The Crypto Bro President
El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, had a mandate for change. He used it to build a police state and buy coin.
20404 Article(s) by: Yi San
Yi San is a freelance writer based in New York.
The Fabric of Civilization
Taiwan leads the world in the production of semiconductor material, the basis of the microchips found in everything from cell phones to medical equipment. Washington and Beijing aren’t happy about it.
Taking Shelter Under the Price Ceiling
For decades, American governments that were far from socialist embraced extensive use of price controls during times of inflation.
New York Times Watch
The paper of record has had some amazing headline edits in recent years. Here’s a selection.
Expensive Taste
Foodways dependent on factory farming and global monocultural agriculture might be cheap in the short term, but we could pay heavily in the future.
All In at the Crypto Casino
How America got high on the crypto bubble — and lost it all.
The End of History Was a Hell of a Drug
The collapse of the Soviet bloc led to a flowering of utopian thinking among our best and brightest.
Songs About Getting By in America
Misery has inspired some great art.
The Wizard of Oz’s Greenback Conspiracy
Many of the fantastical elements of The Wizard of Oz were drawn directly from the monetary debates of the 1890s.
Barbara Ehrenreich Made Socialist Ideas Sound Like Common Sense
Barbara Ehrenreich was driven by both her undying anger at the profound injustices of life under capitalism and a fervent hope that the world doesn’t have to be this way.
Making Ends Meet in the Cinematic Apocalypse
The radioactive mutants have taken the highways, and the microchips have been implanted in us, but there are still bills to pay.
Germany’s Funny Money
After World War I began and the imperial German government withdrew coins from circulation, local municipalities and businesses printed their own “emergency money” featuring striking imagery from German history, culture, and politics.
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Three Thousand Years of Longing Is the Genie-Professor Love Story You Never Asked For
Three Thousand Years of Longing, director George Miller’s whimsical follow-up to Mad Max: Fury Road, finds him returning to the gentle storytelling he perfected in the Babe films. Too bad this one’s a slog.
Corporate France Says: Hands Off Our Private Jets
French tycoons face rising scrutiny over their use of private jets for even the shortest flights. Business lobby group MEDEF’s summit struck down all criticism of the superrich — and set out plans for an energy transition that puts their interests first.
Jair Bolsonaro Is Laying the Groundwork for a Coup in Brazil
Brazil marks two centuries of independence from Portugal today. Far-right president Jair Bolsonaro is using the occasion to help create the mood music for a coup against Brazilian democracy after an October election that he expects to lose.
The Trade War Comes to the Middle East
For the last two years, Washington and its allies have sought to consolidate influence in the region. This bid for hegemony is coming up against a new force: Chinese capital.