Twice the number of Cubans are fleeing their country this year than last—more than any time since the 1944 rafter crisis. Untold thousands will die trying to cross in unsafe, homemade boats. This is the legacy Castro left his country, still being paid for into the third generation.

Some restaurants in LA are adding a separate Obamacare surcharge to their bills to cover the cost of providing insurance to their employees. Partisans will squabble over the details, but the bigger story here is the complexity of the employer-provided system.

The price of oil is tracking downward recently, which has many wondering why OPEC hasn’t responded by curtailing production. There looks to be some intra-cartel posturing going on ahead of a big meeting next month.

Both houses of Congress and the Pentagon official in charge of acquisition are making public moves in favor of reforming the way the U.S. buys weapons platforms. On the off chance that their combined resolve, plus the catalyzing factor of budget constraints, makes a difference during the next Congress, we could see some sorely needed strategic changes.

Unrest shows the limits of Erdogan’s room for maneuver.

Multiple suicide bombings in Yemen threaten to push the country further toward sectarian civil war, a day after the Houthis reject the new Prime Minister.

Old King Coal’s reign has come to an end in the United States, dethroned by a flood of cheap natural gas.

Massachusetts has just taken a huge leap ahead in health care price transparency, launching a new tool that lets customers find prices on their insurer’s website. This will make providers more competitive and consumers more responsible.

The price of oil is dropping by the day, and while plenty has been made of the effect this decline could have on the world’s petrostates, there’s a growing concern that America’s shale boom might be in danger.

Japan’s proposed new guidelines for its military alliance with the U.S. contain one very big difference from the old rules: They allow Japan to exert military force in global conflicts, not just regional ones. This is part of Japan’s efforts to further strengthen its alliance with the U.S.—an alliance that is key to counterbalancing China.