The Gridlock Where Debts Meet Politics by David Leonhardt in the New York Times. On both sides of the Atlantic the financial crisis is often blamed on a lack of political will. It is a reality, however, that voters in all these countries remain unwilling or unable to recognize that the West has promised itself more than it can pay for. So beyond the political fecklessness, a philosophical debate remains about who shoulders the costs of a changed social contract. Recommended by European Affairs. (11/8)