Italian Soccer

Why Has Italy Failed to Qualify for Three Straight World Cups?
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/italy-has-failed-to-qualify-for-three-straight-world-cups-are-the-countrys-immigration-policies-to-blame
After winning the tournament in 2006, gli Azzurri have become a national embarrassment, and their failure has sparked a conversation in Italy over immigration policies and who gets to be a citizen. 

The Spike in Small Stocks

Small Stocks Are Trouncing Market Giants—and That’s Not a Good Sign
https://www.wsj.com/finance/stocks/small-stocks-are-trouncing-market-giantsand-thats-not-a-good-sign-ea06ebc1
When speculative small stocks win big, often it’s because investors aren’t thinking straight. 

Fresh Graduates and the Labor Market

A Job Market Leaving Young Graduates Behind Could Scar Them for Years
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/05/business/college-graduates-job-market.html
The labor market has improved but people entering the work force are having a harder time starting careers, a dynamic that has had permanent effects in the past.  

The Post-Arab Spring Era

World War III is here
https://www.newstatesman.com/international-politics/2026/06/world-war-iii-is-here
The Arab Spring was the spark that lit the fuse of a global conflict Europe cannot escape. 

Europe versus China

Europe’s Competitiveness Bogeyman
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/protections-from-chinese-exports-will-not-restore-european-industrial-competitiveness-by-daniel-gros-2026-06
Calls for European leaders to protect domestic industry from "unfairly" subsidized Chinese competition have lately grown louder. But while tariffs might offer temporary relief to a few sectors, they cannot restore Europe's technological leadership, industrial dynamism, or export competitiveness. 

The China Shock 2.0 could destroy Europe as we know it
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/06/03/china-shock-2-destroy-europe-as-we-know-it/

Europe lacks a coherent strategy toward China
https://www.piie.com/blogs/realtime-economics/2026/europe-lacks-coherent-strategy-toward-china
 
Related:
Germany Has Lost What It Did Best
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/01/opinion/germany-economy-merz-trump.html

The Madman Theory

The Madman Strikes Back
https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/05/28/trump-madman-theory-iran/
Nixon’s theory on the power of unpredictability didn’t account for an actual madman adversary.

Tech and Inequality - China Edition

China’s high-tech rise is leaving much of the country behind
https://www.economist.com/china/2026/06/02/chinas-high-tech-rise-is-leaving-much-of-the-country-behind
That could make a starkly unequal country even more so.