Sex Crime Cover-Up Exposes Vatican Failings: Celestine Bohlen The time is right for the Catholic Church to drop its celibacy rule for priests. As new cases of child sex abuse erupt across the globe, even church leaders are suggesting the question be examined. At the Vatican’s usual pace, this might bring change by the end of this century.

U.S. Taxpayers Stuck With Smelly No-Bid Deal: Celestine Bohlen In Europe governments are crying foul, or more specifically protectionism, now that Boeing Co. has emerged as the sole contender for the Pentagon’s disputed $35 billion contract for a new generation of flying gas stations.

Greek Slurs, Swastika Show Germany’s the Key: Celestine Bohlen Ten years after the euro, it’s still all about Germany, which isn’t the way it was supposed to be.

Russia’s Gold Deficit Shows Us What’s Wrong: Celestine Bohlen Russia is in a funk. Its performance at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver was its worst ever, and its economy suffered more last year than any other nation in the Group of 20.

Live Terrorists Are Worth More Than Dead Ones: Celestine Bohlen The good news last week was that the Americans, with the help of the Pakistanis, didn’t kill a top Taliban commander. They captured him instead.

Iran Gives China Chance to Prove Its Stuff: Celestine Bohlen That’s it. Iran has gone too far. Even Russia is fed up and is now talking about tough sanctions, with the U.S., France, the U.K. and Germany.

German Bounty Tears Veil Off Swiss Secrecy: Celestine Bohlen The Swiss are shocked again, this time over the German decision to buy a list of some 1,500 possible tax cheats saved on a disc lifted from a Swiss bank. It’s stolen property, say the Swiss bankers. It’s bank robbery, cry the lawyers. It is behavior unfitting of a “civilized state,” harrumphed one Swiss politician.

Sniping at U.S. Haiti Role Shows EU Weakness: Celestine Bohlen Most Americans are probably unaware that the rapid dispatch of U.S. troops and military equipment to Haiti after the Jan. 12 earthquake was an occupation.

Women Under Wraps Don’t Deserve French Ire: Celestine Bohlen To listen to French politicians now making the round of TV talk shows, there is no issue more urgent than the burqa, the head-to-toe Muslim garment worn by very few women in France.

War on Terror Ignores Rule to Know Thy Enemy: Celestine Bohlen Here we are, eight years into a global war against al-Qaeda, and we still have trouble identifying the enemy.