The argument over whether we should return to the world of John Maynard Keynes and Harry Dexter White--in which we regard international capital flows with fear and try to eliminate them--is a complicated one. I think no--that we can have the benefits of international capital flows without wrecking the whole world economy--but I am far from certain...
What is clear is that if we don't have large-scale international capital flows then we need the IMF and its resources to moderate big exchange rate swings; and if we do have large-scale international capital flows then we need the IMF and its resources to moderate the effect of panic in financial centers.
But we do need a kinder, gentler, larger, more touchy-feely IMF...
Brad DeLong