From Dissent, dancing in the streets: Benjamin Shepard on contested public spaces and the history of queer life; and when it comes to abortion, Norway and the United States are on different planets. John Sides on the political and electoral impact of the debt ceiling debate, with some broader implications for elections generally. Obama’s Hope-a-Dope Strategy: Progressives are furious that Obama, yet again, pulled his punches — the White House says it's all part of the master plan. The case for caving: Washington’s deal satisfied no one — game theory explains why it couldn't have turned out any other way. Kevin Drum on why S&P is wrong. Edmund L. Andrews on why S&P’s downgrade is no joke: The real impact is political, not economic. From AAA to AA+: While the consequences of the downgrade — the first time in over seventy years that U.S. debt will not have a risk-free, AAA rating — remain to be seen, the event offers a window into financial market-government relations. Legislating by crisis: A chronicle of the coming hostage dramas on Capitol Hill. Lessons of the Crisis: The debt-ceiling debacle revealed that politics is broken in every possible way and there's no point in explaining complicated matters to the American people. Jacob Hacker and Oona Hathaway on our unbalanced democracy. An interview with Bill James, the father of sabermetrics on his new book Popular Crime: Reflections on the Celebration of Violence. Flags of the world: An interview with vexillologist Whitney Smith. Nominative Determinism: Yes, that’s his real name. From Capitalism magazine, an interview with Edward Cline on writing, Ayn Rand, and his new novel, The Daedalus Conspiracy. Has Google become one of our expressions of existential moaning? Nishant Batsha wants to know.
