February 11, 2008 Issue

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

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Feature

MoveOn Weighs Dem Endorsements

The netroots powerhouse is surveying its members on whom to support. It’s a test of the candidates and of the progressive movement.
Ari Melber
Memo: Where Do the Democrats Stand on Iraq?

A deep look into how the candidates propose to bring the troops home and deal with the continuing military dilemma.
Tom Hayden
A Torch Passed

With a veritable Mount Rushmore of Kennedy faces arrayed behind him, Barack Obama received powerful symbolic and political support from the icons of the liberal establishment.
Amy Alexander
Right to Strike Imperiled in Cananea

If the Mexican government and Grupo Mexico succeed in smashing a miners’ strike, the reverberations will be felt even across the US border.
David Bacon
Letter From Vietnam

As Vietnam becomes a player in world trade, its human rights record and treatment of dissidents come under increased scrutiny. The world must do more.
Dustin Roasa
Fairy Tales

At her mentor’s funeral, Cynthia Kang revisits ghosts of the past, receives a cryptic message, and watches the detectives watching her.
Gary Phillips
Progressive Democratic Challengers

With the Congressional race under way, the essential question is: will the Democrats be more progressive post-Bush?
John Nichols
They Like Mike

Is America ready for a nonideological problem solver with liberal views on gun control, gay rights and abortion?
Micah L. Sifry
Dems Get New Tools, New Talent

Democratic campaigns are refining the art of reaching more people.
Matt Stoller
Grassroots Reseeded: Suites vs. Streets

This could be the year that Democrats finally let the people play a role in politics.
Laura Flanders

Editorial

Justified Violence: Breaking the Gaza Wall

The breaking of the Gaza-Egypt wall is clearly a good thing, and a rare example of the moral–and also wise–use of violence in politics.
Allan Nairn
Bush’s War of All Against All

A leader who waged war with impunity shouldn’t be surprised to someday be called to account for his actions.
Allan Nairn
Endorsing Obama

The movement he’s inspired holds the promise of a new cycle of activism, reform and fresh thinking. So I will support him through the inevitable storms ahead.
Tom Hayden
Black Women Talk Barack

It’s like one big family squabble among feminists, activists and post-civil-rights-era voters.
Amy Alexander
Subprime Obama

He should stiffen his meager bailout plan and call for a moratorium on foreclosures and serious government intervention.
Max Fraser
Noted.

Arguing Indiana’s voter ID law; counting Bush’s Iraq lies; remembering Chile’s truth-teller, Patricia Verdugo.
The Editors
Viva la Restauración

Latinos supported Hillary Clinton in the chaotic Nevada caucuses, but how much do her policies support them?
Chris Hayes
The Panic of 2008

A humane and sensible stimulus package would put money in the hands of those who need it.
The Editors
How I Lost My Job and Found Happiness

Edward Sorel
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Column

Obama, Clinton and the War

Ted Kennedy’s endorsement of Barack Obama sheds some needed light on Hillary’s hawkishness and the real differences between the candidates.
Robert Scheer
Some Things Even Obama Can’t Transcend

Before we can talk sensibly about transcending difference, we must first transform the conditions that give these differences meaning.
Gary Younge
Wall Street to Daily Papers: ‘Drop Dead’

How can newspapers survive financial meltdown if they surrender to a culture of defeat?
Eric Alterman
Writers’ Strike Spreads…

Steve Brodner
One Possible Explanation for Surveys Showing That Rudy Giuliani May Not Win His Own State

O Captain, not my Captain.
Calvin Trillin

Books & the Arts

An Unmonumental Grimace

Taking stock of the new New Museum.
Barry Schwabsky
Rambling Man

A modern-day Rip Van Winkle challenges the view that Europeans are too wrapped up in their past to move on.
Mark Mazower
Weather Reports

The radical individualism of the New Left was hardly un-American. A batch of new memoirs show the Weatherman followed a distinctly American tradition.
Maurice Isserman
A Test of Poetry

More than any other American poet, George Oppen begs us to consider the elusive relationship between aesthetic and political responsibilities.
James Longenbach
The stakes are higher now than ever. Get The Nation in your inbox.

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Letters

Letters

Eric Alterman and Alan Dershowitz exchange views on who speaks for American Jews; readers debate endorsements and praise Stuart Klawans’s review of There Will Be Blood.
Eric Alterman and Our Readers

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February 11, 2008 Issue

Feature

The netroots powerhouse is surveying its members on whom to support. It’s a test of the candidates and of the progressive movement.

A deep look into how the candidates propose to bring the troops home and deal with the continuing military dilemma.

With a veritable Mount Rushmore of Kennedy faces arrayed behind him, Barack Obama received powerful symbolic and political support from the icons of the liberal establishment.

If the Mexican government and Grupo Mexico succeed in smashing a miners’ strike, the reverberations will be felt even across the US border.

As Vietnam becomes a player in world trade, its human rights record and treatment of dissidents come under increased scrutiny. The world must do more.

At her mentor’s funeral, Cynthia Kang revisits ghosts of the past, receives a cryptic message, and watches the detectives watching her.

With the Congressional race under way, the essential question is: will the Democrats be more progressive post-Bush?

Is America ready for a nonideological problem solver with liberal views on gun control, gay rights and abortion?

Democratic campaigns are refining the art of reaching more people.

This could be the year that Democrats finally let the people play a role in politics.

Editorial

The breaking of the Gaza-Egypt wall is clearly a good thing, and a rare example of the moral–and also wise–use of violence in politics.

A leader who waged war with impunity shouldn’t be surprised to someday be called to account for his actions.

The movement he’s inspired holds the promise of a new cycle of activism, reform and fresh thinking. So I will support him through the inevitable storms ahead.

It’s like one big family squabble among feminists, activists and post-civil-rights-era voters.

He should stiffen his meager bailout plan and call for a moratorium on foreclosures and serious government intervention.

Arguing Indiana’s voter ID law; counting Bush’s Iraq lies; remembering Chile’s truth-teller, Patricia Verdugo.

Latinos supported Hillary Clinton in the chaotic Nevada caucuses, but how much do her policies support them?

A humane and sensible stimulus package would put money in the hands of those who need it.

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

Column

Ted Kennedy’s endorsement of Barack Obama sheds some needed light on Hillary’s hawkishness and the real differences between the candidates.

Before we can talk sensibly about transcending difference, we must first transform the conditions that give these differences meaning.

How can newspapers survive financial meltdown if they surrender to a culture of defeat?

O Captain, not my Captain.

Books & the Arts

Taking stock of the new New Museum.

A modern-day Rip Van Winkle challenges the view that Europeans are too wrapped up in their past to move on.

The radical individualism of the New Left was hardly un-American. A batch of new memoirs show the Weatherman followed a distinctly American tradition.

More than any other American poet, George Oppen begs us to consider the elusive relationship between aesthetic and political responsibilities.

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

Letters

Eric Alterman and Alan Dershowitz exchange views on who speaks for American Jews; readers debate endorsements and praise Stuart Klawans’s review of There Will Be Blood.