Obama: The American "voracious consumer market" has ended

Epic.

Here's the Times just now. Pretty mind blowing, and awfully darn encouraging. Seems Obama's come to the G-20 armed to explain how the world needs to be rebalanced:

Obama Plays Down Rift Over Economy on Eve of Summit
By DAVID E. SANGER and MARK LANDLER 3:45 PM ET
The president also cautioned that the U.S. was unlikely to return to its role as a “voracious consumer market” that could anchor the world economy.

This is utterly epic folks, and further evidence that Obama gets it. I rather suspect that Larry Summers had a lot to do with this statement.

Here's more:

In essence, the United States is pressing Europe and other nations to spend more now — when a coordinated stimulus could do the most good. But over the long term, Mr. Obama appeared to be preparing the world for a reshaped global economy in which the United States no longer was the ultimate export market for the world’s established and emerging powers. It was that habit of overconsumption, he appeared to say, that led to the boom-and-bust cycles that he has said must end.

“The United States will do its share,” he said, “but I think that one of the things that Gordon and I spoke about is the fact that in some ways the world has become accustomed to the United States being a voracious consumer market and the engine that drives a lot of economic growth worldwide. And I think that in the wake of this crisis, even as we’re doing stimulus, we have to take into account our own deficits.”

Wow. WOW

Here's a snapshot of once-in-a-century global realignment happening before our eyes, and very much for the better for all involved, imo. Martin Wolf must have smiled whe he heard these words

But we still nedd to nationalize and break up the big banks ASAP, beginning with Citi....