Guest Thinkers
All Stories
When you compile a list of artists that other artists love to hate, a few names typically appear: Jeff Koons, Thomas Kinkade, and, perhaps most virulently, Damien Hirst. You can […]
The New Yorker’s “Notes on Mourning,” excerpts of Roland Barthes’s (are they?) journal entries regarding the loss of his mother, are extraordinary. They are worth reading for anyone interested in […]
Will Sarah Palin run for president? Could she win? Garance Franke-Ruta argues that Palin’s best strategy would be to remake herself as a leader within the Republican Party. She notes […]
In the wake of the Aug. 23 court decision that halted Federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, Democrats are gearing up to use stem cell research as a wedge […]
For those of you who don’t frequent Craigslist Adult Services section, life was perhaps pretty uneventful last weekend. However, if you live in the US and are a patron of […]
There were two threads of news this morning about potential activity at two fairly active Chilean volcanoes. First, there are reports of explosions (spanish) with ash or merely steam emissions at […]
The unexpected revival of Sinabung in Indonesia is now in its 2nd week and so far, the activity continues to ramp up. Overnight, the volcano experienced some of the largest […]
“With car use increasing all the time, in a few years we could be facing global gridlock. Can the calculations of mathematicians and engineers keep us moving?” The Independent reports.
Summer is over. Now fall begins. When we think back on this season in this year will we remember the books, the songs, the finals of the U.S. Open (or […]
Plastic bags are still legal in California. San Francisco and a handful of other California cities already ban the bags, but California lawmakers rejected a bill brought by Democrats that […]
Science and democracy are supposed to go together like Mom and apple pie. But in the American political arena, they aren’t naturally compatible: To show people Science, you have to […]
Some time ago, we looked at how designers are rethinking packaging to make it less ecologically demanding and more user-friendly. Now, eBay joins the movement with “simple green shipping” – […]
Monday is here already and although lots of folks in the States have today off (Labor Day), I don’t (from blogging or teaching)! Some news: There is a whole lot […]
“America’s ‘combat mission’ in Iraq may be over, but the combat is not.” The New Yorker on the lives, strategy and moral clarity that has been lost during the occupation of Iraq.
“It is Europe, not the United States, where the West and Islam exist in closest daily proximity.” The CSM reports that skepticism of Islam may be greater in Europe than in the U.S.
“Class struggle is an unfashionable term in modern America, but with millions jobless or impoverished, it’s relevant as ever.” The Guardian’s Clancy Sigal on class difference in America.
When we think of Sigmund Freud, we think first of words—the “talking cure” of psychoanalysis, books such as The Interpretation of Dreams, and the infamous Freudian slip. In Mirrors of […]
I spend more time than a sane person should wending my way through conservative, liberal and moderate political blogs to keep an eye on the latest groupthink on the web. […]
Sustainable underwear line PACT, from designer Yves Behar of One Laptop Per Child fame, has just introduced Creative Growth – a limited-edition collection in partnership with Creative Growth Art Center, […]
Ezra Klein calls our attention in his regular Wonkbook feature—which is a must-read, by the way—to a paper by economists Carmen and Vincent Reinhart looking at how long it takes […]
I know many of you have been a little frustrated by the transition here and especially your ability to leave comments effectively. I understand and appreciate your frustrations – any […]
“Climate change could reduce key harvests in China by a fifth if the gloomiest scenarios prove true, according to a study on Wednesday.” Scientists say China is warming at a fast pace.
The unspoken history of China: “Between 1959 and 1962, at least forty-three million Chinese died. Most died of hunger, over two million were executed or were beaten or tortured to death.”
“Those who argue we should decriminalise the trade in narcotics are blind to the catastrophic consequences,” says Antonio Costa, executive director of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
“Mexican drug lords exist to feed the U.S. drug market. And they get their guns through the U.S. weapons market.” The CSM says the U.S. bears the brunt of moral responsibility.
Everyone is mesmerized by Apple’s ability to revolutionize the way we think about IT products. With the iPhone, for example, Apple has morphed a mere communication device into a platform […]
AS the dust begins to settle on an extraordinary week dominated by the astonishing spectacle of a former Prime Minister peddling memoirs whose vulgarity and venality thoroughly demeans the office […]
It’s a big holiday weekend here in the U.S., so there’s a good chance that before or after reading this, you’ll be driving around lost. If you are a man, […]
My 1G phone was working just fine. The Super Glue was still holding the curved piece of plastic along the top of my five year old flip phone, a piece […]
“There is no room in the universe of Hawking or most other scientists for the activist God of the Bible.” Philosopher Julian Baggini charts the evolution of Western religion’s deity.