Smiling Down From the Heavens

Australians looking skyward this evening will be greeted by a ” celestial smiley face “—thanks to the prime positioning of Venus, Jupiter and a waxing crescent moon, report good-humored astronomers. Local astronomers said that Venus and Jupiter had appeared side by side in the . . . . Continue Reading »

Obama is No Carter

It has been telling that Obama has recruited to his ranks a slew of veteran Clinton appointees of yesteryear. Much has been made of the manner in which this strategy seems to undercut not only his criticisms of Clinton style politics but also his promise of seismic change—he has surrounded . . . . Continue Reading »

Are Books Replaceable?

A book is “a means of transportation through the space of experience, at the speed of a turning page,” the poet Joseph Brodsky once said. “But now that the rustle of the book’s turning page competes with the flicker of the screen’s twitching pixel, we must consider the . . . . Continue Reading »