Opinion

Successful 21st-century presidential candidates present a bold blueprint for how they would govern, but the most successful recent presidents govern with humility. It is a vexing paradox, one that the last two commanders in chief have struggled to wrap their heads around. In 2020, Joe Biden won the White House largely on the promise of […]

Artificial intelligence is taking over education in all kinds of interesting and innovative ways, and not all of them are positive. Scammers are enrolling AI bots in online courses at California community colleges, with the bots staying in the class just long enough to receive state and federal financial aid. The phenomenon has popped up […]

It’s a dreary spring day in New York, with clouds hiding the skyline. Raindrops, puddles, and a cool evening temperature make walking around the Big Apple unenjoyable — that is, until arriving at Cipriani’s 42nd Street. Walking in was like entering the wardrobe to go to Narnia. The gloomy night was replaced by the aura […]

In a large ballroom in Williamsburg, Virginia, representatives from around the nation gathered to talk about revolution. With the 250th anniversary of our nation’s battle for independence soon to commence, planners of the American Revolution 250 Commission were discussing how to reignite common cause in Americans through the mechanism of our fight for nationhood. It […]

How can it be that “laughter” and “daughter” not only don’t rhyme but don’t sound remotely alike? What about “tomb,” “bomb,” and “comb”? Meanwhile, “liar” and “choir,” which couldn’t look more different, do rhyme. How and why is the English language so messed up? And why haven’t we done anything about it? In Enough is […]

Many war movies and TV shows feature a climactic scene when a soldier finally breaks. My crisis moment in the Afghanistan War came not from combat stress, but from a TV commercial. I should probably explain. American service members serving overseas have access to Armed Forces Network television. This morale booster is a high priority […]

The best science fiction is either pure spaceships and aliens escapism or intelligent present-day social commentary viewed through a more pliable lens than that available to Charlotte Bronte or even Tom Wolfe. By virtue of its title, Black Mirror is prevented from being the former, so it must succeed at the latter, which it did […]

Without Edward Gorey, many modern classics wouldn’t exist. Edward Scissorhands, for example: The aesthetic of the movie is unmistakably influenced by the distinctive mood of Gorey’s art. In fact, when they first met, writer/director Tim Burton and score composer Danny Elfman bonded over their mutual love of Gorey’s work. Nor are they the only artists […]

William P.A. Hunt began work on what became his superb new book on Georgia’s Golden Isles in 2020, when, amid the pandemic, he perceived a hastening in the trend to erase history. Hunt will have none of it. “History is an unchangeable reality — a tapestry woven with both beauty and tragedy,” writes Hunt, whose […]

Spain’s government was forced to declare a national emergency at the end of April when the country’s electric grid blacked out for more than 18 hours. While the precise cause of the blackout has not been confirmed, it is clear that the widespread nature of the failure and its duration are due to Spain’s excessive […]

I went to the doctor last month, and he told me about a new medication that helps people like me who occasionally have red, rashy skin on their faces. Sorry if this is too much information, but I promise you that the worst is over.  The new medication is actually an old medication, but with […]

Ryan Coogler was born to be interesting, but fate has instead consigned him to importance.  After erupting onto the scene in 2013 with Fruitvale Station, Coogler was parachuted into the Rocky franchise to direct Creed, saving the franchise and Sylvester Stallone from self-parody. However, achieving such excellence so soon was the worst possible development of […]

They did it again. It happens every year. My invitation to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner got lost in the mail. However, this year, I was not the only one to avoid the penguin suit and the rubber chicken. Every president since Calvin Coolidge has attended the dinner at least once. So far, President Donald […]

India and Pakistan are sliding toward war. Perhaps we should not be surprised. There has been bad blood between the two kindred nations since they came semi-conjoined into existence in 1947. Indeed, the sanguinary circumstances of their birth defined their future enmity. What with everything else going on, we have been slow to wake up […]