David Ignatius at PostGlobal

David Ignatius

Washington Post columnist

PostGlobal co-moderator David Ignatius is a Washington Post columnist with a wide-ranging career in journalism, having served at various times as a reporter, foreign correspondent and editor. He has also written widely for magazines and published six novels. Ignatius’s twice-weekly column on global politics, economics and international affairs debuted on The Washington Post op-ed page in January 1999, and has been syndicated worldwide by The Washington Post Writers Group. The column won the 2000 Gerald Loeb Award for Commentary and a 2004 Edward Weintal Prize. From September 2000 to January 2003, Ignatius served as executive editor of the Paris-based International Herald Tribune. Prior to becoming a columnist, Ignatius was the Post´s assistant managing editor in charge of business news, a position he assumed in 1993. He served as the Post´s foreign editor from 1990 to 1992, supervising the paper´s Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. From 1986 to 1990, he was editor of the Post´s Sunday Outlook section. Close.

David Ignatius

Washington Post columnist

PostGlobal co-moderator David Ignatius is a Washington Post columnist with a wide-ranging career in journalism, having served at various times as a reporter, foreign correspondent and editor. He has also written widely for magazines and published six novels more »

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Calling Dr. Pangloss

I'm an optimist by nature. It's one of my failings as a journalist, I suspect. But I find it hard to be as optimistic about the course of the global economy as Swaminathan Aiyar. Yes, strong global demand is helping push up oil prices, and yes, a mild recession would help curb the U.S. consumption binge that produces such big trade deficits. And maybe we'll have yet another "soft landing."

But if there's one thing the last decade should have reminded us, it's that the economic law of gravity has not been suspended. What goes up does come down. What's unsustainable is not sustained. Big imbalances do have consequences. Markets do correct--and in doing so, they often overshoot.

The Fed and European central banks have been pumping new billions of liquidity into the international financial system (largely unnoticed) for a reason: They are nervous. So am I. A wise central banker commented to me recently that the best policy advice in such a delicate situation is the Hippocratic Oath: Do no harm. In other words, don't do anything rash to react to the repricing of assets and currencies that's now taking place. I hope that advice is followed. I hope it works. As I said, I want to be an optimist....

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PostGlobal is an interactive conversation on global issues moderated by Newsweek International Editor Fareed Zakaria and David Ignatius of The Washington Post. It is produced jointly by Newsweek and washingtonpost.com, as is On Faith, a conversation on religion. Please send your comments, questions and suggestions for PostGlobal to Lauren Keane, its producer.