February 1, 2010 Issue

Cover art by: Cover design by Gene Case & Stephen Kling/Avenging Angels

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Feature

Covering Haiti: When the Media Is the Disaster

It’s time to banish the word “looting” from the media vocabulary in times of disaster.
Rebecca Solnit
Obama’s Pro-Union Nominations to Labor Relations Board Stalled

If Obama’s appointees to the National Labor Relations Board are confirmed, the agency could offer workers more protections than the Employee Free Choice Act.
Steven Hill and Dmitri Iglitzin
What Coakley’s Defeat Means for Healthcare Reform

Healthcare is in jeopardy, but it’s not dead–especially if Democrats drag their feet on swearing in Brown.
Lindsay Beyerstein
US Mercenaries Set Sights on Haiti

Private firms are jumping at the opportunity to provide ‘humanitarian assistance’ to Haiti, but what these companies are actually bringing is a ‘Shock Doctrine’ approach that aims to profit from disaster.
Jeremy Scahill
Young Punk Rockers Revive Folk Songs for a New Generation

As part of America’s progressive folk tradition, The Tillers demonstrate that the left has long been essential to the country’s cultural fabric.
Geoffrey Dobbins
Haiti: The Pearl of the Antilles

The continued portrayal of Haiti as the basket case of the hemisphere without accurate contextualization further wounds the Haitian people and misleads the American public.
Joslyn Barnes
Chile’s Turning Point

A victory by Sebastian Pinera in the Chilean marks a major turning point in the post-Pinochet transition, and a return to power of some of the hardcore rightists who collaborated with the military regime.
Peter Kornbluh and Katherine Hite
Dr. Martin Luther King’s Economics: Through Jobs, Freedom

How would Dr. King have responded to the current crises of recession, unemployment, and foreclosure?
Mark Engler
Building a Different Middle East

The longest continuous nonviolent mobilization in Palestinian history is uniting villagers from all political factions, along with Israeli and international activists, against the encroachments of Israel’s separation barrier.
Joel Beinin
Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission Turns Up the Heat

On the FCIC’s second day of hearings, witnesses examined how Wall Street incentivized and why the Federal Reserve didn’t stop subprime lending.
Greg Kaufmann
Too Big to Fail, Not Too Big for Jail

The federal inquiry hearings inevitably leads to the question: why aren’t any these big players already in jail? And no, Bernie Madoff doesn’t count.
Mary Bottari
For Prop 8 Trial, Supreme Court Banishes Cameras

Had the Supreme Court not kicked video cameras out of the courtroom, the Prop 8 trial may have enabled Americans to see how a controversial court decision is born.
Linda Hirshman
The Professional

Like the Progressives, Obama seems to believe government can move beyond partisan politics.
Eric Foner
System Failure

As welcome as it was, the removal of George W. Bush was not enough to cure what ails us.
Chris Hayes
Change Won’t Come Easy

Many progressives thought we had taken back America in 2008, but the work has just begun.
Katrina vanden Heuvel and Robert L. Borosage
Obama at One

The Nation asked members of our community and beyond: looking back at Obama’s first year in office, what was the high point, and what was your sharpest disappointment?
Various Contributors

Editorial

Coakley’s Loss: Pie in the President’s Face

Martha Coakley’s loss in Massachusetts put on display the monumental miscalculations by which Obama has governed.
William Greider
Ten Things You Can Do to Improve Your Healthcare

Here are some ways to cut costs and improve outcomes no matter what happens to healthcare reform in Washington.
The Nation
The Battle for Iran

Obituaries for the Islamic Republic of Iran are premature.
Nader Hashemi
Noted.

You can help Haiti; the EPA allows the expansion of a West Virginia mine; the Democratic Party sees ideological fights ahead.
The Editors
Blueprint for Dems

Democrats have tried to act “bipartisan” while Republicans got obstructionist, and the Dems are paying for it.
Sen. Bernie Sanders
Move Your Money

Why leave your money in big banks that brought the financial system to ruin?
The Editors
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Column

What Massachusetts Got Right

Obama’s opportunistic search for win-win solutions to our healthcare concerns and our larger economic problems is leading to a lose-lose outcome for the president and the country.
Robert Scheer
Believers in Great Men Think Alike

Disappointment is one thing American liberals can be certain of. Optimism is the real challenge.
Gary Younge
What Would Molly Say?

