Books and Ideas

December 16, 1901: Margaret Mead Is Born

December 16, 1901: Margaret Mead Is Born December 16, 1901: Margaret Mead Is Born

“The Samoan girl leads a busy, unconscious existence in which impulse and duty appear to play pleasantly correlative roles.”

Dec 16, 2015 / Richard Kreitner

December 15, 2011: Christopher Hitchens Dies

December 15, 2011: Christopher Hitchens Dies December 15, 2011: Christopher Hitchens Dies

“Posterity is unlikely to deal kindly with his willingness to be a singer in the camp of George W. Bush.”

Dec 15, 2015 / Richard Kreitner

A representative holds an “impact-absorbing” helmet at NFL Headquarters in New York.

There Is No ‘War on Football’ There Is No ‘War on Football’

The idea that concussion research is a liberal conspiracy is toxic and will hurt kids. It has to stop.

Dec 10, 2015 / Dave Zirin

Tyra Banks

‘America’s Next Top Model’ Wraps After 22 Seasons of Bigotry ‘America’s Next Top Model’ Wraps After 22 Seasons of Bigotry

Exotic Asians, hot-tempered Latinas, and the original angry black woman—we owe all of these reality TV tropes to Tyra Banks’s fake-empowerment series.

Dec 8, 2015 / Jennifer L. Pozner

Interned Japanese American Sammy Kimura (Telly Leung) and camp nurse Hannah Campbell (Katie Rose Clarke) perform in Allegiance.

Pacific Overtures on Broadway Pacific Overtures on Broadway

At its best, the Japanese-internment musical Allegiance seethes with righteous anger beneath its perkiness and platitudes.

Dec 7, 2015 / Alisa Solomon

Why Bernie Sanders Should Embrace European Models of Democratic Socialism

Why Bernie Sanders Should Embrace European Models of Democratic Socialism Why Bernie Sanders Should Embrace European Models of Democratic Socialism

American radicalism can’t be confined within US borders.

Dec 4, 2015 / Leon Fink

December 4, 1975: Hannah Arendt Dies

December 4, 1975: Hannah Arendt Dies December 4, 1975: Hannah Arendt Dies

“Man is basically alone with his ‘revolt’ and ‘clairvoyance,’ that is, with his reasoning.”

Dec 4, 2015 / Richard Kreitner

Naomi Klein, Kshama Sawant, Dave Zirin, and More: ‘The Nation’ Live! in Seattle

Naomi Klein, Kshama Sawant, Dave Zirin, and More: ‘The Nation’ Live! in Seattle Naomi Klein, Kshama Sawant, Dave Zirin, and More: ‘The Nation’ Live! in Seattle

An all-star cast brings you a live magazine experience created to mark the magazine’s 150th anniversary.

Dec 3, 2015 / The Nation

A panel from Image Comics's Citizen Jack featuring satirical presidential candidate Jack Noteworthy.

Finally, a Comic Series As Ridiculous as the 2016 GOP Field Finally, a Comic Series As Ridiculous as the 2016 GOP Field

A scandal-prone, dark-horse presidential candidate turned front-runner stars in Citizen Jack. Sound familiar?

Dec 3, 2015 / Loren A. Lynch

Start Making Sense: Naomi Klein on the Necessity of the Climate Protests in Paris

Start Making Sense: Naomi Klein on the Necessity of the Climate Protests in Paris Start Making Sense: Naomi Klein on the Necessity of the Climate Protests in Paris

On this week’s podcast, Naomi Klein on the Shock Doctrine and the Paris climate protests, Katha Pollitt on Europe’s refugee crisis, Eric Foner on Woodrow Wilson’s racism, and Joan ...

Dec 3, 2015 / Podcast / Start Making Sense and Jon Wiener

x