Five years on, wheres the next Lehman?Xis party purge in ChinaMobile telecoms two big dealsRebellion v reform in MexicoFarming as rocket scienceSEPTEMBER 7TH13TH 2013Economist.comINSIDE THIS WEEK: TECHNOLOGY QUARTERLYFightthis war not the last one, 8 The world this weekLeaders 11 Striking Syria Fight this war, not the last one 12 Global ?nance Wheres the next Lehman? 13 A Chinese power struggle Hunting tigers 13 Capitalism Why do ?rms exist? 14 3D printing From dental braces to astronauts seatsLetters 16 On Syria, Janet Yellen, Chernobyl, crime, education, cyborgsBrie?ng 21 Clever cities The multiplexed metropolis 22 Urban dreamscapes Starting from scratchUnited States 25 America and Syria Obama makes the case for bombing 26 Fast-food protests Big Labour v Big Mac 28 Interstate pollution Smother my neighbour 28 What state lawmakers earn Some work for nothing 30 Welfare and work Taxing hard-up Americans at 95% 34 Lexington Farming as rocket scienceThe Americas 37 Governing Mexico The suits v the street 38 Telecoms in Canada Patriotic but pricey 38 Spying in Latin America Snoops and snubsAsia 39 Indonesias 2014 elections Let the games begin 40 Damming the Mekong Fish-friendly? 40 Central Asia and Russia Remittance man 42 Terrorism in India Do Lali 44 Banyan This Indian land is whose land?China 47 Political manoeuvring The plot thickens 48 Another princeling trial Listening to the masses 48 The burden on students Must not try harderTechnology Quarterly After page 48Middle East and Africa 49 Kenya and the international court Its show time 50 Liberia Skin-deep success 50 Ghanas Supreme Court Doing it properly 50 The Palestinians Lonely Hamas 51 The state of Egypt Old ways return 52 Irans new government Cautious movesEurope 53 Germanys election Descent into banality 54 France and Syria Obamas trailer? 54 Sweden and America A presidents visit 55 Moscows mayor Inspired by ?The Wire? 56 Charlemagne European energyDaily analysis and opinion from our 21blogs, plus audio and video content, debates and a daily chart Economist.com/blogsE-mail:newsletters and mobile edition Economist.com/emailPrint edition: available online by 7pm London time each Thursday Economist.com/printAudio edition:available online to download each Friday Economist.com/audioeditionThe Economist onlineVolume 408 Number 8852First published in September 1843 to take part in “a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.“Editorial o?ces in London and also: Atlanta, Beijing, Berlin, Brussels, Cairo, Chicago, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Moscow, New Delhi, New York, Paris, San Francisco, So Paulo, Singapore, Tokyo, Washington DCContents continues overleafContentsOn the cover When Congress votes on Syria it will be de?ning Americas place in the world: leader, page 11. The president makes the case for pulling the trigger, page 25. Syria and the British establishment, page 58. David Cameron needs to relearn leadership: Bagehot, page 60. France is constrained and deeply divided over military action in Syria, page 54China crackdownIs Xi Jinping confronting corruption or consolidating power? Leader, page 13. Chinas leadership ?exes its muscles by taking down allies of a former security chief, page 47MexicoEnrique Pea Nieto sticks de?antly to his reform plans. He is in for a bumpy ride, page 37Farming as rocket science Why American agriculture is di?erent from the European variety: Lexington, page 341The Economist September 7th 2013 56 ContentsThe Economist September 7th 20132013 The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of The Economist Newspaper Limited. The Economist(ISSN 0013-0613) is published every week, except for a year-end double issue, by The Economist Newspaper Limited, 750 3rd Avenue, 5th Floor, New York, N Y 10017. The Economist is a registered trademark of The Economist Newspaper Limited. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NYand additional mailing o?ces. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Economist, P.O. Box 46978, St. Louis , MO. 63146-6978, USA. Canada Post publications mail (Canadian distribution) sales agreement no. 40012331. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to The Economist, PO Box 7258 STN A, Toronto, ON M5W 1X9. GST R123236267. Printed by RR Donnelley, Strasburg, VA. 22657PEFC certi?edThis copy of The Economist is printed on paper sourced from sustainably managed forests certi?ed by PEFC www.pefc.orgPEFC/29-31-75Subscription service For our latest subscription offers, visit Economist.com/offers For subscription service, please contact by telephone, fax, web or mail at the details provided below:Subscription for 1 year (51 issues) United States US$160 Canada CN$165 Lati