GREETINGS AND SALUTATIONS.  As some of you know, I’m the Business and Economics Editor of The Atlantic, the editor of Atlantic Business, the business section of our website, and a blogger in my own right.  I also enjoy travel, fine dinings, and romantic moonlight walks on the beach  . . .

Right now, as you might expect, I’m thinking a great deal about the de-facto nationalization of General Motors, and what this means for America.  Nothing good, I’m pretty sure.  On the other hand, our own Conor Clarke has crunched the numbers on the percentage of American companies owned by the government, and come up with some encouraging results.