Irving: Like most men my age--I am a decade younger than John Updike--I began reading him because of the sex. John Updike wore a soft V-neck sweater and waved as he drove off in an unwashed minivan. The White House's new informal dress code, office
Measuring the blood from January's massacre: 211,500 job cuts so far. Notes on the wooing, lobbyists, and millions of opinions involved in the nearly $900 billion stimulus package. One opinion: Restore NASA's mission statement of service, please. How to prepare yourself for Obama's
Op: I cannot think of any other president with the same kind of personal credibility in such a critical time. Obama is wise to reach out to the Islamic world. Alberto Gonzales attempts a comeback; here's the backlash. Today's long read: Escaping North Korea, China, Laos,
Far-right politicians boosted by the Gaza War even though they didn't plan the offensive. John Updike dies, age 76. The stimulus as analyzed by economists from opposing sides. Save money by making a sweater from your pet. What it's like to travel to Sudan for
Guantanamo, check; but what about Bagram in Afghanistan, which has double the number of detainees--who've had even fewer rights? More journalists at Russia's Novaya Gazeta die when the newspaper exposes more corruption, human rights violations. Don't be lazy, don't be a
Monday job cuts see 45,000 laid off from big companies. Financial crisis topples Iceland's coalition government. As states close prisons, small towns worry how they'll replace cheap convict labor. Op: Obama's team should save its China criticism for issues that really deserve it.
Hertzberg: Rather than choosing a hard or soft power narrative, Clinton will renew liberal internationalist "smart power." Hamas offers yearlong ceasefire should siege of Gaza end, borders open. Today's long read: In Egypt, Facebook is helping foster the rehearsal for revolution where freedom of speech, assembly
Krauthammer: Clinton craves your adulation; Obama will take it, but he can leave it, too. When seeking cranks on Anderson's innaugural poem, one can do worse than The New Criterion. Against The Lancet, The Economist argues that Russia's massive economic reform did not kill millions. Michael
Treasury pick Geithner says in plain English: China is manipulating its currency. Priest: Obama has declared an end to the "war on terror" as defined by Dub-Dub. Guantanamo detainee released to Saudi rehab program now deputy leader of al Qaeda's Yemeni branch. Clinton goes big:
Obama orders closure of Guantanamo, new ethics rules, revisions to CIA's torture playbook. The Bush team's record with Pyongyang these past eight years is a nearly unbroken string of defeats and retreats. Comparing Obama and Bill Clinton as though it's a Harvard-Yale football
