Bundesarchiv, Bild, via Wikimedia Commons
Portrait of a Führer
The Demagogic Personality

In the midst of World War II, the U.S. government commissioned a psychological profile of Adolf Hitler. The results may have something to teach us about destructive charismatic personalities today.

(Wikimedia Commons)
TAI Conversations
The World According to Tyler Cowen

The polymath economist defends capitalism, liberalism, dating apps, and immigration—and explains how China is making movies sexless.

(Wikimedia Commons)
revolt of the elites
Andrew Yang’s War on Meritocracy

The dark horse presidential candidate has a vision, a message, and an admirable ability to imagine a better politics. Unfortunately for him, we don’t actually live in the world he describes.

(Kremlin.ru)
Moscow Down Under
Russia’s Australian Well-Wishers

What does Russia want in Australia—and why are there so many fellow travelers supporting its interests there?

A Win for Democracy
A Stunner in Taiwan

On the ground, among the remarkable crowds, there was nevertheless a sense of foreboding among some Taiwanese about how these elections would turn out.

(Wikimedia Commons)
Lessons from History
Victor Klemperer and the Decay of Political Language

The wartime scholar and diarist lived an extraordinary life—and bore witness to the degradation of political rhetoric in ways that still resonate today.

“The Writing Master,” Thomas Eakins (Wikimedia Commons)
The Literary Life
James Wood and the Art of Criticism

In his new career-spanning collection, the esteemed book critic James Wood affirms his credo: “Literature teaches us to notice.”

Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
Scholarship vs. Politics
Historians Defeat Resolutions Denouncing Israel

As thousands marched against anti-Semitism in New York, the American Historical Association voted to defeat—for the third time—resolutions denouncing Israel.

(Wikimedia Commons)
Strategic Lightweight
The Tragic Rationality of Europe’s Iran Policy

In the latest U.S.-Iran clash, the EU has acted rationally. Burned so often by American hauteur, a strategic lightweight like the EU cannot but resort to suasion, mediation, and de-escalation to evade entrapment in a conflict it cannot control.

Christopher Short
Asking the Right Questions
5G and the Fallacies of Techno-Optimism

The new wireless technology is indeed a big deal for economics and geopolitics—but the social consequences may be the most momentous.

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