Conservatives often pine for a time when the population was of hardy native stock, and people knew their place. But an analysis of history’s golden ages finds just the opposite: from Song Dynasty China to the Abbasid caliphate, societies do their best when receptive to dynamic change internally—and open to ideas and people from the wider world.

And: Habemus papam Americanum! The new pope, Leo XIV, has a reputation for discretion. He is no radical, says our correspondent. In electing him, the cardinals have opted for a measure of continuity. And the choice of an exceptionally cosmopolitan American smacks of defiance of Donald Trump and his aggressive nationalism.   

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