MONDAY MORNING

We predicted in Saturday’s sketch (Thank You Darling) that if adopted by other major world credits, that Darling’s plan would place a floor under the free fall. After an extraordinary series of meetings this weekend, most of the G-20 (G-7, the EU & 12 countries) have accepted that plan of action; initial reactions, both in European and UK equity markets and LIBOR indicate a warm acceptance.

Of course, the treatment scares the living daylights out of all of us. Like early 19 century inoculations for smallpox, this could kill us, or at least make us very sick. For example, although the temporary nationalization of a good part of the G-7 banking sectors is unavoidable and indeed necessary, we hope we can avoid the introduction of the other trappings of comprehensive state ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange. Should economists begin to dust off their manuals on central planning, cast Hayek into the recycling bin?

Robert Craven