online archive
5:00PM
FEB 13 2008
The exercise of imagined history
From Postmodern Culture, Jeffrey T. Nealon (PSU): The Swerve around P: Literary Theory after Interpretation. From Sens Public, an article on how the exercise of imagined history is probably one of the best antidotes to violence. Negative campaign: Winning consumer votes by catering to political disdain. The Maverick Myth: You can't read a story about John McCain without seeing the word "maverick". From Vanity Fair, an excerpt from Not the Girl Next Door: Joan Crawford, a Personal Biography by Charlotte Chandler; inside the making of "The Graduate": An excerpt from Pictures at a Revolution by Mark Harris; an article on Mailer’s movie madness; and Michael Wolff on how reality shows and YouTube are killing the Hollywood story. To hell with the Archbishop of Canterbury: Christopher Hitchens on Rowan Williams' dangerous claptrap about "plural jurisdiction". When considering Socrates in the 21st century, we're drawn back into the ancient Greek culture wars, writes Carlin Romano. A review of Thank You for Arguing: What Aristotle, Eminem and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us About the Art of Persuasion by Jay Heinrichs. From Edge, a talk with Mahzarin Banaji and Anthony Greenwald on the implicit association test. A review of Making Sense of Evolution: The Conceptual Foundations of Evolutionary Biology by Massimo Pigliucci and Jonathan Kaplan.
1:00PM
FEB 13 2008
All the good ones are taken
From Cato Unbound, is limited government possible? Anthony de Jasay wants to know. From Mother Jones, come on down to the Conservative Political Action Conference. Use a voting method known for ranking drunk sorority girls: A review of Gaming the Vote: Why Elections Aren't Fair (and What We Can Do about It) by William Poundstone (and more). From Dissent, who passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964? A sense of scarcity: Why it seems like all the good ones are taken. Class warfare: When an academic course is the hottest ticket on campus, students will go to great trouble to get a seat. James Surowiecki on bond insurers and the market crisis. There’s a vogue among economists for happiness research – subjective well-being, in econospeak. A review of The Craftsman by Richard Sennett. The Preservation Predicament: Ecologists fear that global warming will make protected landscapes inhospitable to prized species. Siva Vaidhyanathan reviews books on surveillance and marketing and privacy. From TLS, a brief history of the future: A review of A Science Fiction Omnibus. Jonathan Rauch on the coming American matriarchy: The fairer sex gets ready to take over. A review of Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto by Chuck Klosterman. Does restricting journalists' political activity help build readers' trust? A review of books on the black experience in America.
9:00AM
FEB 13 2008
Lessons for people from animals
From Foreign Policy, how to make OPEC blink: Every day, more of the world’s oil comes from a secretive gang of countries that couldn’t care less about your gasoline bill. From The Washington Independent, a look at how the financial services industry created the credit crisis (and part 2); and a look at how the US economy looks like Weimar on the brink. From The Chronicle, an article on the pros and cons of university systems; and a look at why elite colleges must stop spurning critiques of higher education. A review of Targeting Iran by David Barsamian, with Noam Chomsky, Ervand Abrahamian, and Nahid Mozaffari. How to train a husband: A review of What Shamu Taught Me About Life, Love, And Marriage: Lessons for People from Animals and Their Trainers by Amy Sutherland (and excerpt). An article on Japanese popular culture in East and Southeast Asia: Time for a regional paradigm? Stephen Hugh-Jones is a patriot—unashamedly so. So how could his son decide to become an American citizen, of all things? A review of Bernard Williams, ed. Alan Thomas. A review of Coercion as Cure: A Critical History of Psychiatry by Thomas Szasz. A review of books on the brain. Yahoo! Boohoo: Why investors assume the Microsoft-Yahoo deal won't happen. Should it have been called Republic.com 1.5? A review of Cass Sunstein’s Republic.com 2.0.
