As America withdraws from Iraq and Afghanistan what do we leave behind? Has American military and foreign policy succeeded or have we bequeathed new geopolitical instability and new challenges to the Western world?

The just concluded third quarter was a tumultuous one economically, politically and financially. The world economy is fraught with problems which are having drastic impacts on the behaviors of individuals and businesses. We perceive the economic and social deprivations being suffered by peoples around the world are causing new political unrest that will have long term implications on the future of economic, social and political institutions around the world. What are we facing?

In an effort to reduce the long term Federal deficit problem, Democrats and Republicans are looking at changing the method of computing inflation in the economy to one that would result in a lower measurement of inflation. The impact of such a change would have a significant positive impact on the Federal budget over the next decade. However, such an improvement in Federal finances would come at the expense of an increased number of dependents on Federal programs. The long term socio-economic impact would be quite negative. What are the merits of such a change?

Anirban Basu examined the relationships between Maryland’s potential, its economic performance and over-reliance on decreasing federal government funding.

Despite a seeming agreement to avert a U.S. government debt default, we believe the deteriorating economic situation in the U.S. is actually more serious and is more worthy of our attention. We believe the dramatic slowdown in U.S. economic growth raises the distinct possibility of a slide back into recession possibly as early as this year. The fortunes of the U.S. economy rest in the hands of the private sector. We are not optimistic the private sector will turn the tide.