Listen to these financial Wizards of Oz and prepare for another disaster | Timothy Garton Ash

Our mighty bond markets, feared but also fearful, are in danger of triggering the very crisis they wish to avert

I thought it was time I got to know the almighty. I mean, of course, the bond markets: for, at their call, the governments of this world tremble. Before them, every knee shall bow. To fend off their wrath, George Osborne has just presented the most draconian budget in living memory – a burnt offering on the altar of this god we call simply "the markets".

So over the past few weeks I ...