Solving for X: On George F. Kennan Solving for X: On George F. Kennan
Unwrapping the enigma of the career diplomat who wrote the Long Telegram.
Oct 26, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Andrew J. Bacevich
Just as They Are Just as They Are
The forty-ninth edition of the New York Film Festival.
Oct 25, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans
An Inaugural Address for Herman Cain An Inaugural Address for Herman Cain
In April, we’ll all be in clover— All spending bucks we’ve got left over, With 9-9-9. To working folks we’ll bring enjoyment, ’Cause we’ll have nearly full employment, With 9-9-9. Our air will be pristine and clear, And terrorists will disappear, With 9-9-9. And scientists will find the answer That gives the world a cure for cancer, With 9-9-9. We’ll all achieve what we endeavor, And all of us will live forever, With 9-9-9. A country that now seems depressed and limp’ll Be great again if we just keep things simple.
Oct 19, 2011 / Column / Calvin Trillin
Vacant, Limpid, Angelic: On Willem de Kooning Vacant, Limpid, Angelic: On Willem de Kooning
MoMA’s de Kooning retrospective.
Oct 18, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky
In the Clear: On Scientology In the Clear: On Scientology
The body of the church of Scientology is not well. Will its main legacy be its contribution to US tax law?
Oct 18, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Mark Oppenheimer
The Edge of Comprehension: On Steven Millhauser The Edge of Comprehension: On Steven Millhauser
With We Others, Steven Millhauser remains the master of the inevitable ending in American fiction.
Oct 18, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Aaron Thier
The Far Right Contemplates the Republican Front-Runner The Far Right Contemplates the Republican Front-Runner
It seems that now we’re stuck with Mitt. Reciting right-wing holy writ, He still sounds moderate, a bit. Although it’s nothing he’ll admit, A healthcare plan’s his biggest hit. (The thought of that gives us a fit.) And born-agains, from where they sit, Still state their firm belief, to wit: As Christians, Mormons aren’t legit. We’ve said for months, “This man’s not it.” We wish that Palin hadn’t split. We wish that Perry weren’t a nit (His pilot light is not quite lit). Because, it seems, we’re stuck with Mitt.
Oct 12, 2011 / Column / Calvin Trillin
Gandhi and South Africa Gandhi and South Africa
Why was Joseph Lelyveld’s history of Gandhi’s years in South Africa attacked by India’s Hindu right?
Oct 12, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Martha C. Nussbaum
Innocents Lost: On Postwar Orphans Innocents Lost: On Postwar Orphans
Tara Zahra explains why orphaned children held a special grip on Europe’s postwar imagination.
Oct 12, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Holly Case
Letter From a Prisoner Letter From a Prisoner
You, who only write letters in your dreams Hello mother! your son now engraves in his heart letters to send you he would like to send you a snail loving the ground passionately he would like to print burning kisses everywhere, where your steps take you he would like to send you a snail to read your poems on the sand to gather them in a shell and send them to the sea this sea whose azure you share where she rests Hello mother! Have you received the snail? (translated from the French by Doog T. Wood)
Oct 12, 2011 / Books & the Arts / Abdallah Zrika