The Conversation

Readers Respond: The Case Against Paper Straws

“Paper straws are not going to solve the ocean plastics crisis,” a reader writes. But they’re a good first step.

• Sep 13, 2019

What Daniel Patrick Moynihan Actually Thought About Race

A reader pushes back on the notion that Moynihan was “quiet” in the face of Richard Nixon’s racism.

• Sep 9, 2019

‘Extreme Larks’ Share Their (Very) Early Morning Routines

Some get right to work. Others watch the sun come up and listen to the birds.

• Sep 1, 2019

Letters: The Medieval World of Incarceration

After Jeffrey Epstein’s death, readers discuss the mistreatment of inmates in U.S. correctional facilities and state penitentiaries.

• Aug 24, 2019

When Public Schools Rely on Local Property Taxes: Letters

Readers discuss the phenomenon of school districts being isolated from financial resources in their communities.

• Aug 17, 2019

Singapore’s Ambassador: ‘Our Laws Are for Us to Make’

The city-state’s ambassador to the United States defends a new law that allows Singapore’s government to determine what is true and what is “fake news.”

• Aug 8, 2019

Letters: How to Help Monarch Butterflies

Two readers discuss their efforts to support the migration of wild monarchs.

• Jul 28, 2019

Letters: Trump Is a ‘Source of Hope’ for Taiwan

A Taiwanese American reader reflects on American-Taiwanese relations in the age of Trump.

• Jul 22, 2019

Qatar Responds: Don’t Cancel the 2022 World Cup

The tournament’s host country pushes back on Franklin Foer’s proposal that FIFA change course and reallocate funds to women’s soccer.

• Jul 15, 2019

Readers Defend the Boomer Generation

“Greed and self-interest know no generational boundaries.”

• Jul 1, 2019

Letters: The Navy Was ‘Conceding Defeat to an Overbearing President’

Members of the American military weigh in on the USS John S. McCain scandal.

• Jun 19, 2019

Letters: Confronting Biological Denialism on Campus

Readers discuss the dangers that arise when students reject well-established scientific ideas—and suggest ways to encourage productive dialogue.

• Jun 13, 2019

Letters: The Meaning of Shakespeare's Identity

Readers discuss the possibility that the person behind Shakespeare’s works was not the man buried in Stratford.

• Jun 8, 2019

Letters: The Two Types of Airport People

People who arrive at the airport early aren’t “overprepared,” one reader argues. “They’re just organized.”

• Jun 7, 2019

Letters: ‘There’s a Joy in Interacting With the Printed Word’

Readers discuss the decline in the use of library books at colleges and universities.

• Jun 1, 2019

Letters: Should New York City Change the Admissions Process for Its Specialized High Schools?

Readers debate the merits of the city’s Specialized High School Admissions Test—and discuss whether it should be phased out altogether.

• May 26, 2019

Letters: ‘I Had Minestrone Soup for Breakfast’

Readers discuss what they like to eat for their first meal of the day.

• May 21, 2019

Atlantic Readers Assess the Impact of the Political Generation Gap

“The Democratic Party must learn from the mistakes of 1968 and be more open to diversified discourse if it wants to effectively use generational shifts to its advantage.”

• May 14, 2019

Letters: College Students ‘Want to Speak to the Manager’

Readers respond to Tom Nichols’s criticism of recent student activism on college campuses.

• May 12, 2019

Atlantic Readers Advocate for Diversity in Medical Schools

“We call on our colleagues in medical education to seek out minority students and support them throughout their medical career.”

• May 5, 2019