In an amusing but thoughtful post about his frustration with advocates of austerity, Simon Wren-Lewis assesses the arguments cited by policy makers and the degrees of rudeness he thinks they merit.

Stephen Tall explores how Lib Dem party member’s views on the party’s performance in Government have changed in the last two and a half years.

Reflecting on the high inequalities in wealth, income and political power in the United States, Bill Gardner argues that these are likely to get worse with time rather than better.

Grant Shapps offers some thoughts on what his party might learn from Obama’s election victory.

In a week where so much attention was focused on the United States and the economic problems to be confronted by Barack Obama in his second term, Clarissa Tan suggests that China’s economy also stands in serious need of reform.