the government gave to AIG

answer: $85 billion

text: $85 billion

question: Who will hold its first bond auction?

answer: U.S. Treasury Department

text: U.S. Treasury Department


text:
Washington (CNN) -- Long before people posted their thoughts and feelings on social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, millions of people were doing just that on a different sort of wall.

It might have been something as simple as a baseball, a playing card or a walking stick. Or perhaps a more personal item, like a poem, photograph or diploma.

And then there's the occasional letter, like the one dated November 18, 1989, that began:

Dear Sir,

For twenty two years, I have carried your picture in my wallet. I was only eighteen years old that day that we faced each other on that trail in Chu Lai, Vietnam. Why you did not take my life, I will never know. ...

These are among the more than 100,000 objects that have been left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall.

Since its dedication in 1982, nearly 4 million people a year have visited the memorial's polished black granite wall, many to leave a personal item or note in memory of the more than 58,000 people whose names are engraved there.

No one is sure who started the custom of leaving items at the wall, curator Duery Felton said.

The first items began showing up even before construction on the memorial was complete. A park ranger started collecting the items, thinking people might come back for them someday.

By 1986, as the objects continued to pile up, the National Park Service decided to establish an official collection. Thus was born the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection.

The items are catalogued 12 miles away at the Museum and Archaeological Regional Storage facility in Maryland. Though it's not open to the public, traveling collections are often on display at museums both in the United States and abroad, Felton said.

"You had, for the first time that we've been able to ascertain, people coming to a public site for a protracted period and leaving unsolicited objects," Felton said.

There is seemingly no limit to the types of artifacts that are part of the collection, from G.I. Joe action figures to crutches, dog tags, combat boots -- even a motorcycle.

On any given day, the wall might be adorned with artwork, prayers, a diploma marking a missed milestone or a picture of a young child born too late for a loved one to meet.

Occasionally, a note accompanies an item, but most times an object's meaning is left to interpretation.

Felton, a Vietnam veteran himself, says he's wary of making assumptions about an item's meaning. Many may seem like ordinary objects, but often they hold deeper significance to either the donor or one being remembered.

Felton likes to use a bag of M&Ms to make his point.

The candy, which gained popularity among World War II soldiers looking for a chocolate treat that wouldn't melt, may have been left at the wall because it was a loved one's favorite, he says.

More likely, though, it had something to do with the little-known fact that military doctors used M&Ms as placebos for injured soldiers when no aspirin was available.

"I look at us as being voyeurs in many ways, because we don't know the full story," he said. "Outside of donor information, I can't tell you why [an] item was left."

On a more comprehensive scale, the collection serves as a record of social history, he said. The egalitarian nature of the memorial and the unprecedented public outrage that resulted from the controversial war are not unrelated, Felton said.

"This is a study. This is tangible evidence of a major epoch on the psyche of the American public," Felton said. "For all intents and purposes, this collection is being curated by the public. ... It's uncensored."

And as Vietnam veterans age, it even more important to preserve these artifacts for future generations, he said.

"Almost 60 percent of today's population was not alive during Vietnam," he said. "You can't tell where you are until you understand where you've been. ... We're preserving the past for the future."

