Economist, Dec. 20 and Dec. 27

(posted Saturday, Dec. 20)

A Christmas double issue. The lead editorial stresses the severity of Asia's financial problems and asserts that they could well spread to the rest of the world. The Economist's solution? As always, the free market: Asian governments shouldn't block capital flows or choke the money supply. An article says current forecasts of ecological doom are greatly exaggerated. Environmentalists have long predicted the imminent exhaustion of fossil fuels, but there are more oil reserves now than ever. (See Slate's "The Motley Fool" on how technology is aiding oil exploration.) A story says Americans are getting fatter (54.4 percent of adults are overweight, 22.5 percent are obese). The causes: Americans eat more, exercise less, and increasingly tolerate tubbiness. (Read Slate's "Dialogue" on fat.) Also, a story looks at what the world laughs at. Blondes and Bill Gates are globally funny, but regional humor persists. A newly rich Russian crashes his Mercedes and starts wailing about the car: " 'How can you worry about your car,' asks a passer-by, 'when your arm is ripped off?' The Russian looks at his stump and bawls: 'My Rolex!' "

New Republic, Jan. 5

(posted Friday, Dec. 19)

A story rages at William Bennett's assertion that the average life expectancy for gay men is 43 years. The figure is false, the source of the figure is a wacko, and Bennett's conclusion that homosexuality should be discouraged is abhorrent. (For Slate's take, see "William Bennett, Gays, and the Truth.") The Republican Party's opposition to Bill Lann Lee and skepticism about immigration have alienated once-friendly Asian voters, says an article: George Bush won the Asian vote by 27 points in 1992, but Bob Dole won it by only five points in 1996. A story questions the heroism of the much-honored "Hollywood Ten." These blacklist victims, who refused to squeal on colleagues, were untroubled by Stalin's murderous reign and benefited from the capitalist system they denounced.

New York Times Magazine, Dec. 21

(posted Thursday, Dec. 18)

The cover story questions the motives of conservatives fighting persecution of Christians overseas. These activists and evangelists (e.g., the Family Research Council's Gary Bauer) accuse secular human-rights organizations of class bias (the seculars back Tibetan Buddhists but not Christians oppressed by China). Human-rights groups hate the implied assertion of Christianity's supremacy. An article profiles a scientist who fights cancer with the common cold virus. Also, a story exposes the incredible power of Mexico's drug lords. Drug traffickers and narcopoliticians are buying police forces and murdering nosy journalists.

Time and Newsweek, Dec. 22