February 20, 2023: A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, why inflation will be hard to bring down, Peter Obi’s plans to transform Nigeria (9:55) and a promising step towards a male contraceptive pill (15:20).
Category Archives: Opinion
Previews: The New Yorker Magazine – Feb 27, 2023
It’s Time to Rethink the Idea of the “Indigenous”
Many groups who identify as Indigenous don’t claim to be first peoples; many who did come first don’t claim to be Indigenous. Can the concept escape its colonial past?
Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s Minister of Chaos
As unrest roils the country, a controversial figure from the far right helps Benjamin Netanyahu hold on to power.
The Dystopian Underworld of South Africa’s Illegal Gold Mines
When the country’s mining industry collapsed, a criminal economy grew in its place, with thousands of men climbing into some of the deepest shafts in the world, searching for leftover gold.
Culture: New York Times Magazine – Feb 19, 2023
The New York Times Magazine – February 19, 2023:
Spirited Away to Miyazaki Land
What happens when the surreal imagination of the world’s greatest living animator, Hayao Miyazaki, is turned into a theme park?
Remaking Country’s Gender Politics, One Barroom Weeper at a Time
The Nashville songwriter Shane McAnally is behind many of country music’s No. 1 hits, which aren’t as straight as they seem.
Why Is Affirmative Action in Peril? One Man’s Decision.
How the landmark 1978 Supreme Court decision that upheld the practice may ultimately have set it on a path to being outlawed.
Previews: The Economist Magazine- Feb 18, 2023
Inflation will be harder to bring down than markets think
Investors are betting on good times. The likelier prospect is turbulence
Israel’s proposed legal reforms are a dreadful answer to a real problem
They will damage the country at home and abroad
The World Bank’s embattled chief steps down
David Malpass’s record is better than his many critics will credit
Opinion: Searching With Chatbots, Adani & India’s Capitalism, Lazy In France
A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, how chatbots will influence the lucrative business of internet search, the parable of Adani (11:25) and why France is arguing about work, and the right to be lazy (19:50).
Culture: New York Times Magazine – Feb 12, 2023
The New York Times Magazine – February 12, 2023:
The Paradox of Prosecuting Domestic Terrorism
The U.S. prosecuted Brian Lemley for threats, not violence. Is that what it takes to fight extremism?
Walter Mosley Thinks America Is Getting Dumber
“There are people who don’t know how to spell, they don’t know how to think,” says the bestselling novelist.
Poem: Lost in America
A poem that shakes us awake, enacting and preserving the fugitive possibilities of “healing from the law.”
Previews: The Guardian Weekly – February 10, 2023
The Guardian Weekly (February 10, 2023) – Three years have passed since Britain officially left the European Union, but the country feels a long way from the “sunlit uplands” once memorably envisioned by Boris Johnson. Indeed, according to several polls released last week, more of the British population than ever are unhappy with the outcomes of Brexit – including, crucially, those who voted for it in the first place.
The Observer’s Michael Savage and Toby Helm consider what’s behind the upsurge in “Bregret” and ask what realistic hopes exist of Britain ever returning to the bloc. Then, opinion writer Nesrine Malik warns that, while many on the left may see validation in the current trends, it’s important to understand many of the UK’s structural problems stem from before the time of the Brexit referendum in 2016.
Opinion: Biden’s Plan To Remake America, Ukraine’s Eastern Army, AI Lab Race
A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, President Joe Biden’s plan to remake America’s economy, Ukraine’s troops in the east are quietly confident (11:20) and the race of the AI labs heats up (18:10).
Joe Biden’s effort to remake the economy is ambitious, risky—and selfish
But America’s plan to spend $2trn could help save the planet
Previews: The New Yorker Magazine- Feb 13 & 20, 2023
Art by John W. Tomac
Oldest Living Aristocratic Widow Tells All
Now ninety, Lady Glenconner—a trusted friend of Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret—has become a cheeky chronicler of the British élite.
The Dubious Rise of Impostor Syndrome
Everyone seems to feel like they’re faking it. But, as the concept has spread, so has the criticism.
The Defiance of Salman Rushdie
After a near-fatal stabbing—and decades of threats—the novelist speaks about writing as a death-defying act.
Preview: New York Times Magazine- February 5, 2023
The New York Times Magazine – February 5, 2023:
Women Have Been Misled About Menopause
Hot flashes, sleeplessness, pain during sex: For some of menopause’s worst symptoms, there’s an established treatment. Why aren’t more women offered it?
She Took On Atlanta’s Gangs. Now She May Be Coming for Trump
Fani Willis’s aggressive tactics have sparked criticism — and won over voters. What do they tell us about how she might prosecute the former president?
They Outlasted the Dinosaurs. Can They Survive Us?
Sturgeon are disappearing from North American rivers where they thrived for millions of years. And the quest to save them is exposing the limits of the Endangered Species Act.
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