From Harper's, Jesus killed Mohammed: Jeff Sharlet on the crusade for a Christian military. From New Scientist, an article on five futurist visionaries and what they got right. From NYRB, Gershom Gorenberg reviews 1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War by Benny Morris and Making Israel; a review of Island of Shame: The Secret History of the US Military Base on Diego Garcia by David Vine; and a review of books on Madame de Stael. From Swans, Steven Salaita on Cornel West and the ethics of faithful equivocation. From TLS, a review of JRR Tolkien's The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun. From VQR, Ted Genoways on The Future of University Presses and Journals (A Manifesto). From The Weekly Standard, Gary Andres on the Center-Right trap and the limits of ideology in politics. Leon Wieseltier on the end of ideology. An article on Dan Brown, a success story even more implausible than his plots. From TNR, what were the root causes of the economic crisis? Three of the biggest minds in the field slug it out; Bradford Plumer on why going green doesn't mean having to go back to the Dark Ages; and pimp my Rep: Michelle Cottle on Congress, the reality show. The new science of measuring happiness has transformed self-help; now scholars suggest it could transform society (and more).
