I Admire Chancellor Merkel For

Globalization Has Rendered The World Increasingly Interdependent, But International Politics Is Still Based On The Sovereignty Of States.

At Times Of Recession, Running A Budget Deficit Is Highly Desirable. Once The Economy Begins To Recover, You Have To Balance The Budget. But It Will Also Need Additional Revenues. Should The Government Not Receive Them, We Will All Get Punished With Higher Interest Rates.

You Could Adjust The Punishment To Fit The Infraction. Even A Small Fine Would Be Enough To Bring An Errant Government To Heel.

Regulating And Taxing Marijuana Would Simultaneously Save Taxpayers Billions Of Dollars In Enforcement And Incarceration Costs, While Providing Many Billions Of Dollars In Revenue Annually.

The Securitisation Of Mortgages Added A New Dimension Of Systemic Risk. Financial Engineers Claimed They Were Reducing Risks Through Geographic Diversification: In Fact They Were Increasing Them By Creating An Agency Problem. The Agents Were More Interested In Maximising Fee Income Than In Protecting The Interests Of Bondholders. That Is The Verity That Was Ignored By Regulators And Market Participants Alike.