Here Comes the Sun—Plus, “Our Fragile Freedoms” Here Comes the Sun—Plus, “Our Fragile Freedoms”
On this episode of Start Making Sense, Bill McKibben explains why solar power makes him optimistic, and Eric Foner talks about Trump and history.
Sep 3, 2025 / Podcast / Jon Wiener
The Lessons of Hurricane Katrina Were Obvious From the Moment It Struck The Lessons of Hurricane Katrina Were Obvious From the Moment It Struck
The hurricane told us all we needed to know about disasters in the age of environmental devastation. Only some wanted to listen.
Aug 29, 2025 / Richard Kreitner
“It’s a Warning, Set to a Dance Beat”: Jon Batiste on His New Song 20 Years After Katrina “It’s a Warning, Set to a Dance Beat”: Jon Batiste on His New Song 20 Years After Katrina
The New Orleans jazz great tells Covering Climate Now, “When you make a song, you want to inspire people, but you also want to let them know what they can do.”
Aug 28, 2025 / Mark Hertsgaard
No, the White House Is Not Getting a 90,000-Foot Extension No, the White House Is Not Getting a 90,000-Foot Extension
But Trump’s doomed proposal does give us a revealing glimpse into his state of mind.
Aug 28, 2025 / Kate Wagner
Trump’s National Guard Strategy—Plus, the Secret Behind “Huckleberry Finn” Trump’s National Guard Strategy—Plus, the Secret Behind “Huckleberry Finn”
On this episode of Start Making Sense, John Nichols on the military in the cities, and Adam Hochschild on Mark Twain.
Aug 27, 2025 / Podcast / Jon Wiener
Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Remakes the Family Drama Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Remakes the Family Drama
His latest work, Purpose, evokes Chekov in its exploration of faith, parents, and politics.
Aug 27, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Alisa Solomon
How China Engineered the Next Century How China Engineered the Next Century
Dan Wang argues that the battle between China and the United States is simply a conflict between engineers and lawyers. The situation is much more complicated than that.
Aug 26, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Rollin Hu
The Myth of Clean Energy The Myth of Clean Energy
Is all the hope placed in renewables an illusion?
Aug 25, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Trevor Jackson
Trump Wants to Make Art Into a Tool of the State Trump Wants to Make Art Into a Tool of the State
In ordering a review of the Smithsonian, the White House wants to use its power to remake our culture—or to reinvigorate a strain in the culture that has been dormant for a long t...
Aug 22, 2025 / Barry Schwabsky
The Empty Provocations of “Eddington” The Empty Provocations of “Eddington”
Ari Aster’s farcical western is billed as a send-up of the puerile politics of the Covid years. In reality, it’s a film that seems to have no politics at all.
Aug 21, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Kelli Weston