Economist , May 23
(posted
Saturday, May 23)
Reversing
the Economist 's previous position, the cover editorial calls for action against Microsoft: "If
Microsoft has broken the law, it should be punished. If it now poses an unfair
threat to new companies, then its power should be curbed." Because the price
for Windows has more than doubled since 1990 and because the apparent monopoly
might "stifle services that would emerge with competition," the editorial
concludes that Microsoft could be bad for consumers. ... A story finds
another industry at a crossroads: horse meat. American plants exported $64
million worth of horse meat for human consumption in 1996, but protest groups
and proposed anti-horse-meat legislation are quickly eradicating the business.
... An article claims that Saudi Arabia boasts a thriving black
market for Viagra. The anti-impotence drug is illegal there but when smuggled
in can bring up to $80 per pill.
New
Republic , June 8
(posted
Friday, May 22, 1998)
A cover
package debunks the conventional wisdom that the high-tech industry doesn't
know how to play the Washington game. Silicon Valley supports an influential,
though high-minded, political action committee--TechNet--to sway the
government's position on encryption, Internet taxation, and shareholder
lawsuits. Meanwhile, Microsoft has bought a stable of aggressive, big-name
lobbyists. It pays former Republican National Committee Chairman Haley Barbour
$600,000 a year and employs a slew of ex-congressmen. ... A Harvard
professor attacks the United States' condescending attitude toward India's
recent nuclear tests. The posturing of hostile neighbors justifies India's own
show of force.
New
York Times Magazine , May 24
(posted
Thursday, May 21, 1998)
The cover
story describes the epidemic of psycho-cognitive illness among children
Americans adopted from eastern European orphanages. The afflicted
children--about 20 percent of the 18,000 adopted--are incapable of forming
emotional bonds with their new parents, probably because the absence of
attention and affection in infancy stunted brain development. They are often
vicious, deceitful, and mentally slow. Lesson for all working parents: Children
require regular emotional and physical engagement with parents. ... An
article says that criminals and arms dealers use gun shows to skirt firearms
laws. If you claim you are adding to your private gun collection, you can buy
whatever weapons you want from shows without a waiting period or paperwork.
Most guns sold at shows are people-killers, not hunting or target-shooting
weapons. ... A piece recounts the Scrabble showdown between the world's
best players and a computer programmed with all the words in the Scrabble
dictionary. The computer won--barely. The human players found three nine-letter
words in AEEGINTRS. Can you? (Answer: gratinees, agentries, reseating.)
Time and Newsweek , May 25
(posted
Tuesday, May 19, 1998)
Newsweek 's 21 page
Frank Sinatra cover package routs Time 's. Newsweek has articles
about his incomparable music, surprisingly impressive film career, hipness, and
relations with the powerful. An article says his daughter Tina and wife Barbara
will squabble over his $200 million estate. Old friend Shirley MacLaine writes
an adoring letter to him that begins "Dear Bedeviled Poet of Song ..." There
are also dozens of fabulous pictures. Time 's eight page package regrets
that Sinatra didn't die as he lived: fighting. Both mags downplay his
thuggishness.
The magazines agree that
India exploded nukes in order to boost its self-esteem and that there is no
imminent threat of conflict with Pakistan or China. Newsweek 's coup: a
satellite photo of the test site.
Time says that U.S. banks could be crippled by huge losses on Asian
derivatives. Some U.S. firms have already written off hundreds of millions in
bad derivatives, and that's just the beginning. (The article does not
adequately explain what a derivative is, but no one ever has.) ... A
piece claims Al Gore's plan to wire all classrooms and libraries to the
Internet is in trouble. The scheme, paid for by a telephone surcharge, is
costing more than anticipated, and critics in both parties are condemning the
"Gore tax." Why should the feds pay for something most schools would do anyway?
... A piece hyping the movie Godzilla says the new monster is
leaner, faster, and less scaly than his '50s predecessor. The new Godzilla also
has no nuclear breath.
U.S.
News & World Report , May 25
(posted
Tuesday, May 19, 1998)
The short Sinatra
package concludes that he was an "outstanding thug." ... The
cover story says that the national drop in murders has been
caused by the decline of crack. The viciously addictive, lucrative drug fueled
violence in ways that other drugs don't. Smarter policing and more imprisonment
also contributed to falling crime rates. Property crime is falling because
people carry less cash and use more car alarms. ... An article says that Northern Ireland's Protestants are leery of the
peace accord, because its amnesty provision will free many jailed Irish
Republican Army bombers and assassins.
The
New Yorker , May 25
(posted
Tuesday, May 19, 1998)
A long
profile of Benjamin Netanyahu depicts him as pompous, mean, adulterous,
arrogant, deceitful, and cheap. His key influence is his father Benzion, a
fierce, tyrannical intellectual who has nothing but suspicion and hatred for
Arabs. Conclusion: Netanyahu's entire goal is to preserve his own power, and he
doesn't care if that ends the peace process. The piece includes incredible
quotes about Netanyahu from his allies : "He's not fooling anyone";
"People don't like such people"; "He is not a very trustworthy man." ...
A piece says journalists and celebrities suck up to radio talk show host Don
Imus because Imus has the power to make their books best sellers. (He's nearly
as important to book sales as Oprah Winfrey.) Many donate $5,000 to Imus'
charity in hopes that he'll tout their book. ... There are eight short
Sinatra appreciations in "Talk of the Town." Peter Duchin quotes Frank's advice
to him: "Kid, don't waste your time with these bums. You got stardust on your
shoulders." A photo shows the shockingly ugly living room from Sinatra's '70s
house.
Weekly Standard , May 25
(posted
Tuesday, May 19, 1998)
The two
cover stories applaud congressional Republicans for finally turning on Clinton.
Gingrich et al. won't cooperate with him anymore, won't be quiet about his
wrongdoing, and will make the 1998 election a referendum on his "political
cynicism and ... abuse of office." ... A writer interviews O.J. Simpson
about Clinton. Simpson says that the government shouldn't waste millions
investigating Clinton's sex life and that Clinton should be excused if he did
have sex with a young woman: "A 22, 23-year-old girl who has her mind set on a
50-year-old guy is more in control than the 50-year-old guy." ... The
editorial argues that U.S. foreign policy is as feckless and incoherent as it
was in the late '70s. Evidence: India's nukes, the Israeli negotiations
debacle, failure of Iraq weapon inspections, etc.
--David
Plotz
