Category Archives: Uncategorized

Running against Roe – The governor has signed the most restrictive abortion law in the country Apr 2nd 2016 Economist Gail Riecken, a Democratic state representative in Indiana, is the grandmother of a five-year-old girl with Down’s syndrome, a genetic … Continue reading →

Sin and politics – Evangelical churches and sin Apr 2nd 2016 Economist “If we’re gonna do what we did the other day,” Robert Bentley, the governor of Alabama, tells his aide in a recently released recording, “we’re gonna have to … Continue reading →

BACK IN CHINA March 7 – April 6 2016 After a busy 6 1/2 months on the road this winter, I am back in Hongqiao for 3-4 weeks (I still don’t have a return flight), to be with my sweetheart, … Continue reading →

The case for free trade is overwhelming. But the losers need more help Apr 2nd 2016 Economist In 2011 Ronnie Dunn, a country singer, recorded “Cost of Livin’”, a poignant song about a former factory worker’s search for a job. … Continue reading →

Iraq’s Unravelling – Blood Year: Islamic State and the Failures of the War on Terror. By David Kilcullen.Oxford University Press; 312 pages; $24.95. Hurst; £9.99. Mar 19th 2016 Economist When David Kilcullen, a young Australian army officer who had been … Continue reading →

What’s the point of it? – The oddest of post-imperial clubs Mar 19th 2016 Economist “There’s been an existential question mark over the Commonwealth for some time,” says a seasoned diplomat in its secretariat in London. “The Commonwealth has been … Continue reading →

Tension in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province – After the execution, the kingdom’s Shia are angry Mar 19th 2016 Economist Awamiya, a town of some 30,000 in Saudi Arabia’s Shia-dominated Eastern Province, had been simmering ever since its cleric, Nimr al-Nimr, … Continue reading →

Consumers are finally revolting against an outdated industry Mar 26th 2016 Economist For decades looking after other people’s money has been a lucrative business. Profit margins in the asset-management industry were 39% in 2014, according to BCG, a consultancy, compared … Continue reading →

India’s government tries to curb imports of gold—again. Bonds are no substitute. Mar 26th 2016 Economist A small room on the eighth floor of Mumbai’s former cotton exchange is where jewellery goes to die. At the Master Bullion Assaying & … Continue reading →

Kindred spirits – A bestselling film on a subject shunned by most producers strikes a chord Mar 26th 2016 Economist “I heard we are all going to a shoe factory,” says one of the terrified teenage girls in the film … Continue reading →