Mike Welch's comments in his July 24th column "Are CUs judged by the company they keep?" about Norm D'Amours and his record at NCUA were a little off the mark when it came to lending. On many occasions D'Amours actually did suggest that credit unions go out and take more risk. Actually, NCUA became more open to lending during his tenure. I regret that this message was not always heard because D'Amours made everyone mad with his underserved nonsense. I seem to remember him being a strong proponent of risk-based lending. Seriously, on balance Norm was very open when it came to lending. Bill Brooks President/CEO Lafayette FCU Kensington, Md.