November 28, 2005 Issue

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

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Feature

The ‘No Exit’ Strategy

Most Americans want immediate action to pull out of Iraq, but Senate Republicans passed a measure today that essentially lets the White House off the hook.
Ari Berman
SOA Protests to Focus on Torture

As demonstrators gather at Fort Benning, Georgia, this weekend for an annual protest against the School of the Americas, the spotlight will be on increasing dismay in Congress and among the American public over the Bush Administration’s policies on torture.
Patrick Mulvaney
An E-Cycling Nightmare

E-cycling used computers to the Third World may sound idealistic, but in reality it’s just a new way to dump toxic waste.
Emily Lodish
War of Words in France

As media attention focused on rampaging youths setting afire the poor suburbs of France, verbal conflagrations raged among politicians and elected officials on how to respond to the threat.
Françoise Mouly
The Disappearing Flu Vaccine

Flu vaccine is in short supply this season, and the reason is that drug companies can’t make as much money protecting us from disease as from developing expensive treatments for niche illnesses.
Nicholas von Hoffman
Right to Trial Imperiled by Senate Vote

Civil libertarians were stunned last week when the Senate approved a measure that would allow government officials to essentially bypass the courts and lock up people suspected of terrorism without trial. Will cooler heads prevail?
Jeremy Brecher and Brendan Smith
What Would Alito Do?

If Samuel Alito is confirmed to the US Supreme Court, his impact on limiting reproductive rights would be certain and swift, due to his record and to two key abortion rights cases making their way to the Supreme Court.
Sharon Lerner
Darwin on Trial

As the site of a trial on including intelligent design in biology textbooks, Dover, Pennsylvania, is a focal point of a national debate on science and religion. But a look at the town and its residents show that the battle may not be so clearly defined.
Eyal Press
Cornbread and Roses

With his campaign to eradicate poverty in America, John Edwards has shed his Clinton Lite image. But to truly redefine the Democratic party and win the 2008 presidency, he has a long way to go.
Bob Moser
Students Confront Sweatshops

With a new wave of activism against sweatshops sweeping college campuses, student interest in the morality of their clothing choices can set a standard for the rest of us.
Peter Dreier and Richard Appelbaum
Why Is France Burning?

Fires and rioting in France are the result of thirty years of government neglect and the failure of the French political classes to make any serious effort to integrate Muslim and black populations into the French economy and culture.
Doug Ireland
Germ Boys and Yes Men

Stewart Simonson is a former Amtrak corporate attorney with zero medical experience. So why is he in charge of emergency health and bioterrorism in the federal government?
Jeremy Scahill

Editorial

Support Our Troops

It’s easy to slap a magnet on your SUV and feel like you’re supporting American soldiers fighting a brutal, far-off war. But the way to really support them is to work to extricate us from the conflict.
Medea Benjamin and Gayle Brandeis
Majority/Minority

Joe Biden buoys up Samuel Alito’s nomination by tamping down speculation of a filibuster. But California’s George Miller convinced the President to revoke an executive order that would undermine prevailing Gulf Coast wages.
David Sirota
In Fact…

SOUTHERN DISCOMFORT
The Editors
Letter From the (Outgoing) Publisher

As Editor Katrina vanden Heuvel becomes the latest in a long line of publisher/owners of The Nation, Victor Navasky looks ahead to his new role as publisher emeritus and member of the magazine’s editorial board.
Victor Navasky
Arnold Show: Canceled

Buoyed by their defeat of Schwarzeneggar’s “referendum revolution,” Democrats and organized labor are now energized to defeat the governor’s re-election bid next year.
Marc Cooper
Yes, Virginia…

Democratic gubernatorial wins in Virginia and New Jersey gave the lie to the GOP contention that “conservatism is on the march.” But infighting among Dems doomed electoral reform in Ohio, gay marriage is still illegal in Texas and there’s a long way to go to mid-year elections.
John Nichols
The Delphi Oracle

The cynical restructuring plan for bankrupt Delphi Automotive calls for massive wage and benefit givebacks for 51,000 American workers. Governors of affected states must craft strategies to minimize loss of jobs and income.
The Editors
Democrats and the War

In 2005, The Nation declared it would only support candidates who made a speedy end to this war a major campaign issue.
The Editors
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Column

The Big Lie Technique

As President Bush denounces his critics and proclaims war without end in Iraq the central front in a new cold war, he fails to acknowledge that he is responsible for handing Al Qaeda a new home base.
Robert Scheer
The World According to Dowd

Maureen Dowd has done her best to declare feminism dead. But by insisting that men are scared of spunky successful women, it doesn’t occur to her that she is promoting, rather than reporting on, the problem she describes.
Katha Pollitt
First the Lying, Then the Pardon

Shades of Iran/contra: Since the indictment of I. Lewis Libby, Washington is abuzz about presidential pardons. If officials who violate the law and lie about it know with certainty the will escape legal sanction, we no longer have a government.
Alexander Cockburn
Another Lesson in White House Values

We’ve got our values and we know goodness, but we hate only certain kinds of sin.
Calvin Trillin

Books & the Arts

From Beirut to Damascus

Four works trace the intertwined history of Lebanon and Syria and the interplay of political radicalism, military strength and miseries of war and murderous political intrigue.
Charles Glass
Postcards From the Abyss

Anthony Shadid’s Night Draws Near is a moving account of life in Iraq before and after the US occupation. Liberal hawk George Packer’s The Assasins’ Gate delves into the history behind humanitarian intervention.
Chris Toensing
The World According to Dowd

Maureen Dowd has done her best to declare feminism dead. But by insisting that men are scared of spunky successful women, it doesn’t occur to her that she is promoting, rather than reporting on, the problem she describes.
Katha Pollitt
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Letters

Letters

PARDON ME, DO YOU SPEAK LIBERAL?

