Challenges Facing UK and US Higher Education Systems

Eight Predictions for the Future of Higher Education
https://www.newyorker.com/news/fault-lines/eight-predictions-for-the-future-of-higher-education
The concurrent crises in the reading, writing, and math competencies of incoming college freshmen—which, I have begrudgingly accepted, are real, and not merely the familiar griping you hear in faculty lounges—will get worse, and within a few years a course that used to be appropriate for tenth graders will become the standard 200-level course in many universities across the country.
 
The false promise that sparked the student loans crisis
https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/education/2026/06/the-false-promise-that-sparked-the-student-loans-crisis
Turning students into “consumers” was always going to fuel perverse incentives.
 
Tarnished Towers
https://policyexchange.org.uk/publication/tarnished-towers/
Fixing England’s Broken Higher Education System. 

Dubai's Latest Test

Dubai Reinvented Itself. Now a War Is Testing Its Endurance.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/09/business/dubai-economy-iran-war.html
As conflict ripples through the Persian Gulf, Dubai’s dependence on trade and travel has become an economic vulnerability.  

SpaceX IPO and the American Stock Market

Our Stock Market Is Broken by Aaron Zamost
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/08/opinion/spacex-ipo-stock-market.html
As part of its pitch to sell shares on the stock market, Elon Musk’s aerospace and technology company says it will capture over $28 trillion of the A.I. market (nearly the size of the entire United States economy). It says it plans to launch one million satellites to put data centers in outer space (though the technology doesn’t yet exist). And it vows to hand Mr. Musk huge amounts of stock if he establishes a Mars colony that houses one million people (though no human has been within about 35 million miles of the planet).
Mr. Musk could well believe his own projections. What’s harder to understand is why so many investors do, given his recent track record of missed deadlines, abandoned products and failed business predictions.
 
How Banks Are Using SpaceX to Woo the Superrich
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/08/business/spacex-ipo-banks-wealth-management.html
Wall Street is giving its richest clients velvet rope access to this week’s public listing of SpaceX, reflecting the growing importance of the wealth management business.  

Wall Street Is Rushing to Fund the AI Bonanza in Every Conceivable Way
https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/global-stocks-markets-dow-news-06-08-2026-aac7c547
From giant debt deals to IPOs, tech companies keep raking in investor cash.

South Korea's Booming Economy

Chips, ships and guns: South Korea booms on AI race and global conflict
https://www.ft.com/content/208d2ed8-78f3-471f-839a-55d69a3a8a9b
Asia’s fourth-largest economy is in a sweet spot as its biggest companies capitalize on geopolitical trends. 

Related:

The World’s Most Surprising Economic Success Story Is…North Korea
https://www.wsj.com/world/asia/north-korea-economy-success-e80f7062
Arms sales to Russia and goods from China provide a boost, despite sanctions. “The regime is wealthier than ever.”

The Real Skills Gap

The U.S. Needs Mechanics and Electricians. Big Business Is Spending to Create Some.
https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/the-u-s-needs-mechanics-and-electricians-big-business-is-spending-to-create-some-7ea1f06c
Bloomberg Philanthropies is launching a $90 million program that includes a partnership with Ford, which needs more mechanics at its dealerships. 

The Politicization of the American Economy

When Trump Jawbones the Market, Bet Against Him at Your Peril
https://www.wsj.com/economy/when-trump-jawbones-the-market-bet-against-him-at-your-peril-92825a3e
From oil to interest rates, the president has repeatedly moved markets in his direction. Whether that serves the economy is another question. 

The Trump Economy Is Bad News for Republicans
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/trump-economy-bad-news-for-republicans-midterms-by-desmond-lachman-2026-06
Donald Trump triumphed in the 2024 election by continually hammering on the Biden administration’s dismal inflation record. If his party gets shellacked in this year’s midterm elections, it will be because he has made Americans even worse off. 

Skepticism Regarding Anthropic's Claims

Anthropic’s doom predictions are merely hype intended to make AI look important
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/06/05/anthropics-ai-doom-predictions-hype-share-price/
We need to get more skeptical about Silicon Valley’s prophecies of global catastrophe.