RIP to Gene Hackman, the Everyman Actor
Legendary actor Gene Hackman, who was found dead this week at 95, brought a tough, working-class attitude to his mesmerizing performances.
Blog
The German Election in Ten Graphs
On Sunday, Germany voted in a federal election that saw massive growth in support for the far-right AfD, resurgence of the socialist Die Linke party, and more losses of working-class votes for the Social Democrats. These ten graphs explain what happened.
The Economist Who Exposed the Hypocrisy of the Free Market
The economist Alice Amsden’s work unmasked the dirty secret underlying capitalist development: it relied on states breaking all the rules of the free market. But her work also showed that industrialization required corporate discipline, not welfare.
Donald Trump Is a Gift to Canada’s Liberal Party
Donald Trump’s threats of steep tariffs and talk of annexing Canada have sparked an upsurge in Canadian patriotism — and a boost in support for the Liberals. With an election sometime this year, party leaders are racing to define their stance on Trump.
With Diabolical Lies, Pop Culture Discourse Breaks Left
A new female-coded pop culture podcast called Diabolical Lies answers the age-old question: Is it possible to have opinions about both Chappell Roan and Friedrich Engels?
Eric Adams vs. the Rule of Law
Even as part of a mayoralty characterized by attacking public services, scapegoating of migrants, and raising housing costs, New York City mayor Eric Adams’s pandering to Donald Trump in an effort to escape federal corruption charges is particularly brazen.
Google Is Jacking Up Its Prices
Google is jacking up the monthly price for its cloud-based software. If all users paid that standard increase, it would mean an additional $7.2 billion in monthly revenue for the company.
Germany’s Next Government Could Be Even Worse on Palestine
Sunday’s German election brought victory for Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democrats. Despite the fragile cease-fire in Gaza, the incoming government threatens even sharper repression against the pro-Palestinian movement.
The Eclipse of USAID by Digital Imperialism
In an era when power is increasingly defined by digital infrastructure and platform dominance, USAID was already losing relevance to the high-tech actors shaping US foreign influence, even before the recent attacks by the Trump administration.
The Dark Indonesia Protests Are Challenging Prabowo’s Rule
Indonesia’s right-wing president Prabowo was elected with a commanding share of the youth vote in 2024. This year, a new youth protest movement is challenging Prabowo’s spending cuts and the role of the military in Indonesian politics.
Donald Trump Is Walking Back Pipeline Safety Regulations
The 2020 rupture of a carbon dioxide pipeline in a Mississippi village that poisoned dozens of people inspired a slate of new safety regulations, proposed in the last week of Joe Biden’s presidency. Donald Trump has withdrawn the proposed rules.
Believing in the Age of Trump
In his new book, Believe, Ross Douthat contends that religious faith provides necessary social cohesion and personal meaning. But can a broad appeal to belief survive in an era of increasingly sectarian and politicized faith?