And so to Jerusalem, where another round of indirect peace talks between parties that aren’t serious about peace rings just as hollow.

The Israelis are building settlements again, and don’t seem to care at all about US foreign policy.

And why should they, when a visiting Vice President bends over backwards to pledge “absolute, total, unvarnished commitment to Israel’s security”?

Gorilla says: “It’s hard to tell, in a meeting among assholes, where a friendly enema could do any good!”

US politicians simply aren’t serious about sacrifice of any kind, so there’s little prospect of progress except at the margins.

Gorilla says: “A hamfisted waste of time!”

US agricultural subsidies have the effect of keeping prices artificially high for US consumers and promoting poverty in countries like Brazil, where domestic producers can’t compete.

And is there any chance we’ll get rid of the subsidies, a huge waste of money at a time of ever growing deficits?

Gorilla answers: “No chance of borrowing for Paul from Peter Cottontail!”

*The majority of the world’s 1.3 billion absolute poor are women.

*Women also continue to be victims of violence, with rape and domestic violence listed as significant causes of disability and death among women worldwide.

Gorilla thinks: “If women ran the world, you can bet the world would be better off!”

Having failed to bribe mortgage brokers to alter loans, the next bright idea is to bribe underwater homeowners.

And it won’t work, because nobody really knows how low prices will go, second/third mortgage lenders will want to be paid, and there’s no evidence of any pent-up demand in an economy with 10% unemployment and 23% of homeowners under water.

So, expect at least another 10-15% decline in house prices and more short sales in the next 12 months, as bankers do their very best to avoid the reality of their balance sheets.

The most sensible approach, namely having bankruptcy judges reduce mortgage principal and force the bankers to make a deal, has already been voted down twice in Congress.

Gorilla says: “Extend and pretend will morph into short to abort!”

The problem isn’t that the system lacks regulation, the problem is that the regulators didn’t do their jobs properly.

There’s no evidence they’ll do any better next time, and no willingness on the part of Wall Street’s captive legislators to take the banks on.

So, we can all start waiting around for the next bubble to burst: dollar carry trade, Chinese real estate, currency default swaps, or whatever it is our valiant regulators continue to ignore.

Gorilla says: “The rich man has already passed through the eye of the needle into deregulated heaven!”

The need for the yuan to go up is clear (on the order of 20-40%), as is the need for the dollar to decline further.

Global trade balances will begin to even out, and the prospect of retaliatory policies will diminish.

Gorilla says: “We need more from column renminbi!”

“We may now decide to bail you out. . . . But that’s different from being legally obligated.”

Gorilla says: “A distinction without a difference is like a checking account without a toaster!”

Unlike South Korea and Japan, our supposed allies in the region, Chinese companies would suffer no punishment for trading with Tehran.

Perhaps this is a bribe to get the Chinese on board at the UN, but the reality is neither the Chinese nor the Russians are serious about imposing more sanctions.

Sooner or later, the President’s going to have to decide whether he wants to make a deal with the Iranians.

The sanctions so far aren’t stopping Tehran from nuclear development, and there’s very little international appetite for a solely punitive approach.

Gorilla thinks: “Cut to the chase and cut a deal!”

No, it’s not yet time to jump for joy, but there seems to be a need on the part of mainstream media to cheerlead, or do anything other than ask why our leaders are doing essentially nothing at all about the worst unemployment picture in 70 years.

Gorilla says: “Going steady? More like going nowhere!”