Recent comments by David Nowakowski

• Gun Control After Newtown

  The problem with this "solution" is that it does not show a practical path to the answer. The United States CANNOT "regulate and limit gun ownership" beyond a few broad boundaries (e.g. guns in public buildings, or possession by the insane), because the U.S. Constitution clearly spells out: "the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed". Thanks, James Madison!
  
  The U.S. Constitution previously allowed slavery, banned alcohol, and denied women the right to vote. What is Sachs' recommendation on how to repeal the second amendment?! Without this step, his policy is moot: it will be struck down, as it should be, for violating the Constitution. (It's fairly clear to me that the part of the 2nd amendment relating to militias is not just decorative, but that clarification is not part of the operative clause, and so is completely ignored in practice)

• The End of the World as We Know It

  @Daan Diederiks -- "responsible advice of learned men and women" is what got us into this situation, while realistic warnings were dismissed by politicians who time and again have refused to admit mistakes and make difficult choices, and now make expedient but *wrong* decisions. You exhibit a touching faith in the better angels of our nature, though.
  
  More broadly, historical experience shows that Prof. Rodrik is being far too dire. Most likely, dogmatic and stubborn Europe will lurch from crisis to crisis and stagnate if it sticks with the euro, a misconstructed currency and monetary union.
  
  Dismantling it should be priority #1, as soon as possible, as Nouriel Roubini has advocated on this site. The costs will be large and involve some instability, but would the CIS be better if they still had the Soviet ruble? The UK and Sweden if they had stuck fast with ERM at any cost? SE Asia and Korea if they still had their overvalued dollar pegs? I could go on, but Europe going back to freely traded currencies seems a much more positive outcome than keeping the failed EMU, let alone Rodrik's apocalyptic musings.