“A fiscally responsible US president would have joined with responsible members of Congress in refusing to sign a further increase in the debt ceiling.”

The world is watching the debacle in Washington – this “clown show” featuring “corporately-owned clowns” masquerading as responsible “public servants.”

According to an article written by an Australian professor, “Global share markets were faltering even before the decision by Standard & Poor’s to downgrade the US government’s debt. The slump in share markets over the past week reflects a weaker outlook for the world economy – even if markets have recovered somewhat over the past day(s).

“The problems facing the US and other developed economies are structural rather than cyclical. Politicians throughout the developed world have expected too much from macro policy instruments that are necessarily limited in effectiveness.

“At the same time, leaders have shirked responsibility for addressing underlying structural problems. In terms of monetary and fiscal policy, policymakers have thrown everything but the kitchen sink at the post-crisis US economy. The returns to monetary and fiscal stimulus have been modest. Read the rest of the article here.