How Octopuses Upend What We Know About Ourselves
I’ve spent the past few months on an octopus kick. In that, I don’t seem to be alone. Octopuses (it’s incorrect to say “octopi,” to my despair) are having a moment: There are award-winning books, docu...
13 Jul 202156min
Critical Race Theory, Comic Books and the Power of Public Schools
Eve Ewing’s work as a sociologist, poet, visual artist, podcaster and comic book writer manages to do two things that are often in tension: it gives us a clear picture of how race, power and education...
9 Jul 20211h 26min
Best of: What ‘Drained-Pool’ Politics Costs America
In February, I spoke with Heather McGhee. I’ve been thinking about the conversation ever since. “The American landscape was once graced with resplendent public swimming pools, some big enough to hold ...
6 Jul 20211h 8min
Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy Wants You to Be Bad at Something. It’s for Your Own Good.
Recently, I picked up Jeff Tweedy’s “How to Write One Song.” It was a bit of a lark. Tweedy is the frontman for Wilco, one of my favorite bands, but I’m not a songwriter, and I don’t plan to become on...
2 Jul 20211h 11min
Why Do We Work So Damn Much?
Historically speaking, we live in an age of extraordinary abundance. We have long since passed the income thresholds when past economists believed our needs would be more than met and we’d be working ...
29 Jun 20211h 22min
Republicans Are Setting Off a ‘Doom Loop’ for Democracy
The insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6 failed. Donald Trump is not the president. But at the state level, the Republican war on elections is posting startling wins. They are trying to do what Trump...
25 Jun 20211h 18min
Sarah Schulman’s Radical Approach to Conflict, Communication and Change
Sarah Schulman’s work — as a nonfiction writer, novelist, activist, playwright and filmmaker — confronts the very thing most people try to avoid: conflict. Schulman, far from running from it, believes...
22 Jun 20211h 1min
Welcome to the ‘Take This Job and Shove It’ Economy
This is a strange moment in the economy. Wages are up, but so is inflation. Jobs are growing, but maybe not fast enough. Quit rates are at a 21st-century high. It isn’t clear what’s a trend, what’s a ...
18 Jun 202154min
