The New Zealand Herald

In Homer’s Odyssey, the hero is eventually saved and returns home. For the US, a return to long-term economic and political stability is a long way in the future.

It feels nice to be admired by the world. Yet I would rather live in a country that has honest conversations with itself.

Enjoy the relatively positive economic data while it lasts. But do not believe for a second it is sustainable.

Covid-19 is not just a medical and economic crisis. It is a historical watershed moment with massive effects for entire generations.

This new Cold War could be decided not by Beijing’s victory but by the West’s suicide.

First, I never want to hear another excited word about shovel-ready projects. Second, I would like to see decent cost-benefit analyses before any new spending project. And third, I wish the public service would curb any over-enthusiastic minister on their respective pet projects.

What happens over the coming weeks and months will determine our political and economic fate for decades to come. Governments can follow Attlee or Erhard. The hopeful victory against coronavirus will be a Pyrrhic one if we allow it to destroy our liberal, free-trading economic order.