Ideas
Arguments. Essays. Inquiries.
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John Minchillo / AP The Longer Trump Stays in Office, the More Americans Oppose His Views
The president is reshaping Americans’ political views, just not the way he intended.
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Edmon de Haro How Life Became an Endless, Terrible Competition
Meritocracy prizes achievement above all else, making everyone—even the rich—miserable. Maybe there’s a way out.
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Scott Morgan / Reuters Governors Are Losing the Space to Govern
As the bulk of state spending shifts toward mandatory programs, experimentation is grinding to a halt in the laboratories of democracy.
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Brian Snyder / Reuters Only Biden Can Challenge Trump on Trade
Many leading Democratic candidates are running against free trade, but trade is popular—especially in Iowa.
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Sgt. Gregory Brook / Reuters It Matters If Americans Call Afghanistan a Defeat
The public’s judgment about whether the United States won or lost the war will affect civilian-military relations for years to come.
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Nicolas Asfouri / Reuters ‘One Belt One Road’ Is Just a Marketing Campaign
China’s signature project is actually a sweeping, poorly coordinated branding effort posing as an infrastructure initiative.
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Rebecca Cook / Reuters Four Lessons From Israel’s Clash With Tlaib and Omar
The best way for Israel to strengthen its hand is not by waging war to the utmost against its opponents, but by maximizing the number and range of its friends.
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Jeenah Moon / Reuters I Tried to Tell the World About Epstein’s Jail. No One Wanted to Listen.
The Metropolitan Correctional Center has become notorious for decades of inhumane treatment.
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Rogelio V. Solis / Associated Press Why It’s Immigrants Who Pack Your Meat
What Trump has called an “invasion” was actually a corporate recruitment drive.
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Kevin Lamarque / Reuters Trump Didn’t Make the Storm, but He’s Making It Worse
The president didn’t put any of the globe’s authoritarians in office, but he’s encouraged their worst instincts.
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J. Scott Applewhite / AP Trump’s Hate Makes the ‘Squad’ Stronger
The president gives his opponents media attention and enhances their influence on American life.
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Bobby Yip / Reuters Trump’s Foreign-Policy Crisis Arrives
Competition between the U.S. and China may be inevitable, but if Trump and Xi mishandle the Hong Kong crisis, they could lose the ability to calibrate.
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Jim Bourg / Reuters Israel’s Massive Self-Own
Trump’s racism and Netanyahu’s dependency have driven a bulldozer through the bipartisan consensus.
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Flying Down East
We were flying away from Washington D.C. again, leaving the Sturm und Drang of our hometown in early August…
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Larry Downing / Reuters The Worst Thing That Could Happen to Local News—And the Best
If GateHouse Media actually acquires Gannett, countless local outlets might be closed or homogenized. But there’s an alternative.
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Alex Brandon / AP Candidates Don’t Need Airtime, They Need Attention
Imagine a Netflix-type portal for short campaign videos.
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USA Today Sports / Reuters Jay-Z Helped the NFL Banish Colin Kaepernick
The former quarterback caused a problem for the league—which turned to the celebrated rapper for assistance.
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Jonathan Ernst / Reuters Obama Warned Trump—But He Didn’t Listen
The 44th president became a devotee of unilateral presidential actions—and then saw many moves quickly reversed once he left office.
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Kevin Lamarque / Reuters Don’t Ban Assault Weapons—Tax Them
A solution from the founding era might work again today.
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Gregory Payan / AP The NCAA Doesn’t Speak for College Athletes
A new generation of African American agents wants basketball players to get a better deal. The college-sports organization moved to exclude new blood.
