Sudden-death overtime for WTO...

The previously deceased Doha Round of the WTO were sent into overtime today by leaders from the G-8 nations. Pascal Lamy was given a one-month deadline to do what several years of wrangling apparently could not. If he is successful, cynicism about trade negotiations will deepen as obviously no participant has been negotiating in good faith. No future deadline will be taken seriously and negotiator careers will be golden.

I want trade to be freer, I want negotiations to be fruitful, but I want diplomats and bureaucrats to honor time commitments - and to go off the clock when the deadline passes.