Don’t Cry for the G8: It’s Mostly a Waste of Time

Here’s a question to test your knowledge of international affairs: What do these places have in common? Birmingham, England; Cologne, Germany; Okinawa, Japan; Genoa, Italy; Kananaskis, Canada; Évian-les-Bains, France; Sea Island, Georgia; Gleneagles, Scotland; St. Petersburg, Russia; Heiligendamm, Germany; Lake Toya, Japan; L’Aquila, Italy; Muskoka, Canada; Deauville, France; Camp David, Maryland; Lough Erne, Northern Ireland.

The answer isn’t that they all have their own mineral waters—although some of them are famous spas. They have all played host to meetings of the G8 club of advanced nations, which, at least for now, is back to being the G7—Vladimir Putin’s Russia having been suspended in disgrace for cheating at cards. If you can’t remember all—or even any—of them, don’t be too hard on yourself. Most of these get-togethers are so tedious and inconsequential that many of the diplomats and journalists who attended them can hardly recall them, either.

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