text: Washington

text: CNN

text: Long

text: before

text: people

text: posted

text: their

text: thoughts

text: and

text: feelings

text: on

text: social

text: networking

text: sites

text: like

text: Twitter

text: and

text: Facebook

text: millions

text: of

text: people

text: were

text: doing

text: just

text: that

text: on

text: a

text: different

text: sort

text: of

text: wall

text: It

text: might

text: have

text: been

text: something

text: as

text: simple

text: as

text: a

text: baseball

text: a

text: playing

text: card

text: or

text: a

text: walking

text: stick

text: Or

text: perhaps

text: a

text: more

text: personal

text: item

text: like

text: a

text: poem

text: photograph

text: or

text: diploma

text: And

text: then

text: there

text: 's

text: the

text: occasional

text: letter

text: like

text: the

text: one

text: dated

text: November

text: that

text: began

text: Dear

text: Sir

text: For

text: twenty

text: two

text: years

text: I

text: have

text: carried

text: your

text: picture

text: in

text: my

text: wallet

text: I

text: was

text: only

text: eighteen

text: years

text: old

text: that

text: day

text: that

text: we

text: faced

text: each

text: other

text: on

text: that

text: trail

text: in

text: Chu

text: Lai

text: Vietnam

text: Why

text: you

text: did

text: not

text: take

text: my

text: life

text: I

text: will

text: never

text: know

text: These

text: are

text: among

text: the

text: more

text: than

text: objects

text: that

text: have

text: been

text: left

text: at

text: the

text: Vietnam

text: Veterans

text: Memorial

text: on

text: the

text: National

text: Mall

text: Since

text: its

text: dedication

text: in

text: nearly

text: million

text: people

text: a

text: year

text: have

text: visited

text: the

text: memorial

text: 's

text: polished

text: black

text: granite

text: wall

text: many

text: to

text: leave

text: a

text: personal

text: item

text: or

text: note

text: in

text: memory

text: of

text: the

text: more

text: than

text: people

text: whose

text: names

text: are

text: engraved

text: there

text: No

text: one

text: is

text: sure

text: who

text: started

text: the

text: custom

text: of

text: leaving

text: items

text: at

text: the

text: wall

text: curator

text: Duery

text: Felton

text: said

text: The

text: first

text: items

text: began

text: showing

text: up

text: even

text: before

text: construction

text: on

text: the

text: memorial

text: was

text: complete

text: A

text: park

text: ranger

text: started

text: collecting

text: the

text: items

text: thinking

text: people

text: might

text: come

text: back

text: for

text: them

text: someday

text: By

text: as

text: the

text: objects

text: continued

text: to

text: pile

text: up

text: the

text: National

text: Park

text: Service

text: decided

text: to

text: establish

text: an

text: official

text: collection

text: Thus

text: was

text: born

text: the

text: Vietnam

text: Veterans

text: Memorial

text: Collection

text: The

text: items

text: are

text: catalogued

text: miles

text: away

text: at

text: the

text: Museum

text: and

text: Archaeological

text: Regional

text: Storage

text: facility

text: in

text: Maryland

text: Though

text: it

text: 's

text: not

text: open

text: to

text: the

text: public

text: traveling

text: collections

text: are

text: often

text: on

text: display

text: at

text: museums

text: both

text: in

text: the

text: United

text: States

text: and

text: abroad

text: Felton

text: said

text: You

text: had

text: for

text: the

text: first

text: time

text: that

text: we

text: 've

text: been

text: able

text: to

text: ascertain

text: people

text: coming

text: to

text: a

text: public

text: site

text: for

text: a

text: protracted

text: period

text: and

text: leaving

text: unsolicited

text: objects

text: Felton

text: said

text: There

text: is

text: seemingly

text: no

text: limit

text: to

text: the

text: types

text: of

text: artifacts

text: that

text: are

text: part

text: of

text: the

text: collection

text: from

text: G.I.

