Order of the Shriveled Crown

Enshrined in the Czech Constitution is the power of the president to award medals of honor, and the preponderance of them goes for outstanding service in the fields of the arts, sciences, sports and armed forces. Occasionally a businessperson slips in, but rarely an economist or banker. Given how important the financial sector is to Western civilization (as we noted yesterday), it seems only fair for its representatives to receive their proper recognition. Under the authority of the president, the CNB governor should hand out his own medals. The highest honor, the Order of the Shriveled Crown, would go to those who stood so firmly by the CNB when it devalued the currency last year, including Aleš Michl, Vladimír Dlouhý and Lenka Zlámalová. A second-tier Order of Merit would go to Jiří Rusnok, who defended the devaluation as PM but has already received part of his just reward ... by being named to the CNB board.