An optimistic argument for the United States.

The country has become repressive in a way that it has not been since the Cultural Revolution. What does its darkening political climate—and growing belligerence—mean for the United States?

The United States fights wars it can’t win using soldiers it doesn’t know.

A profile of the California governor.

An explanation of enduring distaste.

A tale-of-the-tape breakdown of the 2012 presidential debates.

Taking the measure of the president, with a view to history.

A prescient take on what the US invasion of Iraq would mean for both countries.

Is it time to end the mourning period for old media?

A interview with John Pistole, head of the TSA.

America, China, and the case for coal as a vital weapon in the war against climate change.

Yeah, you’ve seen that headline before. The difference? This time it’s not journalists trying to do the saving. It’s Google.

Advice from 1982 on how and why one should buy a computer. “I can hardly bring myself to mention the true disadvantage of computers,” Fallows writes, “which is that I have become hopelessly addicted to them.”