text: Joe

text: action

text: figures

text: to

text: crutches

text: dog

text: tags

text: combat

text: boots

text: even

text: a

text: motorcycle

text: On

text: any

text: given

text: day

text: the

text: wall

text: might

text: be

text: adorned

text: with

text: artwork

text: prayers

text: a

text: diploma

text: marking

text: a

text: missed

text: milestone

text: or

text: a

text: picture

text: of

text: a

text: young

text: child

text: born

text: too

text: late

text: for

text: a

text: loved

text: one

text: to

text: meet

text: Occasionally

text: a

text: note

text: accompanies

text: an

text: item

text: but

text: most

text: times

text: an

text: object

text: 's

text: meaning

text: is

text: left

text: to

text: interpretation

text: Felton

text: a

text: Vietnam

text: veteran

text: himself

text: says

text: he

text: 's

text: wary

text: of

text: making

text: assumptions

text: about

text: an

text: item

text: 's

text: meaning

text: Many

text: may

text: seem

text: like

text: ordinary

text: objects

text: but

text: often

text: they

text: hold

text: deeper

text: significance

text: to

text: either

text: the

text: donor

text: or

text: one

text: being

text: remembered

text: Felton

text: likes

text: to

text: use

text: a

text: bag

text: of

text: M&Ms

text: to

text: make

text: his

text: point

text: The

text: candy

text: which

text: gained

text: popularity

text: among

text: World

text: War

text: II

text: soldiers

text: looking

text: for

text: a

text: chocolate

text: treat

text: that

text: would

text: n't

text: melt

text: may

text: have

text: been

text: left

text: at

text: the

text: wall

text: because

text: it

text: was

text: a

text: loved

text: one

text: 's

text: favorite

text: he

text: says

text: More

text: likely

text: though

text: it

text: had

text: something

text: to

text: do

text: with

text: the

text: little

text: known

text: fact

text: that

text: military

text: doctors

text: used

text: M&Ms

text: as

text: placebos

text: for

text: injured

text: soldiers

text: when

text: no

text: aspirin

text: was

text: available

text: I

text: look

text: at

text: us

text: as

text: being

text: voyeurs

text: in

text: many

text: ways

text: because

text: we

text: do

text: n't

text: know

text: the

text: full

text: story

text: he

text: said

text: Outside

text: of

text: donor

text: information

text: I

text: ca

text: n't

text: tell

text: you

text: why

text: an

text: item

text: was

text: left

text: On

text: a

text: more

text: comprehensive

text: scale

text: the

text: collection

text: serves

text: as

text: a

text: record

text: of

text: social

text: history

text: he

text: said

text: The

text: egalitarian

text: nature

text: of

text: the

text: memorial

text: and

text: the

text: unprecedented

text: public

text: outrage

text: that

text: resulted

text: from

text: the

text: controversial

text: war

text: are

text: not

text: unrelated

text: Felton

text: said

text: This

text: is

text: a

text: study

text: This

text: is

text: tangible

text: evidence

text: of

text: a

text: major

text: epoch

text: on

text: the

text: psyche

text: of

text: the

text: American

text: public

text: Felton

text: said

text: For

text: all

text: intents

text: and

text: purposes

text: this

text: collection

text: is

text: being

text: curated

text: by

text: the

text: public

text: It

text: 's

text: uncensored

text: And

text: as

text: Vietnam

text: veterans

text: age

text: it

text: even

text: more

text: important

text: to

text: preserve

text: these

text: artifacts

text: for

text: future

text: generations

text: he

text: said

text: Almost

text: percent

text: of

text: today

text: 's

text: population

text: was

text: not

text: alive

text: during

text: Vietnam

text: he

text: said

text: You

text: ca

text: n't

text: tell

text: where

text: you

text: are

text: until

text: you

text: understand

text: where

text: you

text: 've

text: been

text: We

text: 're

text: preserving

text: the

text: past

text: for

text: the

text: future

question: Who established an official collection?

answer: National Park Service

text: National Park Service

question: on what place more than 100,000 objects have been left?

answer: Vietnam Veterans Memorial

text: Vietnam Veterans Memorial

question: what did the National Park Servide do As objects piled up?

answer: establish an official collection.

text: establish an official collection.

question: what is often on display at museums in U.S. and abroad?

answer: traveling collections

text: traveling collections

question: How many objects were left at the Vietnam Veternas MemorialÃ

answer: more than 100,000

text: more than 100,000

question: Who collected the objects as they piled up

answer: A park ranger

text: A park ranger

question: Where were the collections displayed?

answer: Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall.

text: Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall.

question: How many objects have been left at memorial?

answer: more than 100,000

text: more than 100,000

question: Where are the museums in which travelling collections of the objects are on display?

answer: both in the United States and abroad,

text: both in the United States and abroad,