From Conversations With History, an interview with Chalmers Johnson, author of Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic, an interview with Niall Ferguson, author of The War of the World: Twentieth Century Conflict and the Descent of the West, and an interview with John Micklethwait on globalization and the conservative movement in the US.
"When we get big, you can expect that from the other side": Harmon Leon infiltrates a right wing protest group. Theocons of the World, Unite! A review of The Enemy at Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11 by Dinesh D'Souza.
From Eureka Street, why militant anti-theism is a God-send. Michael Novak on why Christopher Hitchens is a treasure. Jerry Falwell, whose foul rantings prove you can get away with anything if you have "Reverend" in front of your name, is best known for crusading against abortion and homosexuality. But early on, he skillfully used race to galvanize the Christian right, though his successors in the Christian right learned the lesson he never did: how to brand and commodify faith for pop cultural consumption. God without the godfather: How will the religious right get on without Falwell? The Accidental Modernist: An article on the real legacy of Jerry Falwell. A review of The Culturally Savvy Christian: A Manifesto for Deepening Faith and Enriching Popular Culture in an Age of Christianity-Lite.
Tribal Relations: How Americans really sort out on cultural and religious issues—and what it means for our politics. How to be a hippy fascist: An interview with James Delingpole, author How To Be Right: The Essential Guide to Making Lefty Liberals History. Do Republicans still care about social issues? Ramesh Ponnuru and Thomas B. Edsall debate. The Scorecard: There isn't a scorecard of social injustice that makes one group more worthy of equality than others.
How to run against a woman: Thanks to a certain New York senator's presidential candidacy, the battle for the hearts, minds, and votes of America's women has never been trickier. Why are baying men still telling women what to do with their bodies? Ian Bell wants to know. Porn Again: Garance Franke-Ruta on how the new pornographers are exploiting young women, and why liberals should care. A review of Adolescent Sexuality: A Historical Handbook and Guide. Porn for the People: Each day, thousands of suburban sybarites videotape themselves doing the nasty, then post their efforts on the Web.
Lily, Wills and the rest of the world: Our sense of what is private and what is public has change since the advent of MySpace, and other social networking sites. The Decline and Fall of the Private Self: Today's tell-all bloggers and MySpace denizens have made the notion of a guarded personal life feel obsolete. What effect does such exposure have on the psyche? The Therapeutic Culture: Yale Kramer on how we coddle the mentally ill (and responses). The fact is simple: happiness cannot be taught, any more than loyalty can, or truthfulness. How to lose friends and influence politics: A review of Friendship and Betrayal: Ambition and the Limits of Loyalty. A review of A Crowd of One: The Future of Individual Identity (and more).
On the Origin of Grandmas: They pinch your cheeks, knit you sweaters and feed you mountains of mashed potatoes. Is that why you're still alive? Joseph Epstein on Death Benefits: That lives have strikingly different beginnings and wildly various middles, but all have the same ending has a calming effect. And recovering the Disappeared: How do you memorialize people who vanish?
