New
Republic , April 21
(posted
Friday, April 4)
China
retains an unhealthy attachment to Mao, argues the cover story. The Great
Helmsman is still widely revered; his crimes have been forgotten; and his
muscular, anti-Western brand of nationalism is making a comeback. Also, Newt
Gingrich's dilemma: Echoing a recent Newsweek article, TNR claims
that Gingrich hasn't paid his $300,000 ethics fine because he fears his wife
might leave him if he uses their savings to clear the debt. If, on the other
hand, he pays the fine with campaign funds, the political backlash would almost
certainly cost him the speakership. In Heaven's Gate news, a columnist writes
sympathetically about the cult's theology: "What is a cult but a collection of
believers, like the early Christians, who have not yet achieved dominant
status?" (For Slate's similar take, see Walter Kirn's "Heaven Can't
Wait.")
Economist , April 5
(posted
Friday, April 4)
The
cover editorial regrets the collapse of the Republican revolution.
Fearful of voter backlash, the GOP has become "a sad collection of drifters,
bickerers and Democrats manqués ." With the GOP going soft, Congress will
retreat from necessary deficit-reduction and entitlement reform. A related
story says Newt Gingrich was right to postpone tax cuts and does not
deserve the blame that's being heaped upon him.
New
York Times Magazine , April 6
(posted
Thursday, April 3)
The
opening feature in a special issue devoted to "The Store" asserts that the
retail business is thriving because shopping has become an event: Places like
Niketown and Borders have turned the humble store into an "entertainment
complex." A story bemoans the success of the Gap and Pottery Barn, saying they
have afflicted the United States with an excess of bland good taste. A piece
describes how an outlet mall has transformed the sleepy town of Manchester, Vt.
The founders of Neiman-Marcus, IKEA, and Virgin are interviewed. Seven
contributors write short sketches about their favorite store.
Time , Newsweek , and U.S. News & World Report , April
7
(posted
Tuesday, April 1)
The three newsmagazines
reconstruct the Heaven's Gate suicide, trace the cult's history, and link it to
burgeoning New Age spiritualism. Newsweek 's meaty package explains
Heaven's Gate's daft cosmology and catalogs America's other doomsday sects.
(The weirdest is the Brotherhood, an Oregon cult that eats garbage.)
Newsweek also hints that 13 Heaven's Gate members--the "ground
crew"--may be traveling through the Southwest, waiting for a signal from the
spaceship. Time excerpts its own 1979 article about cult leaders
Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Lu Nettles (then "Bo" and "Peep"). A U.S.
News column describes the attractions of cults, and compares the
Heaven's Gate suicides to early Christian martyrs. Newsweek and
Time agree that the Internet was an ineffective cult-recruiting tool,
and certainly not the cause of the suicides.
Also, Time reports
that the IRS fails to collect $150 billion a year in owed taxes, largely
because its ancient computer system is too crude to catch frauds.
Also in Newsweek , a
story ("Hillary Power") hooked to the first lady's Africa trip claims that she
is making women's rights a centerpiece of U.S. foreign policy.
U.S.
News examines the growing popularity of illegal
sports betting, which now tops $90 billion a year (compared with $2.5
billion in legal sports wagering). Cops have all but stopped enforcing
anti-gambling laws, while the rise of Caribbean casinos and Internet gambling
has made bookmaking easier than ever. An article investigates the exploitation of Russian women, who are
being sold into prostitution throughout Europe and the United States.
The
New Yorker , April 7
(posted
Tuesday, April 1)
The
Catholic Church must own up to its Holocaust guilt, argues "The Silence." While
Pope John Paul II has forged ties with Jews, he refuses to acknowledge Pius
XII's cooperation with the Nazis. The article blames the church's nonapology on
the doctrine of papal infallibility, which shackles the church to its sordid
past. Also, a story chronicles the discovery of rock's Next Big Thing, a
15-year-old guitar phenom named Ben Kweller. A story about the development of
HDTV contends that, contrary to laissez-faire dogma, government regulation can
help private industry make better products.
Weekly
Standard , April 7
(posted
Tuesday, April 1)
After a
brief hiatus, the Standard returns to China bashing. The editorial
condemns Gore's China trip for its "idiotic good cheer," and asserts that the
United States is "getting rolled by Beijing" on human rights, Hong Kong, and
Taiwan. An article says that GOP leaders, including Reps. Dick Armey, Bill
Paxon, and John Kasich, might oppose renewing China's MFN status when Congress
votes on it in July. The cover story, "Liar Liar," lists Clinton's evasions and
untruths about campaign fund raising. Among them: Clinton's 1992 promise to ban
soft money; his claim that other presidents have used the same fund-raising
tactics; and his assertion that there was no quid pro quo for donors.
The
Nation , April 14
(posted
Tuesday, April 1)
The
Nation inaugurates a series that will outline a set of "first principles"
for progressives. Judging by the opening article ("A Progressive Compact"),
these principles will combine liberalism and communitarianism: "a right to a
job that pays a living wage--and an obligation to work ... a right to bargain
collectively--and an obligation to cooperate in the creation of more productive
workplaces." Sen. Paul
Wellstone, D-Minn., announces his nationwide crusade against poverty:
America needs more funding for Head Start, health care, and WIC, and higher
wages for poor workers, he writes. Also, a story
describes how the House subcommittee on economic growth gave special access to
companies and lobbyists who contributed to the campaign of Chairman David
McIntosh, R-Ind.
Rolling
Stone , April 17
(posted
Tuesday, April 1)
The
magazine profiles Bert Kreischer, the No. 1 partyer at Florida State, America's
No. 1 party school. The article depicts debauchery of every kind, all involving
alcohol or women or both. Editor/publisher Jann Wenner co-writes an editorial
denouncing U.S. drug policy as "cruel, wrong, and unwinnable."
--Compiled by David Plotz and the editors of Slate .
