The Global Economy Is Faltering

WASHINGTON -- There was something fitting about Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou's reckless call for a referendum on the latest rescue package for his country. World leaders gathering in Cannes for a G-20 summit face stark realities. The global economy is faltering, and no country has assumed leadership in organizing recovery. There is a loss of control, a vacuum of power. Papandreou's disruptive decision -- now apparently withdrawn -- symbolizes this larger erosion of collective purpose. The world economy is adrift.