Yet another data point for tracking the conversion of governments to market actors from last week's Economist: On March 24th at the behest of the Mexican government, the SEC ordered US securities markets to suspend trading in the shares of Mexican companies after the recent political assasination. The NYSE complied. The NASDAQ refused. Shares started trading with a one-hour delay. "With finance globalized, governments can seldom block the operation of markets. Nor should they try to. Few would now suggest closing the foreign-exchange markets, as in the 1960s. In a 24-hour global market, traders and investors could simply shift their business elsewhere." DCF "We'd better hope that strong cypto, cheap telecoms and free markets can provide the organizing basis for a workable society because it is clear that coercion as an organizing principle ain't what it used to be." --- WinQwk 2.0b#1165