Bellingham, Wash.
Eric Alterman , Doug Henwood , Sasha Abramsky and Our Readers

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November 28, 2005 Issue

Feature

Most Americans want immediate action to pull out of Iraq, but Senate Republicans passed a measure today that essentially lets the White House off the hook.

As demonstrators gather at Fort Benning, Georgia, this weekend for an annual protest against the School of the Americas, the spotlight will be on increasing dismay in Congress and among the American public over the Bush Administration’s policies on torture.

E-cycling used computers to the Third World may sound idealistic, but in reality it’s just a new way to dump toxic waste.

As media attention focused on rampaging youths setting afire the poor suburbs of France, verbal conflagrations raged among politicians and elected officials on how to respond to the threat.

Flu vaccine is in short supply this season, and the reason is that drug companies can’t make as much money protecting us from disease as from developing expensive treatments for niche illnesses.

Civil libertarians were stunned last week when the Senate approved a measure that would allow government officials to essentially bypass the courts and lock up people suspected of terrorism without trial. Will cooler heads prevail?

If Samuel Alito is confirmed to the US Supreme Court, his impact on limiting reproductive rights would be certain and swift, due to his record and to two key abortion rights cases making their way to the Supreme Court.

As the site of a trial on including intelligent design in biology textbooks, Dover, Pennsylvania, is a focal point of a national debate on science and religion. But a look at the town and its residents show that the battle may not be so clearly defined.

With his campaign to eradicate poverty in America, John Edwards has shed his Clinton Lite image. But to truly redefine the Democratic party and win the 2008 presidency, he has a long way to go.

With a new wave of activism against sweatshops sweeping college campuses, student interest in the morality of their clothing choices can set a standard for the rest of us.

Fires and rioting in France are the result of thirty years of government neglect and the failure of the French political classes to make any serious effort to integrate Muslim and black populations into the French economy and culture.

Stewart Simonson is a former Amtrak corporate attorney with zero medical experience. So why is he in charge of emergency health and bioterrorism in the federal government?

Editorial

It’s easy to slap a magnet on your SUV and feel like you’re supporting American soldiers fighting a brutal, far-off war. But the way to really support them is to work to extricate us from the conflict.

Joe Biden buoys up Samuel Alito’s nomination by tamping down speculation of a filibuster. But California’s George Miller convinced the President to revoke an executive order that would undermine prevailing Gulf Coast wages.

SOUTHERN DISCOMFORT

As Editor Katrina vanden Heuvel becomes the latest in a long line of publisher/owners of The Nation, Victor Navasky looks ahead to his new role as publisher emeritus and member of the magazine’s editorial board.

Buoyed by their defeat of Schwarzeneggar’s “referendum revolution,” Democrats and organized labor are now energized to defeat the governor’s re-election bid next year.

Democratic gubernatorial wins in Virginia and New Jersey gave the lie to the GOP contention that “conservatism is on the march.” But infighting among Dems doomed electoral reform in Ohio, gay marriage is still illegal in Texas and there’s a long way to go to mid-year elections.

The cynical restructuring plan for bankrupt Delphi Automotive calls for massive wage and benefit givebacks for 51,000 American workers. Governors of affected states must craft strategies to minimize loss of jobs and income.

In 2005, The Nation declared it would only support candidates who made a speedy end to this war a major campaign issue.

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

Column

As President Bush denounces his critics and proclaims war without end in Iraq the central front in a new cold war, he fails to acknowledge that he is responsible for handing Al Qaeda a new home base.

Maureen Dowd has done her best to declare feminism dead. But by insisting that men are scared of spunky successful women, it doesn’t occur to her that she is promoting, rather than reporting on, the problem she describes.

Shades of Iran/contra: Since the indictment of I. Lewis Libby, Washington is abuzz about presidential pardons. If officials who violate the law and lie about it know with certainty the will escape legal sanction, we no longer have a government.

We’ve got our values and we know goodness, but we hate only certain kinds of sin.

Books & the Arts

Four works trace the intertwined history of Lebanon and Syria and the interplay of political radicalism, military strength and miseries of war and murderous political intrigue.

Anthony Shadid’s Night Draws Near is a moving account of life in Iraq before and after the US occupation. Liberal hawk George Packer’s The Assasins’ Gate delves into the history behind humanitarian intervention.

Maureen Dowd has done her best to declare feminism dead. But by insisting that men are scared of spunky successful women, it doesn’t occur to her that she is promoting, rather than reporting on, the problem she describes.

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

Letters

PARDON ME, DO YOU SPEAK LIBERAL? Bellingham, Wash.

PARDON ME, DO YOU SPEAK LIBERAL?

Bellingham, Wash.