February 16, 2009 Issue

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

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Feature

The Pseudo Stimulus

There is much less to Obama’s stimulus plan than meets the eye. What’s he going to do about it?
James S. Henry
Stimulus: One Percent for the Imagination

One percent of the stimulus package should be spent on rehabilitating America’s crumbling cultural infrastructure.
John Cavanagh , E. Ethelbert Miller and Melissa Tuckey
Obama’s Security Priorities

He has significantly pivoted US policy on torture. But where the president stands on warrantless wiretapping should give progressives some cause for concern.
Aziz Huq
A City Made of Waste

Across the border from San Diego in Tijuana, a spontaneous urban space is taking shape off the radar of city planners, as an affluent city sheds its aging houses and its pieces are reassembled into creative dwellings for the poor.
Teddy Cruz
Green Jobs: Good Work If Youth Can Find It

Youth organizers have reason to hope green jobs can help change young lives.
Kristina Rizga
Newark’s Great Green Hope

Even without an infusion of federal dollars, green jobs are becoming a reality in cities like Newark, New Jersey.
J. Lester Feder
Think Solar, Think Small

The greening of America’s power grid is a challenge to reject mega-projects in favor of local ones that harness renewable resources.
Craig D. Rose
Ticket to Ride

The greenest way to lift the country out of a deepening recession is to put people to work building mass transit.
Ben Adler
Help Wanted for Green Jobs

It’s inspiring to have a president who talks the talk on green-collar jobs. But we need megawatts, not just megawords.
Liza Featherstone
The Power of Transparency

Obama can ensure his recovery plan is untainted by corruption and waste by mandating controls that track where money flows and evaluate results.
Greg LeRoy
Doing the Recovery Right

America’s transformation to a clean-energy economy could merge the aims of environmental protection and social justice.
Robert Pollin

Editorial

Mystery of the Missing Pardons

Why were there no mentions of pardons before Bush boarded that helicopter to obscurity?
Terry Jones
What Would Molly Think?

Molly Ivins would have loved the outcome of the November election. In a way, she saw it coming.
Betsy Moon
The Mitchell Moment

Will the president have the courage to allow George Mitchell to apply the lessons of his experience of high-stakes conflict resolution?
Roane Carey
Never Say You’re Sorry

Why do people like Larry Summers, Tim Geithner and Gary Gensler keep getting the Obama administration’s plum jobs?
Chris Hayes
Senate Selection Scam

Russ Feingold is leading the charge to close the constitutional loophole that allows governors to appoint senators.
John Nichols
Bush’s War Totals

The human cost of Bush’s war: 1 million dead. 4.5 million displaced. 1 million to 2 million widows. 5 million orphans.
John Tirman
Noted.

Katha Pollitt on Obama and global gag rule, Megan Buskey on AIDS in Iran, Corbin Hiar on elections in Ghana, Sonia Shah on scientists for human rights
The Editors
Go Geoghegan!

Tom Geoghegan, labor lawyer, writer and activist, is running for Congress on a platform that’s a model for the post-meltdown era.
The Editors
Let the Sun Shine In

The era of secrecy in government is officially over.
Jon Wiener
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Column

Wall Street in Washington

Of the three tax-challenged Obama appointees, only Timothy Geithner has survived. Is that luck or is there still something special about being from Wall Street?
Robert Scheer
The Recession Bowl

In America’s first hard-times Super Bowl, superb athletes and a thrillingly played game rose to the challenge. Maybe the country can, too.
Dave Zirin
Beyond Hope

When the government is organizing a movement to back the government in the name of progressive politics, something is seriously awry.
Gary Younge
The Defamation League

Abe Foxman and Bill Kristol gutlessly attack Bill Moyers and David Grossman.
Eric Alterman
So It Goes With Wall Street Titan John A. Thain

They all said he was a genius. They were wrong.
Calvin Trillin

Books & the Arts

The Tattoo Archipelago

The taxonomy of Russian criminal tattoos.
Megan Buskey
A City Made of Waste

Across the border from San Diego in Tijuana, a spontaneous urban space is taking shape off the radar of city planners, as an affluent city sheds its aging houses and its pieces are reassembled into creative dwellings for the poor.
Teddy Cruz
Let the Sun Shine In

The era of secrecy in government is officially over.
Jon Wiener
Schlepics: The Fiction of Angel Wagenstein

Angel Wagenstein and the evolution of modern Jewish storytelling.
Akiva Gottlieb
Back Talk: Nato Thompson

A conversation with Nato Thompson on experimental geography, Trevor Paglen and the outlook for the arts.
Christine Smallwood
Further Adventures in Editing: Ted Solotaroff at ‘Commentary’

Cynthia Ozick, Norman Podhoretz and Alfred Chester contribute to the education of an editor. Second of a two-part memoir.
Ted Solotaroff
The stakes are higher now than ever. Get The Nation in your inbox.

