Economic Summit

The only puzzle in Alan Greenspan's reappointment as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board is why it took President Bush so long. If it was merely a crude effort to force Mr. Greenspan to set interest rates lower than this doughty inflation-fighter will countenance, Mr. Bush merely succeeded in rattling world markets. Just in time, the president acted before going off to the Group of Seven economic summit in London.As America's chief central banker and chief arbiter of monetary policy, every Fed chairman has an obligation to resist the easy-money inclinations of elected politicians.

Today in history: July 10In 1850, Vice President Millard Fillmore assumed the presidency, following the death of President Taylor.In 1890, Wyoming became the 44th state.In 1919, President Wilson personally delivered the Treaty of Versailles to the Senate, and urged its ratification.In 1925, the official news agency of the Soviet Union, TASS, was established.In 1940, during World War II, the 114-day Battle of Britain began as Nazi forces began attacking southern England by air.In 1943, during World War II, U.S. and British forces invaded Sicily.

Coldwell Banker `staging' seminar Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate Brokerage will offer a free seminar about the art of "staging" a property at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate office, Festival Shopping Center, 572A Ritchie Highway, Severna Park. Gina Garunkstis of GG Design Inspirations will conduct the seminar. Information: 410-647-2222 or cdixon@cbmove.com. Annapolis bank to be cited for design Severn Savings Bank will receive a Green Star Award for Environmental Excellence from Mayor Ellen Moyer and the City of Annapolis.

Governor Schaefer and state lawmakers find themselves facing a series of Hobson's choices. Though most were elected, or re-elected, on what they perceived to be a mandate to keep the lid on taxes, they now confront the harsh fiscal fact that the recession, coupled with an anemic federal response to state needs, continues to dig Maryland deeper into a fiscal hole.The latest shortfall -- an astounding $225 million -- comes on top of five previous shortfalls that far from merely trimming the fat, have cut the very muscle of government -- not merely on the state level, but more perceptibly in the counties and in Baltimore city, which have sustained drastic reductions in state aid.Governor Schaefer's latest plan -- to pass two-thirds of the new shortfall off on the locals -- hardly seems a solution, though clearly his options are limited.

NEW YORK -- Lester C. Thurow's message to the nation' retailers yesterday was akin to telling a group of cattlemen that people should eat less beef and more broccoli.The economist, whose writings are close to the top of President-elect Bill Clinton's reading list, told the National Retail Federation that the U.S. economy needs a shift toward investment and away from consumption -- that is, his audience's sales.In a keynote speech that sounded like an extension of last month's economic summit in Little Rock, Ark., the Massachusetts Institute of Technology scholar described a U.S. economy under siege by rivals that put their money into robots instead of recreational vehicles.

Pittsburgh has already been highlighted this year and once should be enough. But we can't ignore that the Steel City will be the center of a global gathering for this week's meeting of the G-20; representatives of countries from Argentina to Turkey, along with the requisite protesters, will converge here for a two-day economic summit beginning Thursday. What should they do in their spare time? Here are five places that show Pittsburgh's worldly appeal. 1 David L. Lawrence Convention Center : Pittsburgh's commitment to conservation was one of the reasons it was named host of the G-20 summit.

MOSCOW -- A published report said yesterday that Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev appears ready to dump the Marxist-Leninist ideology that has reigned here as Communism for 73 years.The liberal Nezavisimaya Gazeta (Independent Newspaper) reported that Mr. Gorbachev will advocate replacing Communist doctrine with a hazily defined form of "social democracy" when he meets the policy-making Central Committee of the Communist Party Thursday.Such a proposal probably would spark a stormy debate with hard-liners that could jeopardize the future of the party.

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran, Pakistan and Turkey welcomed leaders of the six former Soviet republics of Central Asia at a regional economic summit meeting in Tehran yesterday. At the opening of the two-day gathering, the presidents of Iran and Turkey presented contrasting but equally ambitious guidelines for economic development and trade cooperation.Three of the former Soviet republics -- Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan -- were formally recognized yesterday as full members of the long-dormant Economic Cooperation Organization, which was founded in 1963 by Iran, Turkey and Pakistan.

I never thought I'd hear a Baltimorean say such a thing. Last week, while reporting on the Rawlings-Blake administration's 10-year financial plan, I spoke with the mayor's press secretary, Ian Brennan. We covered a lot of ground in our hourlong phone conversation, but one comment in particular rewound itself repeatedly in my mind like a game-deciding, goal-line drive. One day, said Mr. Brennan, "We would love to be spoken of like … Pittsburgh as a city not suffering post-industrial urban decay any longer.

Hosted by the BWI Business Partnership, economic development professionals from around the Baltimore-Washington corridor will gather for a Regional Economic Development Summit, Thursday, March 14 from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Hilton Baltimore BWI Airport, 1739 West Nursery Road, in Linthicum Heights. Dominick Murray, Acting Secretary of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, will give opening remarks. Economist Anirban Basu, chairman and CEO of Sage Policy Group, and Jeff Salkin, longtime host of "State Circle" for Maryland Public Television, will moderate two panel discussion, focusing on factors important to economic development.