Adrian Vermeule (Harvard): Local and Global Knowledge in the Administrative State. From Bookslut, Elvis Bego writes in defense of short books; and Jill Talbot interviews Dinty W. Moore, editor of The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Nonfiction: Advice and Essential Exercises from Respected Writers, Editors, and Teachers. In a wide-ranging discussion, Almantas Samalavicius and Norman Lillegard consider the dangers of relativism, the crisis of education, pleonexia and the economic crisis, and whether literature should provide moral instruction. Delusions of danger: Why the food movement’s demonization of genetically modified crops isn’t just scientifically baseless — it’s politically stupid. Is hippie hygiene a serious problem? Not if we can all embrace our natural odors. A look at life under occupation: Noam Chomsky on Gaza, the world’s largest open-air prison. Obama, the post-colonial president: With Obama’s election, and again with his reelection, an internalized threshold for subjugated people was breached. Edward Larkin reviews The Cost Disease: Why Computers Get Cheaper and Health Care Doesn’t by William Baumol.
