Brazil might have a model for private sector education which the United States can emulate.  For years, Brazil has struggled to populate its world-class university and college system with students capable of meeting tough academic standards.  Now, private companies are succeeding where public schools have failed.  The FT reports: Investors in Brazil frequently complain about […]

1931 was the year that put the Great in the Great Depression.  A banking crash in Europe knocked a fragile recovery off course and after the US Congress turned to protectionist trade policy with the passage of the Hawley-Smoot tariff in 1930, a global trade war wrecked everyone’s exports and the bad economic times turned […]

Here at Via Meadia, we have been keeping an eye on instances of religious persecution throughout the world. We wrote earlier about the plight of Yusef Nadarkhani, a Christian pastor in Iran who was given the choice to either convert to Islam or be sentenced to death. Nadarkhani has remained steadfast in his Christian beliefs […]

Eyeing China warily, Tokyo and Manila have agreed to forge new defense agreements. A joint statement by the two countries’ presidents emphasized maritime security, a strategic partnership, and military collaboration. The WSJ reports: Although the agreement does not directly mention China, it is a major symbolic step toward a multilateral consensus in Asia on dealing […]

According to the WSJ, investors hurtled en masse into stocks yesterday on reports of a potential expansion of the European bailout fund and a plan for aggressive bank recapitalization. Then came the predictable backlash. From the WSJ: Major European markets saw their biggest one-day gains in more than a year as traders and investors zeroed […]

An integrated global economy has its limitations, according to a new study by an international team of economists.From the WSJ: For years, economists have told Americans worried that cheap Chinese imports will kill jobs that the benefits of trade with China far outweigh its costs.New research suggests the damage to the U.S. has been deeper […]

A new report from the Gates Foundation’s Complete College America indicates that college enrollment is rising but college completion is not.  The NYT reports: Its report, which had the cooperation of 33 governors, showed how many of the students in states completed their degrees, broken down into different categories , including whether enrollment is full- […]

CFR fellow Michael Levi, one of the smartest people in this business, tweeted that the numbers in Joel Kotkin’s post referenced here on Via Meadia are off.Here’s the Levi tweet: I wish it were so. Kotkin numbers look off by >2X -include royalty recipients as employees. Ditto w wages- ~60k, good, but not 100Kotkin and […]

A month has passed since the Virginia earthquake and it looks like the Washington Monument is going to be closed indefinitely until a team of engineers can check every stone.  The WaPo reports: Officials said a “debris field,” made up mostly of mortar that had fallen during the quake, had been found at the base […]

The situation in Greece is so bad – with sovereign debt at 150% of GDP and economic growth forecasts continuing to fall – that economists and foreign policy thinkers are scrambling to think through the implications of default. What would happen if a bankrupt Greece dropped the euro? Ian Bremmer at the Financial Times explains […]