What Meghan Markle must do to become British

As most of the planet knows, Meghan Markle will marry Prince Harry in seventeen days. However, the British have a rule: they want their royal family to be British. And she’s American.

For her to become a British citizen, she must have lived in Britain for three years, have a good knowledge of English, be of sound mind, and pass the “Life in the UK” test. To fulfill the last requirement, she must successfully answer eighteen out of twenty-four questions selected from some three thousand facts.

She might be asked the age of “Big Ben” (it was cast on April 10, 1858) or the height of the London Eye Ferris wheel (135 meters–I had to look up both answers). More than a third of those who recently took the test failed it. One applicant failed it sixty times.

And there’s one other requirement: the couple must earn a combined 18,600 pounds (approximately $25,000). Since the royal family is worth $88 billion, this shouldn’t be a problem.

Not everyone is happy with the “Life in the UK” test. A report last month by Britain’s House of Lords committee on citizenship stated, “The current test seems to be, and to be regarded as, a barrier to acquiring citizenship rather than a means of creating better citizens.”

Loneliness in America

More and more countries are making it harder to become citizens. Marriage rates are continuing to decline. So is dating among young people.

Facebook announced yesterday that it is launching a dating feature matching users specifically with people who are not already their friends. Despite the crowded field of dating and relationship apps on the market, a new study by the health insurer Cigna has found that loneliness is widespread in America.

Nearly 50 percent of respondents reported that they feel alone or left out always or sometimes. Fifty-four percent said they always or sometimes feel that no one knows them well. Two in five felt they “lack companionship,” that their “relationships aren’t…