New Zealand

Instead of interacting across borders, why can’t we withdraw and enjoy the safety of home? Why risk becoming ‘‘tenants in our own country’’ for dubious benefits derived from foreign direct investment?

It is laudable to have a government committed to improving education. Let’s not tarnish the goal with a $2.1 million gimmick.

It is odd that foreigners buying shares in energy companies excites kiwis so much. How many countries have a similarly emotional relationship with their utilities?

Far, far from the troubles at the home front, Prime Minister John Key was visibly enjoying the military honours and his joint press conference with Chancellor Angela Merkel on his visit to Berlin last week. A better use of his time would have been studying the effects of delaying superannuation reforms.

Aristotle was right. A great city does not need a big population. It can even be as small as Dunedin’s. But every great city needs a population that is passionate about itself, ambitious for its future, and optimistic about its outlook.

Australian economic journalism does not have to be afraid of a comparison with the kind of journalism that is practiced abroad. But a greater focus on international developments could make it better still.

German constituency MPs thus also lack the degree of personal independence that we would often find in countries with a first-past-the-post system. The grip of political parties on the political process in Germany is much stronger than in countries like Britain, the US, or New Zealand.

There are good reasons to be very concerned about the future of the global economic and monetary order. In Australia and to a lesser degree in New Zealand we are probably in a somewhat better position than most other developed nations. We should use this opportunity to prepare ourselves for the next stages of the Global Financial Crisis.