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Letters

Letter

…We All Scream for Howard Dean!
Kamuela, Hawaii
Our Readers and Anatol Lieven

Crossword

Puzzle No. 3156

ACROSS

1 Accompanying the little devil, you get everything together–and can’t be blamed this way! (4,8)
Frank W. Lewis

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February 16, 2009 Issue

Feature

There is much less to Obama’s stimulus plan than meets the eye. What’s he going to do about it?

One percent of the stimulus package should be spent on rehabilitating America’s crumbling cultural infrastructure.

He has significantly pivoted US policy on torture. But where the president stands on warrantless wiretapping should give progressives some cause for concern.

Across the border from San Diego in Tijuana, a spontaneous urban space is taking shape off the radar of city planners, as an affluent city sheds its aging houses and its pieces are reassembled into creative dwellings for the poor.

Youth organizers have reason to hope green jobs can help change young lives.

Even without an infusion of federal dollars, green jobs are becoming a reality in cities like Newark, New Jersey.

The greening of America’s power grid is a challenge to reject mega-projects in favor of local ones that harness renewable resources.

The greenest way to lift the country out of a deepening recession is to put people to work building mass transit.

It’s inspiring to have a president who talks the talk on green-collar jobs. But we need megawatts, not just megawords.

Obama can ensure his recovery plan is untainted by corruption and waste by mandating controls that track where money flows and evaluate results.

America’s transformation to a clean-energy economy could merge the aims of environmental protection and social justice.

Editorial

Why were there no mentions of pardons before Bush boarded that helicopter to obscurity?

Molly Ivins would have loved the outcome of the November election. In a way, she saw it coming.

Will the president have the courage to allow George Mitchell to apply the lessons of his experience of high-stakes conflict resolution?

Why do people like Larry Summers, Tim Geithner and Gary Gensler keep getting the Obama administration’s plum jobs?

Russ Feingold is leading the charge to close the constitutional loophole that allows governors to appoint senators.

The human cost of Bush’s war: 1 million dead. 4.5 million displaced. 1 million to 2 million widows. 5 million orphans.

Katha Pollitt on Obama and global gag rule, Megan Buskey on AIDS in Iran, Corbin Hiar on elections in Ghana, Sonia Shah on scientists for human rights

Tom Geoghegan, labor lawyer, writer and activist, is running for Congress on a platform that’s a model for the post-meltdown era.

The era of secrecy in government is officially over.

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

Column

Of the three tax-challenged Obama appointees, only Timothy Geithner has survived. Is that luck or is there still something special about being from Wall Street?

In America’s first hard-times Super Bowl, superb athletes and a thrillingly played game rose to the challenge. Maybe the country can, too.

When the government is organizing a movement to back the government in the name of progressive politics, something is seriously awry.

Abe Foxman and Bill Kristol gutlessly attack Bill Moyers and David Grossman.

They all said he was a genius. They were wrong.

Books & the Arts

The taxonomy of Russian criminal tattoos.

Across the border from San Diego in Tijuana, a spontaneous urban space is taking shape off the radar of city planners, as an affluent city sheds its aging houses and its pieces are reassembled into creative dwellings for the poor.

The era of secrecy in government is officially over.

Angel Wagenstein and the evolution of modern Jewish storytelling.

A conversation with Nato Thompson on experimental geography, Trevor Paglen and the outlook for the arts.

Cynthia Ozick, Norman Podhoretz and Alfred Chester contribute to the education of an editor. Second of a two-part memoir.

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

Letters

…We All Scream for Howard Dean! Kamuela, Hawaii

Crossword

ACROSS 1 Accompanying the little devil, you get everything together–and can’t be blamed this way! (4,8)

…We All Scream for Howard Dean!
Kamuela, Hawaii

ACROSS

1 Accompanying the little devil, you get everything together–and can’t be blamed this way! (4,8)