When told that the New England transcendentalist Margaret Fuller had grandly declared “I accept the universe,” the Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle dryly remarked: “She’d better.” Much ink and indignation has been spilled concerning whether Donald (“I am much more humble than you would understand”) Trump will “accept” the election’s outcome. The nation, like the universe of which it is …

  Europe urgently needs to repair a banking system that’s weighing on the region’s economy. Governments say they understand, but they still aren’t taking the task seriously. The issue is global standards for capital — the bedrock financing that makes banks capable of absorbing losses without going bust. Lack of capital in 2008 turned financial setbacks into a full-scale crisis. …

  Venezuela’s political and economic mess is deepening. Pro and anti-government rallies were taken out on Wednesday as the game of trading accusations continues to imperil the country’s future. Its president Nicolas Maduro has been charged by the opposition with halting the decision to call a referendum on removing him from power. On the other hand, Maduro has accused the …