The agreement also includes a two-percentage-point payroll-tax reduction, lowering Social Security taxes for most Americans to 4.2% from 6.2% for one year.
The other mistake that has preyed on my mind has to do with the VW Jetta, which I crucified in a column a few months ago as being de-contented, dumbed-down and sadly cheapened Americanized, as part of Volkswagen of America's master plan to increase sales by lowering the brand's price point.
In Australia, the Reserve Bank of Australia surprised investors by lowering its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage point to a record low of 2.75%.
Bond markets cheered the data hoping the Reserve Bank of India would continue lowering rates, adding to the three quarter-percentage-point cuts it made so far in 2013.
The approval came as the Fed also took the extraordinary step Sunday of lowering its emergency lending rate to financial institutions by a quarter-point to 3.25 percent.