-- James Fallows remarks on the pithiest single sentence he's heard so far.
-- Do young playwrights need to read more plays?
-- Alexis Madrigal wonders if Americans are smart... or not.
-- Jeffrey Goldberg continues to report on the UAE and its attitude toward the prospect of Iranian nuclear weapons.
-- Ayaan Hirsi Ali defends her critique of Islam.
Conor Friedersdorf is a California-based staff writer at The Atlantic, where he focuses on politics and national affairs, and the author of the Up for Debate newsletter. He is the founding editor of The Best of Journalism, a newsletter devoted to exceptional nonfiction.