China’s second quarter GDP numbers are in, and the news isn’t very promising. Growth dipped to 7.6 percent—the lowest level since the country emerged from the depths of the financial crisis at the start of 2009, and down from 8.1 percent in the first quarter. Part of the slowdown has been attributed to weak demand […]

A survey commissioned by Sallie Mae revealed that parents and students reported spending less on college costs than in years before, bucking a long-term trend of increasing spending.Some of the specific data are particularly surprising. From the AP: Spending on higher education has fallen by an average of 5 percent overall since last year. Parents […]

The Supreme Court has spoken: the controversial Obamacare bill does not, at least in its most important parts, violate the Constitution. Yet as Chief Justice Roberts alluded in his deciding opinion, the fact that the law is constitutional does not make it a smart solution to America’s healthcare problems.In fact, Obamacare doesn’t even do anything […]

As the diplomatic impasse over Iran’s nuclear program continues, the threat of war and the display of preparations for war loom ever larger. Both sides are hoping to frighten the other into backing down as the moment approaches when either one side gives way or war comes.On the Iranian side, we see ever more dire […]

New numbers reveal that the collapse of the Episcopal Church dramatically accelerated in the last ten years. The denomination is literally falling apart, with attendance down 25% between 2000 and 2010.For a link to the PDF file with the numbers, and for Rod Dreher’s comments on them, look here; but it’s important to note that […]

Forget peak oil; forget the Middle East. The energy revolution of the 21st century isn’t about solar energy or wind power and the “scramble for oil” isn’t going to drive global politics. The energy abundance that helped propel the United States to global leadership in the 19th and 2oth centuries is back; if the energy […]

Over the past year, we’ve been watching a geopolitical revolution get underway. It’s much bigger and more consequential than the Arab Spring, though the legacy media are giving it much less play. It will rearrange the global chessboard, improving the position of some powers, weakening others. It is a powerful boost to American power, reducing […]

In a column this week for the New York Times, Ross Douthat echoes a theme we’ve been developing at Via Meadia for some time: that the bloody unintended consequences of our Libyan humanitarian intervention–from a civil war in Mali to a rise in Islamic radicalism in the region–should give pause to the “Right to Protect” […]

With the news that Mitt Romney is considering selecting his running mate much earlier than the traditional late August announcement date, regular Via Meadia contributor Adam Clancy looks at the “Veepstakes” and asks what, if anything, we can deduce from the process.Go take a look; Adam is a young Australian who has been studying in […]

With the job market still sluggish and some professions looking a little sickly (law, journalism, university teaching, mainline Protestant clergy), more and more college grads are going to be looking for something to do — either for a while to bridge the gap until something long term comes through, or as an alternative career.Maybe because […]