From City Journal, the new number crunchers: Quantitative measurement is telling us more about school performance; and pay for performance: A modest proposal for reforming how banking products are sold. A look at the 5 most ridiculous lies ever published as nonfiction. From Hipster Book Club, a review of America Unchained: A Freewheeling Roadtrip In Search of Non-Corporate USA by Dave Gorman; and a review of books on altruism, art and commercial fiction. From Metapsychology, a review of Theory of Mind: How Children Understand Others' Thoughts and Feelings by Martin Doherty; and a review of Intelligence, Destiny, and Education: The Ideological Roots of Intelligence Testing by John White. More and more and more on The Art Instinct by Denis Dutton (and more from Bookforum). To the pre-Harvey Milk generation, Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns defined the quiet cool of gay culture. From NPQ, a special issue on "America in Shock", and on how the world views Obama victory. Will globalization end traditional diplomacy? Joel Hainsfurther investigates. More on Wage Theft in America: Why Millions of Working Americans Are Not Getting Paid - - And What We Can Do About It by Kim Bobo. An interview with Marty Beckerman, author of Dumbocracy: Adventures with the Loony Left, the Rabid Right and Other American Idiots.