As we observe the third anniversary of Molly Ivins’s death, we are ever more the lesser for her loss.
Eric Alterman
World’s Tallest Building Opens in Dubai

One question comes to mind.
Calvin Trillin

Books & the Arts

Young Punk Rockers Revive Folk Songs for a New Generation

As part of America’s progressive folk tradition, The Tillers demonstrate that the left has long been essential to the country’s cultural fabric.
Geoffrey Dobbins
The Professional

Like the Progressives, Obama seems to believe government can move beyond partisan politics.
Eric Foner
On the Make: Gordon Wood’s Jeffersonia

Gordon S. Wood defends Jefferson–again.
Robin Einhorn
Permanent Exile: On Marie Vieux-Chauvet

In Love, Anger, Madness, Marie Vieux-Chauvet explores the choking fear of life under “Papa Doc” Duvalier.
Madison Smartt Bell
Evasive Action Painter: On Gerhard Richter

Gerhard Richter’s abstract paintings are miraculously controlled accidents.
Barry Schwabsky
The stakes are higher now than ever. Get The Nation in your inbox.

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Letters

Letters

Flight of the Kestral
Washington, D.C.
Our Readers and Jeremy Scahill

Crossword

Puzzle No. 994

ACROSS

1 What chairmen sometimes do together? They tell what time the stars should appear. (10)
Frank W. Lewis

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February 1, 2010 Issue

Feature

It’s time to banish the word “looting” from the media vocabulary in times of disaster.

If Obama’s appointees to the National Labor Relations Board are confirmed, the agency could offer workers more protections than the Employee Free Choice Act.

Healthcare is in jeopardy, but it’s not dead–especially if Democrats drag their feet on swearing in Brown.

Private firms are jumping at the opportunity to provide ‘humanitarian assistance’ to Haiti, but what these companies are actually bringing is a ‘Shock Doctrine’ approach that aims to profit from disaster.

As part of America’s progressive folk tradition, The Tillers demonstrate that the left has long been essential to the country’s cultural fabric.

The continued portrayal of Haiti as the basket case of the hemisphere without accurate contextualization further wounds the Haitian people and misleads the American public.

A victory by Sebastian Pinera in the Chilean marks a major turning point in the post-Pinochet transition, and a return to power of some of the hardcore rightists who collaborated with the military regime.

How would Dr. King have responded to the current crises of recession, unemployment, and foreclosure?

The longest continuous nonviolent mobilization in Palestinian history is uniting villagers from all political factions, along with Israeli and international activists, against the encroachments of Israel’s separation barrier.

On the FCIC’s second day of hearings, witnesses examined how Wall Street incentivized and why the Federal Reserve didn’t stop subprime lending.

The federal inquiry hearings inevitably leads to the question: why aren’t any these big players already in jail? And no, Bernie Madoff doesn’t count.

Had the Supreme Court not kicked video cameras out of the courtroom, the Prop 8 trial may have enabled Americans to see how a controversial court decision is born.

Like the Progressives, Obama seems to believe government can move beyond partisan politics.

As welcome as it was, the removal of George W. Bush was not enough to cure what ails us.

Many progressives thought we had taken back America in 2008, but the work has just begun.

The Nation asked members of our community and beyond: looking back at Obama’s first year in office, what was the high point, and what was your sharpest disappointment?

Editorial

Martha Coakley’s loss in Massachusetts put on display the monumental miscalculations by which Obama has governed.

Here are some ways to cut costs and improve outcomes no matter what happens to healthcare reform in Washington.

Obituaries for the Islamic Republic of Iran are premature.

You can help Haiti; the EPA allows the expansion of a West Virginia mine; the Democratic Party sees ideological fights ahead.

Democrats have tried to act “bipartisan” while Republicans got obstructionist, and the Dems are paying for it.

Why leave your money in big banks that brought the financial system to ruin?

GET UNLIMITED DIGITAL ACCESS FOR LESS THAN $3 A MONTH!

Column

Obama’s opportunistic search for win-win solutions to our healthcare concerns and our larger economic problems is leading to a lose-lose outcome for the president and the country.

Disappointment is one thing American liberals can be certain of. Optimism is the real challenge.

As we observe the third anniversary of Molly Ivins’s death, we are ever more the lesser for her loss.

One question comes to mind.

Books & the Arts

As part of America’s progressive folk tradition, The Tillers demonstrate that the left has long been essential to the country’s cultural fabric.

Like the Progressives, Obama seems to believe government can move beyond partisan politics.

Gordon S. Wood defends Jefferson–again.

In Love, Anger, Madness, Marie Vieux-Chauvet explores the choking fear of life under “Papa Doc” Duvalier.

Gerhard Richter’s abstract paintings are miraculously controlled accidents.

The stakes are higher now than ever. Get The Nation in your inbox.

Letters

Flight of the Kestral Washington, D.C.

Crossword

ACROSS 1 What chairmen sometimes do together? They tell what time the stars should appear. (10)

Flight of the Kestral
Washington, D.C.

ACROSS

1 What chairmen sometimes do together? They tell what time the stars should appear. (10)