Culture

James Merrill (left) and David Jackson at the Ouija board in 1983.

A Poet Who Believed in Nothing As in Love A Poet Who Believed in Nothing As in Love

After first writing poetry to impress and entertain his wealthy parents’ guests, cosmopolitan James Merrill went cosmic.

Nov 17, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Ange Mlinko

‘All You Want Is Money! All I Want Is Revolution!’

‘All You Want Is Money! All I Want Is Revolution!’ ‘All You Want Is Money! All I Want Is Revolution!’

Before the Tiananmen Square massacre, everyone loved China; now everyone loves the renminbi.

Nov 17, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Liao Yiwu

Chicago Boys

The United States Didn’t Just Help Topple Allende—We Trained the Economists, Too The United States Didn’t Just Help Topple Allende—We Trained the Economists, Too

A new documentary, Chicago Boys, looks at the Chilean economists who brought neoliberalism from the halls of Chicago to the policies of Latin America.

Nov 16, 2015 / Greg Grandin

November 15, 1959: The Clutter Family Is Murdered in Holcomb, Kansas, Later the Subject of Truman Capote’s ‘In Cold Blood’

November 15, 1959: The Clutter Family Is Murdered in Holcomb, Kansas, Later the Subject of Truman Capote’s ‘In Cold Blood’ November 15, 1959: The Clutter Family Is Murdered in Holcomb, Kansas, Later the Subject of Truman Capote’s ‘In Cold Blood’

“It turns out that what we are really witnessing is a kind of morality play: the conversion of Truman Capote.”

Nov 15, 2015 / Richard Kreitner

Why Does Ta-Nehisi Coates Say Less Than He Knows?

Why Does Ta-Nehisi Coates Say Less Than He Knows? Why Does Ta-Nehisi Coates Say Less Than He Knows?

The journalist’s best-selling memoir offers eloquent testimony to the vulnerability of black life, but it surrenders too much to despair.

Nov 15, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Jesse McCarthy

November 13, 1982: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Is Dedicated in Washington, DC

November 13, 1982: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Is Dedicated in Washington, DC November 13, 1982: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Is Dedicated in Washington, DC

“One can hardly expect images of napalmed children and weeping parents to remind us of what the war was really like.”

Nov 13, 2015 / Richard Kreitner

Trump SNL Protest

Does Larry David Deserve $5,000 for Kinda, Sorta Calling Donald Trump a Racist? Does Larry David Deserve $5,000 for Kinda, Sorta Calling Donald Trump a Racist?

Comedians and activists weigh in on whether David called attention to Trump’s racism or protected SNL from criticism.

Nov 12, 2015 / Katie Halper

Am I the Only Person Who Thinks Larry David Wasn’t Funny on Trump’s ‘SNL’?

Am I the Only Person Who Thinks Larry David Wasn’t Funny on Trump’s ‘SNL’? Am I the Only Person Who Thinks Larry David Wasn’t Funny on Trump’s ‘SNL’?

Shouting “Trump’s a racist!” helped inoculate Trump—and SNL—from seeming racist.

Nov 10, 2015 / Leslie Savan

China drought

Splinterlands: The View From 2050 Splinterlands: The View From 2050

A dystopian fictional tour of the world that awaits us.

Nov 10, 2015 / John Feffer

Standing Up for Migrant Workers in the Gulf, 1 Installation at a Time

Standing Up for Migrant Workers in the Gulf, 1 Installation at a Time Standing Up for Migrant Workers in the Gulf, 1 Installation at a Time

For the artists in the activist group Gulf Labor, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi epitomizes the conquest of art by corporate interests.

Nov 9, 2015 / Ursula Lindsey

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