Kevin Drum on China and the IMF

Kevin Drum reminds us there's a whole big world out there beyond the edge of today's tracking polls. And while China and Russia may be watching the US horserace with a genuine interest in the outcome, what they're really watching--cautiously--are all those little nations on the verge of bankruptcy as a result of the spreading economic crisis.

This, in turn, is what the candidates ought to be watching (though Drum doesn't say so), because what happens next between China, Russia, and all those lesser-stans may have decisive effects on us here at home, regardless of who wins this election. And that's where the IMF comes in.

Kevin explains it all much better than I can, so I'll let him. In a nutshell, a positive byproduct of these troubled times (my take) is that the IMF may be learning to move a little more quickly and a little less, shall we say, pompously, to release funds to struggling nations.