The $70 billion dilemma spotlighted by Poland's crisis
The paradox could hardly be more striking. Poland, a Soviet bloc country whose economy is based on Marxist-Leninist dogma, is appealing to the capitalist West for financial aid. Warsaw has asked Washington, to which it is already in hock for $ 1.2 billion in assorted credits, for another $3 billion in assistance. The Polish government clearly needs the cash: it must pay off foreign lenders and continue to finance the food imports required to keep the Poles from becoming more restive than they are.
The State...