iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Around the world, some cities and regions are getting wealthier; others are increasingly left behind. Why? Sir Paul Collier on hyper-centralization and the economic origins of the populist blame game. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Why would football supporters cheer on dictators buying their clubs? David Goldblatt on identity, loyalty, and what all this money really pays for. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The weekend despatch: A war to disarm Iran ends with a pledge to build it up again. Nature, it turns out, is still selecting. + What’s Rock Action Records? Read on. Link in comments.

100

What happened to the Chinese dream? Yi-Ling Liu on declining opportunities, increasing malaise, and a waning of ambition in the People’s Republic. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Where’s all the money coming into American think tanks from? Ben Freeman on the enormous foreign-government “donations” flowing through Washington, D.C. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: What do Middle Eastern states want with European football clubs? Sarath K. Ganji on autocratic governments’ ambitious move into the global game. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Briefing: A knife-edge election in Colombia, and a defeated president who says Israel hacked it. Communist Cuba opens its economy to foreign capital, and the Americans move to scare it off. + What’s extreme heat do to you? Read on. Link in comments.

100

Can Europe defend itself? John R. Deni on troop shortages, mismatched equipment, and the cost of security in a time of war. Read on. Link in comments.

100

How common is the corruption of public officials in the U.S.? Ben Freeman on what America’s “authoritarian friends” from the Persian Gulf are doing in Washington, D.C. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Why do so many people hate the idea of capitalism? Justin Callais on a shifting mood—and the enduring popular support for the reality of the free market. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The weekend despatch: A war to disarm Iran ends with a pledge to build it up again. Nature, it turns out, is still selecting. + What’s Rock Action Records? Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: How’s the green transition going? Thea Riofrancos on the politics the technology can’t solve. Read on. Link in comments.

111

Why are millions of factory jobs leaving China? Victor Shih on the country’s extraordinary self-inflicted loss. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why are millions more Americans turning to talk therapy—and sticking with it? Carlos Blanco on the decline of a stigma, a shift in health coverage, and the individualization of treatment. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why does North Korea keep threatening South Korea and its allies without ever going to war? Michael Breen on theater and reality in one of the most enigmatic places on Earth. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The Signal @the-signal.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

What’s driving political attacks against central banks around the world? Stefan Eich on an emerging legitimacy crisis. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Why have the world’s shipping lanes become war zones? Arnaud Orain on the return of the armed merchant fleet. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The Signal @the-signal.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

The weekend despatch: A war to disarm Iran ends with a pledge to build it up again. Nature, it turns out, is still selecting. + What’s Rock Action Records? Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why do dictators keep disrupting so many other countries? Miranda Patrucić on what China and Russia are doing in neighboring nations, developing states, and the world’s most powerful democracies. Read on. Link in comments.

101

Feature: How’s the green transition going? Thea Riofrancos on the politics the technology can’t solve. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The weekend despatch: A war to disarm Iran ends with a pledge to build it up again. Nature, it turns out, is still selecting. + What’s Rock Action Records? Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why are there so many toxic chemicals in food? Rashmi Joglekar on where they come from and what they’re doing to people and the planet. Read on. Link in comments.

100

What exactly is the problem here? Justin Callais on the ambiguities of corruption. Read on. Link in comments.

100

What is financial repression? Félix Maradiaga on how autocratic regimes are using the global banking system, international law, and new technologies in an old struggle to suppress dissent and hold power. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Extra: Gulf royals have moved billions into global football. Now what? Read on. Link in comments.

100

The weekend despatch: A war to disarm Iran ends with a pledge to build it up again. Nature, it turns out, is still selecting. + What’s Rock Action Records? Read on. Link in comments.

100

The weekend despatch: A war to disarm Iran ends with a pledge to build it up again. Nature, it turns out, is still selecting. + What’s Rock Action Records? Read on. Link in comments.

100

The Signal @the-signal.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Why are so many Americans so suspicious of the news media? Benjamin Toff on news consumption, social media, and partisan polarization. Read on. Link in comments.

110

Why is China building so many ships? Brian Hart on its plan to turn overwhelming commercial advantage into military power. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The Signal @the-signal.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Feature: How’s the green transition going? Thea Riofrancos on the politics the technology can’t solve. Read on. Link in comments.

100

The Signal @the-signal.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Briefing: Months of war meant to disarm Iran end with hundreds of billions pledged to rebuild it. Ukraine’s drones torch the fuel Russia is using to fight. + How’s the green transition going? Read on. Link in comments.

100

What can democracies do about autocratic interference? Josh Rudolph on the challenges of resistance and resiliency. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Why would football supporters cheer on dictators buying their clubs? David Goldblatt on identity, loyalty, and what all this money really pays for. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why are younger men increasingly voting for the populist right and younger women, the environmental left? Rosie Campbell on a new gender divide in the Western world. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why are studios releasing so few original new films? Andrew deWaard on how movie franchises have conquered Hollywood. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Is anyone winning the U.S.-China trade war? Kyle Chan on the economic showdown between Washington and Beijing. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Why have Americans lost faith in higher education? Julia Adams and Sarath Sanga on what’s gone wrong—and what universities can do about it. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why is Europe falling so far behind the U.S.? Martin Wolf on diverging histories of investment, innovation, and confidence. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: What do Middle Eastern states want with European football clubs? Sarath K. Ganji on autocratic governments’ ambitious move into the global game. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Feature: Why do so many people hate the idea of capitalism? Justin Callais on a shifting mood—and the enduring popular support for the reality of the free market. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Is there really a “new oligarchy” in America? Quinn Slobodian on why so many Silicon Valley billionaires have gotten so involved in everyday American politics. Read on. Link in comments.

111

Why are people’s cognitive skills declining? Gloria Mark on how consumer technology is making us more error-prone, more stressed, and less productive. Read on. Link in comments.

100

Why has Bitcoin become so popular with dissidents living in dictatorships? Farida Nabourema on what the emerging technology has in common with an old suitcase stuffed with cash. Read on. Link in comments.

110