WORLD VIEW: "A Path Out of the Woods," by Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek, 1 December 2008.

Saying that China is America's "banker" is a bit misleading, but the logic of this piece is solid. The key point here is that, not only must China help us out by stimulating its own economy, it needs to continue buying a certain amount of U.S. bonds so that our stimulus can unfold: "In effect, we're asking China to finance simultaneously the two largest fiscal expansions in human history--theirs and ours." Fareed then quotes Stiglitz as saying China has two routes out of the current crisis: stimulate their own economy and help the West stimulate itself, stating those are "options," whereas we don't have an option. Then Ferguson is channeled with his "Chimerica" argument that says, China can chose to save itself only or try to save that symbiotic relationship too, warning darkly that if China takes the former path, then it's "say goodbye to globalization." I would also add, say goodbye to China's stability, because I know America has the social stability to survive globalization's demise, while China does not. But again, no matter how you couch it, the larger logic is undeniable: China and the U.S. either sink or swim together. China simply cannot survive on a mini-me globalization of its own making. If it could, then we wouldn't be in the current crisis, because we'd have a second powerful pole of consumer consumption in the global economy to balance our own, and China is simply nowhere close enough to that evolutionary point. My God, it's currency isn't even truly convertible yet! Zakaria's end point is also right on: Obama's most important choice is probably U.S. ambassador to China. If he signals any give in the direction of populist protectionism, China may feel the need to make the unpalatable call to try and save itself alone, which, given any such signal, would make the most sense in the short term. And then the comparisons to the Great Depression get a lot more real. But that requires some intense strategic stupidity on Obama's part, and I just don't see that happening with Summers at his side. This is why I voted for Obama--in a scary nutshell. I wanted the guy smart enough to realize how not to f--k up globalization at this crucial junction point.