Both the Liberals and the Conservatives seem to think economic recovery is at hand. When Finance Minister Flaherty prudently speaks about the need to continue spending until the recession is clearly behind us, his unstated message is that things are coming back to normal. Former Liberal Finance Minister Martin talks about the need for a roadmap to eliminate spending deficits, implying they are no longer needed because the economy is turning upwards. Worse, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has taken to attacking the Conservatives for over-spending referring to the danger of Canada hitting the "deficit (sic) wall."

Bloomberg News estimates $12.8 trillion (U.S.) as the amount of financial support already given by the U.S. authorities to its banking system. So far, this led to no meaningful improvement in credit conditions, or bank lending.

The man overseeing this stupendous bailout -- $12.8 trillion represents about 90 per cent of the value of U.S. production last year -- is Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke, the U.S. central banker.

Suppose he does not know what he is doing?

In economic denial: This past Christmas, I watched some kids, circa 10 years old, face the test of the collapsing Santa myth. Many parents feel anxious over this. They fear it will blight their kids' mental health, or already has, but are unsure what to say. My own sense is that kids, if encouraged to deal with the issue themselves, handle it well. It becomes a kind of lab on how to deal with doubts and myths to come, without falling into cynicism or rage. They can calmly move on or, perhaps, retain Santa as a sort of metaphor. So it helps confirm their ability to manage life's inevitable review processes.

Contrast this with the elite and media responses to the collapse of the "unfettered free markets" myth. Former U.S.