Nineteen thirty-nine was not a good year. World War II started, and much of the world was still in the Depression. The leaders of too many countries were either despots or naive and weak.

And 2009 has not been a good year, considering the global recession. Seventy years later, as in 1939, the leaders of too many countries are either despots or naive and weak. Just look at the performance of the world's leaders at the United Nations and at the Group of 20 summit of major economic powers in Pittsburgh last week.