Medvedev must have read "Bad Money"

New Russian President Dmitri A. Medvedev must have picked up a copy of Kevin Phillips' new book Bad Money: Reckless Finance, Failed Politics, and the Global Crisis of American Capitalism, a review of which will hopefully be forthcoming here in the week ahead.

According to this New York Times report, in his first major economic speech, he said that the world might be headed toward The Greater Depression, thanks to the good 'ol US of A:

In a keynote address that underscored his knowledge of corporate terminology, Mr. Medvedev spoke of “economic egoism” and “economic nationalism,” and he made specific reference to the United States overreaching its economic capabilities.

“It turned out to be an illusion that one country, even the most powerful, could take upon itself the role of global government,” he said.

“Moreover, namely, the dissonance between the formal role of the United States of America in the world economy and its actual capabilities was one of the central causes of the current crisis. However big the American market, and however reliable the American financial system, it’s not capable of replacing global goods and financial markets.”

There's more from Bloomberg here including this gem of a quote:

"An underestimation of risks by the largest financial companies together with the aggressive financial policy of the world's largest economy led not only to corporate losses; unfortunately, the majority of people on the planet became poorer."

Lighten up Dmitri!

ooo

This week's cartoon from The Economist: