March 2003

Accidental tourists By Heather Havrilesky
West Bank Palestinians tell their stories during a bus tour through Israel -- the country in which many of them grew up -- in an illuminating Sundance Channel documentary. (03/31/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Madonna hurls grenades at Bush, Meg Ryan bares all, and Richard Gere to open a spa? Plus: Hugh Grant is looking for someone to "breed" with! (03/31/2003)

The Buzzcocks (untitled) By Carolyn Lengel
The Buzzcocks new album shows that Pete Shelley and Steve Diggle can still write immensely memorable punk rock tunes. (03/31/2003)

"Kingdom of Fear" by Hunter S. Thompson By Allen Barra
In his new memoir, gonzo pioneer Hunter S. Thompson works hard to get us riled up. But without Dick Nixon to kick around, he offers little insight into our times. (03/31/2003)

This Modern World By Tom Tomorrow
The prelude. The war. The aftermath. The prelude (03/31/2003)

Bushes against Bush By Shanna Germain
Why I dropped my drawers for peace. (03/31/2003)

Home Front: Life during wartime By Sheerly Avni
High times at the surplus store, bunkers for sale, and behind the scenes at a media whorehouse. (03/31/2003)

9/12 By Steven Brill
In an excerpt from a riveting new book about post-9/11 America, GOP strongman Tom DeLay and corporate lobbyists toast their legislative clout, while John Ashcroft's men get rough with Muslim immigrants. (03/31/2003)

Look out for No. 1 By King Kaufman
Because if there's one near you, it's probably falling hard as the NCAA Tournament suddenly gets upset happy. (03/31/2003)

Talking with the enemy By Phillip Robertson
The thin men sitting in the hut are the lucky ones: Iraqi soldiers who escaped U.S. bombs and Saddam's "execution committees." (03/31/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
For Bush, the most damaging comments about the war are coming from members of his own administration. (03/31/2003)

The world press on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
The Israel paper Haaretz reports that thousands of Arab volunteers are pouring across the Syrian border into northern Iraq to fight. (03/31/2003)

I'm a conflicted feminist By Cary Tennis
My family taught me to be an independent woman, but now they want me to find a man. (03/31/2003)

Are we doomed yet? By Sheldon Pacotti
The computer-networked, digital world poses enormous threats to humanity that no government, no matter how totalitarian, can stop. A fully open society is our best chance for survival. (03/31/2003)

Iraq goes offline By Brian McWilliams
The latest round of bombs appears to have finally cut off Iraqi access to the Internet. (03/31/2003)

Baghdad diary By Cathy Breen
I'm a nurse, but my visits to local hospitals to see the children wounded by American bombs leave me helpless and angry. (03/29/2003)

"A million Mogadishus" By Andrew Sullivan
Those antiwar leftists who equate Bush with Saddam and cheer U.S. military setbacks bring moral squalor to their cause. (03/29/2003)

To the victor go the spoils By Farhad Manjoo
If U.S. corporations get their way, none of their European competitors will be doing business in Baghdad. (03/29/2003)

"Head of State" By Charles Taylor
Chris Rock for president? Well, maybe. Just don't let him direct another movie. (03/28/2003)

"The Core" By Stephanie Zacharek
A journey to the center of the earth, with filmmakers who know exactly how preposterous this movie really is. (03/28/2003)

"Basic" By Stephanie Zacharek
John Travolta's sneaky! Samuel L. Jackson is tough as a boiled owl! But that's all there is to say for this nonsensical military action flick. (03/28/2003)

"Under the Skin of the City" By Andrew O'Hehir
Capitalism and Islamism clash in a revealing family drama about life in modern Iran. (03/28/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Chris Rock threatens Drudge, Madonna's feelings are hurt and Jon Stewart uses dirty words. Plus: Lisa Marie regrets marrying Michael! (03/28/2003)

Robert Pollard & Tobin Sprout By Murray Jason
New records by Guided by Voices mastermind Robert Pollard and by Tobin Sprout explore the varied ways of '60s psychedelia. (03/28/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to Ellen Willis' review of "Terror and Liberalism." (03/28/2003)

Salon: The never-ending story
Thanks to you, our subscribers, we're still kicking. (03/28/2003)

Good Friday world By Anne Lamott
I will pray for George Bush because he's part of the human family. But he's a dangerous relation, like a Klansman. (03/28/2003)

Lynda Barry
Vocabulary list (03/28/2003)

Home Front: Life during wartime By Sheerly Avni
Fox hates the protesters, the U.S. hates the French, and Slovenia wants out! Plus: War comes to a playground in Brooklyn. (03/28/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to Michelle Goldberg's "Rage or Reason" and Katharine Mieszkowski's "Wild in the Streets." (03/28/2003)

Baseball forecast: Good races, less mayhem By King Kaufman
But don't worry, it wouldn't be baseball season without some discord and corruption. (03/28/2003)

"Knife fight in a phone booth" By Eric Boehlert
Coalition forces can win the battle of Baghdad, but grisly images of death and destruction could cost them the war for Arab hearts and minds. (03/28/2003)

Down from the mountains to die By Phillip Robertson
Three Islamist zealots descend a mountain in a driving rainstorm to kill their Kurdish enemies -- and themselves. (03/28/2003)

Hijacked Turkish plane lands in Athens
(03/28/2003)

Horror in Baghdad Associated Press
Explosion kills about 50 in crowded market. (03/28/2003)

Letter to Afghanistan By Mark Fiore
Dear oppressed people, congratulations on your liberation! (03/28/2003)

"Cakewalk"
Bush administration officials and their hawkish supporters now say they never promised an easy war -- but the record shows otherwise. (03/28/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Perle's whiny resignation to Rumsfeld. Plus: A hawk on why "we love war." (03/28/2003)

The world press on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
A senior editor for aljazeera.net says his station is a threat to American media control -- and blames the Pentagon for shutting down the site. (03/28/2003)

Natural girls By Karen Croft
For his latest book project, photographer Dave Naz went to Ross and bought lots of women's cotton underpants. (03/28/2003)

Worried about the ex By Cary Tennis
I'm getting married and don't want my ex to show up with a machete. What should I do? (03/28/2003)

Ask the pilot By Patrick Smith
From Addis Ababa by way of Bahrain: The pilot contemplates African dignity, and understands why he wants to fly. (03/28/2003)

Brawl in "The Family" By Heather Havrilesky
ABC's clumsy new reality series takes a cartoonish swing at class and cultural difference. But the Italian-American family at its center won't play the network's game. (03/27/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Chris Rock told to shut up, Martin Sheen tapes his own mouth and Adrien Brody pals around with P. Diddy! Plus: What Michael Moore might have said instead ... (03/27/2003)

"The Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown By Charles Taylor
Catholic secret societies, lessons in obscure art history and a gruesome murder in the Louvre! Dan Brown's conspiracy-theory thriller is the pulp must-read of the season. (03/27/2003)

Tom the Dancing Bug By Ruben Bolling
Can you spot the double taxation? (03/27/2003)

"What's the difference between gang fights and war?"
Locked-up teens speak out about President Bush, Iraq and what the hell this war has to do with them, anyway. (03/27/2003)

Homefront: Life during wartime By Sheerly Avni
The business of bombing, grown-up fairy tales, and patriotism for postmoderns. (03/27/2003)

Letters
Readers around the globe respond to Jeff Greenwald's "Make Wanderlust, Not War." Among their suggestions: Instead of a military draft, how about a travel draft? (03/27/2003)

Calling Baghdad
My Iraqi relative rages against the U.S. for Wednesday's market bombing. (03/27/2003)

Wild in the streets By Katharine Mieszkowski
Even ultra-liberal San Francisco is growing weary of the ongoing direct action protests. (03/27/2003)

Rage or reason By Michelle Goldberg
Antiwar activists debate: Should they take over the streets or work to defeat Bush in 2004? (03/27/2003)

The war divides New York By Michelle Goldberg
From burned-baby posters to die-ins at Tiffany's, direct action brings the hostilities home. But many New Yorkers vent their frustrations at the protesters. (03/27/2003)

The Bush and Blair show By Jake Tapper
The president has the reputation for straight talk, but it's his British ally who actually delivers it. (03/27/2003)

Bush's human rights hypocrisy
An Amnesty International report slams the U.S. for insisting that the Geneva Conventions apply in Iraq, but not in Guantanamo. (03/27/2003)

The world press on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
Destroying Iraqi civilians in the name of liberating them is an obscenity, one U.K. newspaper says. (03/27/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Daniel Patrick Moynihan did something few politicians are capable of doing: He thought for himself. (03/27/2003)

Roman's holiday By Charles Taylor
Why the Oscar audience was right to boo Michael Moore -- and applaud for Roman Polanski. (03/27/2003)

I don't like strip clubs By Cary Tennis
My boyfriend wants me to go with him to watch lap dances, and he asks for things in bed I don't want to do. (03/27/2003)

A spam fighter's work is never done By Michelle Delio
Suresh Ramasubramanian's job is to stop junk e-mail from ever getting to your in box. But for every spammer he blocks, a dozen more rise up. (03/27/2003)

Food TV gets real By Carly Jacobs
The Food Network spices up its stew with a new "reality lineup," including a "Bachelorette"-style cooking competition. But it's still a foodie's best friend. (03/26/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Connie Chung says bye-bye, Kravitz sings with an Iraqi for peace, Capriati eats pizza with De Niro, and "American Idol" may lose a finalist to the war. Plus: Ben is learning Spanish for Jen! (03/26/2003)

Dirty Three: "She Has No Strings Apollo" By Betsy Bonner
The Australian instrumental trio's seventh album pits wistful violins and vigorous drums against gorgeous guitar dreamscapes. (03/26/2003)

"The New Iraq" by Joseph Braude By Laura Miller
A slick Iraqi-American business consultant, full of hip chatter and bogus expertise, stands ready to lead an army of global capital into the "emerging market" of his ancestral homeland. (03/26/2003)

The K Chronicles By Keith Knight
Do you feel as safe as I do? (03/26/2003)

Letters
Traitor, prophet or just overreacting? Readers weigh in on Gregory Dicum's "This Is Not America." (03/26/2003)

Make wanderlust, not war By Jeff Greenwald
Americans should stop listening to the fear-mongers and travel overseas. It's the best way to start bringing the U.S. back into the world community. (03/26/2003)

Iraq's X factor: The tribes By Ferry Biedermann
More than three-quarters of Iraqis belong to tribes. Some of them have been paid off or threatened into backing Saddam -- but their real allegiance is to themselves. (03/26/2003)

Sticker shock -- and awe By Jake Tapper
The White House and Pentagon insist they didn't try to sell us a quick and easy war. Then, on Tuesday, they did it again. (03/26/2003)

The war in the dark By Phillip Robertson
In the north, the Kurds watch the Turks and wait for a decisive U.S. strike against Iraqi forces -- and meanwhile hold their fire. (03/26/2003)

More than sodomy By Dana Berliner and Steve Simpson
The Supreme Court is hearing a case challenging a Texas law against "homosexual conduct," but the real issue is whether the government can regulate private lives in the first place. (03/26/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Will the Senate investigate top hawk Richard Perle's questionable conduct at the Defense Policy Board? (03/26/2003)

The world press on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
If Basra fights, Baghdad may too. (03/26/2003)

Bush's colonialist agenda By Robert Scheer
If the United States fails to unearth weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, imperial designs will stand exposed as the true cause of war. (03/26/2003)

Having your souffle and eating it too By Arianna Huffington
Today's new breed of public servants prefers to cash in while still stalking the halls of power. (03/26/2003)

Naked on the set! Part 5 By Paul Festa
Some post-audition debauchery leads our frustrated hero to take matters into his own hands. (OK, there were a couple of other people in the bed.) (03/26/2003)

I want context with my orgasms By Cary Tennis
My husband always finishes before me. I love him, but I want more intimacy when we do it. (03/26/2003)

This week on DVD
Giant grasshoppers, Christopher Walken sees aliens and J.Lo dons a maid's uniform. (03/25/2003)

Out of the past By Charles Taylor
It's easy to laugh at classic Hollywood movies. It's harder to grasp that they're America's truest and most necessary cultural heritage -- and wicked, brazen, unsentimental fun besides. (03/25/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Tom makes Nicole cry, Polanski and Eminem give thanks, P.Diddy talks about his love life, and Calvin Klein talks to Sprewell -- during a game! Plus: Who are the most hated people in New York? (03/25/2003)

"Terror and Liberalism" by Paul Berman By Ellen Willis
An important liberal thinker argues that Islamic fundamentalism is the new face of fascism. But his faith in the Bush administration as a force for freedom is naive. (03/25/2003)

"Saddam Is an Idiot, but He's Right About Bush"
Readers are divided on an interview with Paul Berman, the author of "Terror and Liberalism." (03/25/2003)

Story Minute By Carol Lay
Jingo lingo (03/25/2003)

This is not America By Gregory Dicum
In increments, we have become a different nation. Will I have to flee my country as my ancestors did theirs? (03/25/2003)

Calling Baghdad
An Iraqi-American woman talks to her family about life during "shock and awe." (03/25/2003)

"Shut your mouth" By Tim Grieve
As radio giants censor antiwar musicians, TV networks bully pro-peace actors, and Attorney General John Ashcroft prepares a new assault on civil liberties, a climate of intimidation creeps over America. (03/25/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to "Why Are These People Smiling?" by Michelle Goldberg. (03/25/2003)

The undead By Jake Tapper
U.S. and British officials keep insisting that Iraqi TV images of Saddam and his top cohorts are fake. But reports of their demise seem premature. (03/25/2003)

No dead bunnies, no dead soldiers By Tim Grieve
A Florida Web-hosting company pulls the plug on a site that dared to show graphic images of war. (03/25/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Rumsfeld and the other suits didn't listen to the military men before launching this war. And critics are now wondering if that may prove a tragic mistake. (03/25/2003)

The world press on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
"If it weren't for the liberal press, we might have taken Baghdad last time," says one U.S sergeant in Iraq. Plus other statements not quoted in American mainstream media. (03/25/2003)

The green monster By Cary Tennis
My girlfriend's past -- full of other men -- makes my head hurt. (03/25/2003)

Is the CIA spamming Iraqi generals? By Farhad Manjoo
It's the latest in high-tech psychological warfare: E-mail and voice-mail invitations to surrender. But so far there are few signs that the strategy is working. (03/25/2003)

The billboard Bush can't see By Katharine Mieszkowski
In Crawford, Texas, near the president's home on the range, discouraging words about the war can't be heard. (03/25/2003)

The 75th Oscars: Hollywood dons its war paint By Cintra Wilson
Movie people act all serious while Marines die, the Academy actually provides some surprises (Adrien Brody, anyone?) and Michael Moore pees on the furniture. And Nicole, honey, write a speech, OK? (03/24/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Moore blasts Bush; a sex-crime fugitive wins for best director; and the stars find different ways -- from dove pins to hybrid cars -- to protest. Plus: Oscar follow-up -- ratings low, analysis flows and the Brits have their own show. (03/24/2003)

Pram: "Dark Island" By Rob Young
The experimental U.K. pop group's beautifully spooky new album would make an apt soundtrack for a rainy murder mystery. (03/24/2003)

This Modern World By Tom Tomorrow
When "had no plans" means "was planning all along." (03/24/2003)

Homefront: Life during wartime By Sheerly Avni
A brutal arrest at Saturday's New York rally, the Operation Iraqi Freedom drinking game, and war protests come to Costco. (03/24/2003)

War is the new black By Heather Chaplin
The conflict in Iraq might be the best thing that ever happened to Oscar fashion. (03/24/2003)

"What will this nation be in years to come?" By Andrew O'Hehir
A historian foresees a United States that crushes opposition around the world and tolerates little dissent at home. (03/25/2003)

Gen. Wesley Clark, unplugged By Jake Tapper
The war hero, CNN analyst and potential Democratic presidential candidate speaks frankly to Salon about the tragic turn in Iraq and how Bush bungled the case for war. (03/24/2003)

Basketball is hell By King Kaufman
War metaphors are only natural in sports, which always mimic war, and sometimes distract us from it. (03/24/2003)

The real face of war By Neal Gabler
The pictures of killed and captured American troops reveal the dreadful truth about war -- one the docile "embedded" press corps won't touch. (03/24/2003)

The world press on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
British cameraman who survived allied tank fire thinks slain Iraqi troops were trying to surrender. (03/24/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
For the U.S. military, this war -- a "cakewalk" according to ultrahawks -- is turning into a minefield. (03/24/2003)

The pain just won't end By Cary Tennis
I lived with an abusive girlfriend for over a year. Now I'm free, but the fear and sadness just won't go away. (03/24/2003)

Why are these people smiling? By Michelle Goldberg
With war underway, and a Bush victory a possibility, the antiwar movement appears to be in denial about its future influence. (03/23/2003)

"A-Day" (that will live in infamy) By Heather Havrilesky
Baghdad's in flames and the "embedded" media troops invade Iraq, anxious to share the thrill of war with couch-bound civilians back home. Meanwhile, one Illinois family gets that awful knock on the door. (03/22/2003)

Bush is an idiot, but he was right about Saddam By Suzy Hansen
Paul Berman, one of the most provocative thinkers on the left, has a message for the antiwar movement: Stop marching and start fighting to spread liberal values in the Middle East. (03/22/2003)

All hell breaks loose in Cairo By Issandr El Amrani
Demonstrators riot and try to close the U.S. Embassy in a country where protest has been mostly banned for 20 years. Hosni Mubarak has to hope the war ends soon. (03/22/2003)

The Arab street explodes By Michelle Goldberg
The U.S. war with Iraq is interpreted as an attack on Islam and Arabs, as violent protests erupt around the world. (03/22/2003)

Won't get fooled again By Katharine Mieszkowski
A day after antiwar "anarchy" shut down city streets, San Francisco cops keep a tight rein on smaller but still angry crowds. (03/23/2003)

War of words Compiled by Laura McClure
Sydney Herald reporter on U.S.-Iraq battle: "More like a massacre than a fight." Plus other news from the international press. (03/22/2003)

Judgment day By Gary Kamiya
In morally evaluating the U.S. assault on Iraq, hawks and doves alike must consider not only the Iraqi girl torn apart by an errant shell fragment, but the grandmother greeting American soldiers with tears of joy. (03/23/2003)

"Boat Trip" By Charles Taylor
In a time of war, our troubled nation yearns for fat guys telling fag jokes and black men dancing. Hollywood answers the call. (03/21/2003)

"Dreamcatcher" By Charles Taylor
Sploosh! In this humorless, big-budget Stephen King gross-out, slimy aliens land in the toilet and someone forgets to flush. (03/21/2003)

"Gaudí Afternoon" By Stephanie Zacharek
A kooky, madcap adventure set in Barcelona devolves into a sort of sub-sub-Almodovar picture. Stay for the opening credits, then leave. (03/21/2003)

"View From the Top" By Stephanie Zacharek
Gwyneth Paltrow glows in a light airplane comedy that's actually funny. (03/21/2003)

Should celebrity activists shut up for now? By Kerry Lauerman
Janeane Garofalo and Bill Maher have both opposed the war with Iraq. But now that the fighting has started, they offer contrasting prescriptions for protest. (03/21/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Tom Hanks and Armani say no to the Oscars, Liz says "ciao" to Hollywood, and we get a sneak peek of "Matrix" sequel. (03/21/2003)

Crooked Fingers: "Red Devil Dawn" By Charlotte Walton
Crooked Fingers, aka Eric Bachmann (Archers of Loaf), stuns fans with more baroque melancholy on his latest CD. (03/21/2003)

Literary daybook, March 21
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/21/2003)

Generation gung-ho By Ian R. Williams
Many of the 42 million Americans aged 12-24 think President Bush is "a little dumb," but they are more pro-war than you might think. (03/21/2003)

Homefront: Life during wartime By Sheerly Avni
Confessions of a first-time protester, and an update from the Condiment Wars. (03/21/2003)

"My aunt called to say her farewells" By Sheerly Avni
For Iraqi exiles, the televised destruction of Baghdad elicits grief and anger, not shock and awe. (03/21/2003)

Operation Inflate the Coalition By Jake Tapper
During the last Gulf War, 32 nations sent troops. This time around, 3 nations did. So how is Donald Rumsfeld claiming Operation Iraqi Freedom is larger than the '91 coalition? (03/21/2003)

Death of a dreamer By Anthony York
In her green hometown, far from the squalid road in Gaza where she was crushed by an Israeli bulldozer, the young activist is remembered as an idealist who loved life. (03/21/2003)

Operation overdog By King Kaufman
The NCAA Tournament's first day shows that when the world's only superpower goes to war, it's not a good time to be an underdog. (03/21/2003)

The anguish of mothers in a war zone By Mary Jo McConahay
No matter how short, war tears at the most basic contract between mother and child -- the responsibility to protect the young from danger. (03/21/2003)

Shock and awe By Hamza Hendawi (AP)
"Baghdad is burning. What more can we say?" (03/21/2003)

Bombs fall on the northern front By Phillip Robertson
As American airstrikes pound Mosul and Kirkuk, the small Kurdish town of Kalak is protected by lightly armed militia, as U.S. special forces hover nearby. (03/21/2003)

Playing with Saddam's mind By Eric Boehlert
An expert in psychological operations sees the U.S. engaged in an elaborate effort to collapse the will of the Iraqi regime. And the media are a tool. (03/21/2003)

Your updated language kit Cartoon by Mark Fiore
Has the war made you lose your appetite for turkey? Have some independence bird instead. (03/21/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
A conservative columnist compares Bush to Hitler. Plus: Neocons herald the next phase of the war -- Down with the U.N.! (03/21/2003)

Suburban suffocation By Cary Tennis
I've got a house, a car and a job, but can't get a woman. Is Sacramento, Calif., the problem? (03/21/2003)

Ask the pilot By Patrick Smith
The airport city of Miami International -- a metropolis for airline geeks to savor. (03/21/2003)

They die, you buy By Andrew Leonard
Candidate for the most repulsive spam of all time? An ad for a boobs and bombs T-shirt celebrating the destruction of Baghdad. (03/21/2003)

Iraq still online By Brian McWilliams
The U.S. could unplug Iraq from the Net with ease. So why hasn't it? (03/21/2003)

Nuns, whores and femmes fatales By Stephanie Zacharek
The whole idea of "good" movie roles for women is crap -- I'll take a lace-and-leather sexpot over Nicole Kidman's prosthetic-honker performance in "The Hours" any day of the week. (03/20/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Will Smith a no-show at Oscars, Peter Jennings a no-show at war coverage and Monica to host reality dating show. (03/20/2003)

More bombs -- after these messages! By Heather Havrilesky
TV newshounds lock and load as America goes to war. (03/20/2003)

Literary daybook, March 20
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/20/2003)

Marine writers sound off on the new Iraq war By David Talbot
"Jarhead" author Anthony Swofford and two other Marine Corps chroniclers of Desert Storm direct some not-so-friendly fire at the Bush administration. (03/20/2003)

Tom the Dancing Bug By Ruben Bolling
Did you know? This week: The Oscars! (03/20/2003)

Letter from Baghdad By Maura Stephens
On our last day in Iraq, people say farewell and ask us to take their photographs. They think it will help if Americans see their faces, that maybe then they won't drop the bombs. (03/20/2003)

Homefront: A new column about life during wartime By Sheerly Avni and Suzy Hansen
Billboards for Saddam, solace from the folks at Apocalypse-R-Us, plus one woman's story of running into enraged war supporters in the Catskills. (03/20/2003)

Picking the first two rounds By King Kaufman
Our expert challenges other national writers to put up their brackets, and offers the insights that lead him to lose the pool every year. (03/20/2003)

"We're not prepared" By Farhad Manjoo
International aid workers fear a humanitarian crisis as the bombs start falling on Iraqi cities. (03/20/2003)

A cry for jihad By Jake Tapper
The White House says that a war with Iraq has nothing to do with Islam, but imams all over the world are calling for a holy war. (03/20/2003)

Big questions for thinking fans By King Kaufman
Does it still matter, as we go to war, whether Kentucky or Texas wins the national men's basketball title? As much as it ever did. (03/20/2003)

Casualties of war By Michelle Goldberg
If the U.S. kills 10,000 Iraqi civilians, will this be a just war? 1,000? 100,000? On the eve of destruction, a deadly moral calculus awaits. (03/20/2003)

Is Saddam alive? By Jake Tapper
Rumsfeld won't say, but some early reports suggest that the puffy-faced man in glasses on Iraqi TV was one of Hussein's many impostors -- and that the real one may be dead. (03/20/2003)

"Anarchy" in the streets of San Francisco By Michelle Goldberg and Katharine Mieszkowski
Police make record arrests as protesters try to shut down the city; meanwhile somber mood prevails at New York demonstration. (03/20/2003)

Is he or isn't he? By Eric Boehlert
Saddam may have survived the first strike, but one expert doubts the regime could withstand the dictator's death. (03/20/2003)

When oil fields become battlefields By Farhad Manjoo
If Saddam repeats his Gulf War strategy of torching oil wells, he could set off one of the worst environmental disasters in history. (03/20/2003)

A for-profit Marshall Plan By Arianna Huffington
Corporate America has already divvied up the post-Saddam spoils. (03/20/2003)

The world on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
How the international press views the attack on Iraq. (03/20/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to "See No Evil," by Edward W. Lempinen. (03/20/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Another theory on why they tried to smoke out Saddam. Plus: The Pentagon might have withheld information from the U.N. inspectors. (03/20/2003)

War of words Compiled by Laura McClure
What the international press and other voices are saying about the attack against Iraq. (03/20/2003)

Like a virgin By Cary Tennis
When it gets hot and heavy, I always decide not to, even if my body is screaming for it. (03/20/2003)

Naked on the set! Part 4: Archive fever By Paul Festa
It all boiled down to that courting query that my generation and adjacent ones will go to our erotic graves asking: "Hot or not?" (03/20/2003)

Letters
Memories of that old "Commie 64": Readers respond to John Gorenfeld's "Get Behind the M.U.L.E." (03/20/2003)

The mother of all gambles By Christopher Ketcham
Looking to figure out whether Saddam is alive or dead? Go online and check the betting line. (03/20/2003)

Letters
Shame on Bush? Shame on the Dixie Chicks! Readers sound off on Natalie Maines' controversial statement -- and its retraction. (03/19/2003)

Murphy's law & order By Heather Havrilesky
In the criminal justice system, if anything can go wrong, it will. In the TV ratings system, all three hit "Law & Order" shows can't go wrong. Meanwhile, a nation of addicts suffer in silence, untreated! (03/19/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
The red carpet gets yanked, Russian girl duo heats up, Pacino disses De Niro, and O'Toole remembers pissing in a sink! (03/19/2003)

Pulse programming: "Tulsa for One Second" By Rob Young
Chicago-based Pulseprogramming infuse winterly electronic soundscapes with moaning cellos, whispered vocals and other warming elements. (03/19/2003)

Literary daybook, March 19
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/19/2003)

"The Only Girl in the Car" by Kathy Dobie By Laura Miller
In this remarkable memoir, a former '70s teen "slut" looks back on the mysteries of adolescent sex and the female quest for freedom. (03/19/2003)

The K chronicles By Keith Knight
What I am going to do after I win the war (03/19/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to "The Church of Latter-day Constraints," by Ian R. Williams. (03/19/2003)

Elvis from heaven, Elvis from hell
He talked about his hair, his one girlfriend who went on to marry a creep, his hair, his painting and plastering career, his hair, journeying to Graceland and, lest we forget, his hair. (03/19/2003)

The world on the war Compiled by Laura McClure
How the international press views Bush's ultimatum and the looming war. (03/19/2003)

Bush moves an inch on the Mideast By Aluf Benn
Under heavy pressure from British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the president finally raises the Israeli-Palestinian issue. But does he really intend to solve it? (03/19/2003)

Odd man out By Eric Boehlert
Career diplomat John Brady Kiesling talks about his resignation over U.S. policy in Iraq, and a president "not intellectually equipped" to understand worldwide opposition to the war. (03/19/2003)

In Iraq, fear is blooming like a flower By Phillip Robertson
Refugees streaming north into Kurdish-controlled territory bring stories of midnight abductions and warnings of chemical attack. (03/19/2003)

A higher threshold for war
In a resignation speech to the British Parliament, Robin Cook said that "history will be astonished at the diplomatic miscalculations" over Iraq -- and earned an unprecedented standing ovation. (03/19/2003)

Take this war and love it By Adil Awadh and Sayyid Ali Al-Ridha
Iraqi exiles see a U.S. invasion as something to celebrate, not protest. (03/19/2003)

See no evil By Edward W. Lempinen
Progressives have lots of arguments against the war on Iraq -- some of them compelling. But why aren't they burning to free Saddam's oppressed masses? (03/19/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Tom DeLay and Page Six join the White House in demonizing dissenters. Plus: The big think tank most aggressively attacking the administration on Iraq is on the right. (03/19/2003)

It's not my fault By Cary Tennis
I want my husband to write a letter to my future lovers, telling them that the demise of our marriage was his fault. Plus: A note to readers about Bush, blind spots and this column. (03/19/2003)

Letters
Readers share tales of woe inspired by Farhad Manjoo's "Take This Tech Job and Shove It." (03/19/2003)

Fill 'er up with Krispy Kreme By Katharine Mieszkowski
Biodiesel fuel costs more than gasoline and can smell kind of funny. But recycling kitchen grease beats war in the Mideast, doesn't it? (03/19/2003)

Decoding "The Ring" By Bruce Stone
As last year's addictive horror hit reaches DVD, a critic probes its reflective surfaces, its murky depths and its icy postmodern core. (You now have seven days!) (03/18/2003)

This week on DVD
Bogart and Truffaut classics, a sitcom star turns video pervert, Marshall Mathers' film debut, Mick Jagger and "NYPD Blue." Oh, and Olivia Newton-John! (03/18/2003)

Bush, shame and the Dixie Chicks By Stephanie Zacharek
The arch-conservative country music biz forced Natalie Maines to apologize to the president. But for a moment she was the bravest American entertainer. (03/18/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Michael Moore has bird envy, Mario and Moby called hawks, and Susan Sarandon finds out her mom is a Republican! (03/18/2003)

Literary daybook, March 18
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/18/2003)

Story Minute By Carol Lay
Quiz show: The final answer (03/18/2003)

Salon's war stories
A letter from the editors (03/19/2003)

The Church of Latter-day constraints By Ian R. Williams
A former Mormon says that the sheltered environment of Elizabeth Smart's religion might explain why she didn't run from her captors. (03/18/2003)

Blair finds refuge in "legal" war By Eric Boehlert
The British prime minister, fearing that his government could fall, hopes an international law victory can help calm the rebellion. (03/18/2003)

America's Achilles' heel By Jake Tapper
If terrorists strike a chemical plant just nine miles from Times Square, millions could die. But the chemical industry and its friends in Washington are blocking tough safeguards. (03/18/2003)

How I invaded Iraq, alone By Phillip Robertson
On a moonlit night in March, the author slips out of Syria on a rubber raft and crosses the Tigris, headed toward war. (03/18/2003)

Bush to Saddam: Get out of Dodge By Jake Tapper
In a terse speech to the nation and the world, the president stopped just short of a declaration of war. (03/19/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to "An Open Letter to Ralph Nader Voters," by Charles Taylor. (03/18/2003)

Days of wine and razzes By Michelle Goldberg
A would-be boycott of French vintners is not likely to change drinking habits in the red or blue states. (03/18/2003)

Down with Saddam -- up with Palestine By Ferry Biedermann
America should force the Israelis and Palestinians to make peace. But even if it doesn't, war with Iraq is justified and necessary. (03/18/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Bush pulls a fast one on our allies -- and everyone will suffer for it. (03/18/2003)

What is the mature thing to do? By Cary Tennis
I discovered an e-mail from my wife to a man she is involved with. Should I confront her? (03/18/2003)

Naked on the set! Part 3 By Paul Festa
Wherein I learn that it's not a good idea to teach your mother how to Google and that good chamber music is like doing it onstage.

Read Part 1 and Part 2 (03/18/2003)

Get behind the M.U.L.E. By John Gorenfeld
Dani Bunten's pioneering computer game inspired some of the greatest designers in the business. But her life story is a testament to how the industry lost its way. (03/18/2003)

Letters
Readers critique the science in David Weinberger's "The Myth of Interference." (03/18/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Kylie Minogue shows off her underwear, Tony Soprano smiles, Celine Dion cleans up and John Kerry talks about his balls. (03/17/2003)

Literary daybook, March 17
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/17/2003)

Black and white and dead all over By Charles Taylor
In our roundup of the best new mysteries, black America's answer to Ross Macdonald, a Danish boy fights the Nazis, and the great Ross Thomas, back in print at last. (03/17/2003)

This Modern World By Tom Tomorrow
We tried to warn you! (03/17/2003)

Trans family values By Noelle Howey
HBO Films' "Normal" is supposedly a pro-tolerance paean about a marriage that survives a sex change. So why does it make us root for divorce? (03/17/2003)

Scud Stud lobs a missile at Bush By Louise Witt
During the Gulf War, NBC reporter Arthur Kent was famed for his boyish good looks. Today, liberated from the network, he's free to say that Bush is out of control. (03/17/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Dick Cheney performs straight off of a John Birch Society script. (03/17/2003)

My dilemma By Cary Tennis
Do you think I'm not finding a boyfriend because I'm divorced with four kids or because I'm not looking hard enough? (03/17/2003)

War Inc. By Farhad Manjoo
American corporations with close ties to the White House are poised to cash in on Saddam's defeat. French companies need not apply. (03/17/2003)

Why blockbuster flicks suck By Heather Havrilesky
A new documentary on the Trio cable network sums up 30 years of big budgets, blitzkrieg marketing, bad scripts and Kevin Costner. (03/15/2003)

Letters
Eric Alterman and other readers respond to David Horowitz's letter about Alterman's book "What Liberal Media?" (03/15/2003)

Not your mother's comic book By Whitney Joiner
In her brilliant new novel "Diary of a Teenage Girl," Phoebe Gloeckner's heroine (and alter ego) falls in love with a lesbian junkie, shoots speed and has an affair with her mother's boyfriend. (03/15/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to "The Antiwar Movement Prepares to Escalate" by Michelle Goldberg. (03/15/2003)

Do away with athletic scholarships By Allen Barra
If it really wants to clean up the corrupt mess that is college athletics, the NCAA has to be prepared to go all the way. Plus: A goodbye. (03/15/2003)

An open letter to Ralph Nader voters By Charles Taylor
You were right -- you did change history! (03/15/2003)

The newest reality show By Augusten Burroughs
War is porn the whole family can watch together. (03/15/2003)

"Nowhere in Africa" By Stephanie Zacharek
The Oscar-nominated story of German Jews in Kenya delivers just what the Academy expects from foreign films: Refined boredom. (03/14/2003)

"Willard" By Andrew O'Hehir
Rats! Crispin Glover! Rats! Where did this remake of a '70s horror classic go wrong? (03/14/2003)

"Spun" By Jeff Stark
Hot clothes, hot music, hot stars (John Leguizamo, Mena Suvari, Brittany Murphy) -- but this tale of Southern California speed freaks works too hard for its high. (03/14/2003)

"The Hunted" By Charles Taylor
Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro batter each other to a bloody pulp in this utterly brain-dead and depressing "thriller." (03/14/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Howard Stern is pissed, the Dixie Chicks dis Bush, and Colin Farrell is going to be a daddy! (03/14/2003)

Literary daybook, March 14
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/14/2003)

Letters
Two Marines write in about the Persian Gulf memoir "Jarhead," and readers respond to Laura Miller's review of "Mismatch: The Growing Gulf Between Women and Men." (03/14/2003)

Sailing into the sunset By Anne Lamott
On a cruise, hiding out from fellow passengers covered with American flag pins, my friend Buddy and I face the impending war. Part 1 of two parts. (03/14/2003)

Letters
"I watch 'Masterpiece Theatre,' and I'm not gay!" Readers sound off on Andrew Hacker and his "antiquated" views of men and women. (03/14/2003)

Equal time for protest signs By Tim Grieve
In a controversial decision, a federal court says that if California allows Old Glory to hang from overpasses, it must allow political banners, too. (03/14/2003)

The innocent pay for the crimes By King Kaufman
The NCAA needs to find a way to punish corrupt coaches and players without hurting kids who did no wrong. (03/14/2003)

The antiwar movement prepares to escalate By Michelle Goldberg
The day the war starts, organizers vow to shut down financial districts -- and even infiltrate a key U.S. Air Force base. (03/14/2003)

Dodging the war issue, again By Laura McClure
Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry blistered the Bush administration in a speech Thursday -- but like many Democrats, he shied away from Iraq. (03/14/2003)

Less talk, more war! Cartoon by Mark Fiore
Why wait for those lousy foreigners to mess things up when you can beat them to the punch? (03/14/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to Gary Kamiya's "Sleepwalking Toward Baghdad." (03/14/2003)

The antiwar ad MTV won't air By Suzy Hansen
Watch it here, and decide if you agree with our ad critics that it's "cool and hip" or "too preachy and self-righteous." (03/14/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Musician Brian Eno's thoughtful essay on America -- published in the European edition of Time magazine -- isn't reaching those who could learn the most from it. (03/14/2003)

He's a pig! By Cary Tennis
I love the man I live with, but he is completely lacking in table etiquette. I can even hear him chew! (03/14/2003)

Naked on the set! Part 2 By Paul Festa
I meet the director and struggle with my biggest question: Will he make me a star? Or will my audition expose me as a fraud? (03/14/2003)

Ask the pilot By Patrick Smith
Do big airplanes get the best pilots? And do we really want to know what happens when seven pilots room together? (03/14/2003)

Can "Farscape" fans reinvent TV? By Adrienne Crew
When the Sci Fi Channel canceled "Farscape," angry fans launched the usual protest movement. Now they're dreaming of a rebellion that could overthrow TV empires. (03/13/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Elvis Costello keeps David Letterman's seat warm, Julia likes the Mile High Club, and Eminem wants to rest instead of rap. (03/13/2003)

The antiwar sampler
Download a selection of protest songs from the Beastie Boys, Ani DiFranco, John Mellencamp, Chumbawamba and others. (03/13/2003)

Literary daybook, March 13
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/13/2003)

"Lost in a Good Book" by Jasper Fforde By Laura Miller
Literary detective Thursday Next teams up with Dickens' Miss Havisham to fight world destruction and an outbreak of deadly coincidences. (03/13/2003)

Tom the Dancing Bug By Ruben Bolling
Menace From the Deep (03/13/2003)

Spill your guts
Match made in heaven, or match made in hell? Salon wants to know. (03/13/2003)

So much for the porno fantasy
She'd said she was a cheerleader, but she looked more like a football. (03/13/2003)

Countdown to war vote By Eric Boehlert
A tough new resolution offered by British Prime Minister Tony Blair puts Saddam on the spot -- and it appears to swing momentum to the hawks. (03/13/2003)

Jews against Israel By Michelle Goldberg
Neturei Karta, a Zionism-denouncing, Palestinian-embracing subculture within ultra-Orthodox Judaism, is suddenly sharing the spotlight in the antiwar movement. (03/13/2003)

Going downhill fast By Tina Brown
Gathering at the elite Deer Valley ski retreat, the newly humbled masters of the universe bemoan the Bush economy but express high hopes for his war. (03/13/2003)

Silence of the Dems By Joan Walsh
Waffling and ambivalent during the war debate, Democratic leaders -- including presidential contenders John Kerry and Howard Dean -- say they'll muzzle themselves completely once the bombs start falling. (03/13/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Why aren't Blair and Bush concerned about Saddam's nuclear threat anymore? (03/13/2003)

It hurts so much By Cary Tennis
I went through a bad breakup and have zero confidence now. How do I get my bubbly self back? (03/13/2003)

Naked on the set! By Paul Festa
As I prepare to audition for the new X-rated film project by "Hedwig" creator John Cameron Mitchell, I'm left to wonder: Will he think I have the whole package? Part 1 in a series. (03/13/2003)

Take this tech job and shove it By Farhad Manjoo
Sure, there are plenty of opportunities out there -- if you have 10 years of experience and are willing to work for free. (03/13/2003)

"Irreversible" By Andrew O'Hehir
Gaspar Noe's horrifying film about rape and revenge erases the boundaries between porn and exploitation. But is it art? (03/12/2003)

"There are no bad deeds, just deeds" By Jean Tang
"Irreversible" director Gaspar Noe defends the nine-minute rape scene at the center of his sadistic revenge film. (03/12/2003)

The dictator who snagged me By John Gorenfeld
When North Korea's film-loving despot Kim Jong Il kidnapped South Korea's leading director and his movie-star wife, the screen couple was plunged into a saga even stranger and more dreadful than the "Godzilla" knockoff they were forced to make. (03/12/2003)

"Bend It Like Beckham" By Stephanie Zacharek
A smash hit from England jokes about love, soccer, ethnic food and immigrant assimilation. Wait, haven't we seen this movie before? (03/12/2003)

"Pulgasari"
Watch a 45-second clip of the "Godzilla" rip-off that made Kim Jong Il proud. (03/12/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
China censors the Stones, Don Johnson nabbed at the border and the Beastie Boys are "Mad" about Bush. (03/12/2003)

The Notwist: "Neon Golden" By Rob Young
On their latest album, Germany's Notwist elegantly blend acoustic pop and atmospheric glitch electronics. (03/12/2003)

Literary daybook, March 12
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/12/2003)

"Mismatch" by Andrew Hacker By Laura Miller
Political scientist Andrew Hacker crunches the numbers to prove that -- newsflash! -- men and women want different things. (03/12/2003)

The K chronicles By Keith Knight
Help from foreigners! (03/12/2003)

Letters
"Call it the sad, silent sorority." Readers respond to Heather Swain's essay about her miscarriage. (03/12/2003)

A very few good men By Sheerly Avni
Andrew Hacker talks about his new book "Mismatch" and why women are so fed up with the opposite sex. (03/12/2003)

All hype, no drama By King Kaufman
Thousands of empty seats tell you all you need to know about college basketball conference tournaments. (03/12/2003)

Coalition of the billing -- or unwilling? By Laura McClure
The Bush administration is lavishing billions of dollars on potential allies at the U.N. Strangely, it isn't working. (03/12/2003)

As human as you and I By Ann Marlowe
A proposed ban on reproductive cloning demonstrates our irrational fear of the unknown, not the vagaries of science. (03/12/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Page Six wrongly suggests that New York Times writer Adam Cohen and Miguel Estrada are old rivals. Plus: French toast is American. (03/12/2003)

Turncoats in Bermuda shorts By Arianna Huffington
Offshore tax havens continue to bilk America -- even as their supporters drape themselves in the flag. (03/12/2003)

Preemptive war crimes By Robert Scheer
Driven by a coterie of neoconservative ideologues -- and the accidental president in their sway -- we are hours away from becoming international outlaws. (03/12/2003)

My fantasy By Cary Tennis
I want my girlfriend to have sex with other men -- with or without me. Is that too much to ask? (03/12/2003)

The myth of interference By David Weinberger
Internet architect David Reed explains how bad science created the broadcast industry. (03/12/2003)

This week on DVD
Decadent Fassbinder classics, great roles for Michelle Pfeiffer and Susan Sarandon, the smell of chlorine, yacht racing and another Eddie Murphy flop. (03/11/2003)

No. 1 with a bullet By Eric Boehlert
Darryl Worley's hot new country single "Have You Forgotten?" plumbs a new low in post-9/11 pop, arguing that to avenge terror we must attack Iraq. (03/11/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
J-Lo nixes Hooters for Ben, Nicole and Daniel Day-Lewis talk about the war and the menu changes on The Hill. Plus: "60 Minutes" creator blasts Clinton/Dole debate. (03/11/2003)

"24" hour party people By Heather Havrilesky
Fox's innovative hit "24" has recently veered from gripping realism into addictive high camp. What's more, its creators are flying blind. (03/11/2003)

Literary daybook, March 11
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/11/2003)

Story Minute By Carol Lay
Got a problem? Blame it on Saddam! (03/11/2003)

My flesh and blood By Heather Swain
Nothing could have prepared me for the night when gravity loosened the grip of the fetus dying in my body. (03/11/2003)

Bomb nature, improve security By Glenn Scherer
Environmental controls on 30 million acres managed by the Pentagon would all but vanish under a new military-readiness plan. (03/11/2003)

Bush vs. Bush By Jake Tapper
The coming Iraq war represents the president's ultimate rebellion against his father. (03/11/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
The latest Times/CBS poll shows growing support of a war without U.N. support -- but a different poll shows President Bush is in deep trouble. Plus: The House has no tolerance for "French" fries or "French" toast. (03/11/2003)

Man at half-staff By Cary Tennis
I'm in my 30s, divorced and dating, but I can't get it up. Am I too young for Viagra? (03/11/2003)

The dancing plant By Christopher Kemp
Darwin was obsessed by it, although even he never trained his weedy Asian shrub to twitch its leaves to the sound of music. But in a small town in northern Thailand ... (03/11/2003)

A less than Savage debut By Kerry Lauerman
Shock jock Michael Savage's MSNBC debut was the freak show we were promised, with one big surprise: It's incredibly boring. (03/10/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
J-Lo nixes Hooters for Ben, Nicole and Daniel Day-Lewis talk about the war and the menu changes on The Hill. Plus: "60 Minutes" creater blasts Clinton/Dole debate (03/10/2003)

"Tempo de Amor" By Thomas Bartlett
Miho Hatori (of Cibo Matto) and guitarist Smokey Hormel pay tribute to Brazilian Afro-samba songwriter Baden Powell on their new EP. (03/11/2003)

Literary daybook, March 10
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/10/2003)

"Jarhead" by Anthony Swofford By Laura Miller
In this self-lacerating memoir, an ex-Marine sniper who fought in the Gulf yearns to escape from the myths of warfare and the sadism of military life. (03/10/2003)

This Modern World By Tom Tomorrow
How far is too far? (03/10/2003)

Couch surfing By Sheerly Avni
She found her Dr. Feelgood once. But do you ever get a second one? (03/10/2003)

Sleepwalking toward Baghdad By Gary Kamiya
As the sand runs out on peace, America drifts alone toward a strange and unjustified war. (03/10/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
The latest Richard Perle outrage: The Bush foreign policy adviser should resign for calling a journalist a "terrorist" -- and the Senate should investigate his fishy business deal. Plus: Another Horowitz outrage. (03/10/2003)

Different frequencies By Cary Tennis
I want sex once every 10 days, my husband wants it every two. Other than that I'm happily married. (03/10/2003)

National Genes, Inc. By Katharine Mieszkowski
Going once, going twice, gone! Estonia's gene pool has been sold to the bidder in the front row. (03/10/2003)

Secrets, lies and copy machines By Heather Havrilesky
With James Spader as a cool, collected Daniel Ellsberg, FX's "The Pentagon Papers" paints a chillingly familiar picture of an administration fixated on military action in the face of serious risks. (03/08/2003)

Letters
What right-wing media? David Horowitz responds to David Talbot's "All Conservative, All the Time." (03/08/2003)

Inside the other police state By Phillip Robertson
As I try to cross over to Iraq, Syria's secret police follow me around like bad luck. But it's the Kurds who feel most of the heat. (03/08/2003)

David Wells, the un-scandal By Allen Barra
If the Yankees ace pitched a perfect game while hung over, then how about a bottle for everyone on the staff? (03/08/2003)

The high price of scandal By King Kaufman
The solution to the rampant corruption in college sports might be to pay the players. It's a controversial idea -- and it's gaining ground. (03/08/2003)

"Bringing Down the House" By Charles Taylor
Why are white guys who can't dance still funny? In this shameful Steve Martin bomb, they're not. (03/07/2003)

"The Safety of Objects" By Laura Miller
Glenn Close leads a terrific ensemble cast in Rose Troche's haunting epic of suburban life, fueled by Barbie, Pop-Tarts and God's wicked sense of humor. (03/07/2003)

"Tears of the Sun" By Stephanie Zacharek
Can Bruce Willis save Africa from the Africans? Not in Antoine Fuqua's overwrought, blood-drenched fable of bogus Hollywood heroism, he can't. (03/07/2003)

What's the opposite of denial? By Jeff Stark
"Laurel Canyon" director Lisa Cholodenko on casting the "awesome" Frances McDormand, the influence of D.H. Lawrence (whom she hasn't read) and the sexuality of her interviewer. (03/07/2003)

Hollywood swinging By Stephanie Zacharek
Driven by the marvelously sexy Frances McDormand, "Laurel Canyon" is wreathed in a golden haze of rock 'n' roll sensuality and glorious L.A. sunlight. (03/07/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
Tony Soprano threatens to walk, Helen Thomas gets snubbed, and is our prez popping pills? (03/07/2003)

Recommended listening By Rob Young
On their second album, "Airs Above Your Station," Seattle indie rockers Kinski splice together explosive guitars with mellow synths. (03/07/2003)

Literary daybook, Mar. 7
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/07/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to David Talbot's review of "What Liberal Media?" by Eric Alterman. (03/07/2003)

More war letters By Salon readers
From a civil liberties-loving Army officer to a woman who's afraid of getting blown up at work to the girlfriend of a Marine who might be shipped to Iraq, Salon readers talk about life in America's pre-invasion Twilight Zone. (03/07/2003)

Lynda Barry
Cute Animal Headline News (03/07/2003)

My Arab street By Michelle Goldberg
I live blocks away from the Brooklyn mosque accused of funding al-Qaida, where angry Muslim men rage against John Ashcroft, blame 9/11 on the Jews, and ask me out for coffee. (03/07/2003)

A spiral of destruction By Eric Boehlert
An expert in North Korea's military power says even a small spark could quickly lead to a rain of artillery shells, a chemical attack -- even nuclear war. (03/07/2003)

Are you a loser dictator? Cartoon by Mark Fiore
Here's a seminar on how to get the whole world raging at you! (03/07/2003)

Idiocy of the week By Andrew Sullivan
What do you call a major U.S. newspaper columnist who admits pandering to her readers? Hint: It's not "journalist." (03/07/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
U.N. bombshell: More evidence against Iraq turns out to be phony. Plus: Did Bush make a big booboo during his speech to the nation? (03/07/2003)

The disappearing Democrats
Bill Moyers asks: Where are the two-fisted, partisan street brawlers of yesteryear? (03/07/2003)

High school sweetheart By Cary Tennis
What do you do when you are afraid of the one thing you've always wanted? (03/07/2003)

The new pinup? By Charles Taylor
The sexy rapper Eve is like a classic cheesecake model or Rita Hayworth -- but with tattoos. (03/07/2003)

Ask the pilot By Patrick Smith
Why stop in Anchorage on the way from Tahiti to Paris? Plus, the mysteries of the Muslim qibla. (03/07/2003)

Letters
Hugh Loebner defends his Turing Test contest and responds to John Sundman's "Artificial Stupidity." (03/07/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
A roundup of the day's best dirt. (03/06/2003)

"A Ship Made of Paper" by Scott Spencer By Suzy Hansen
A small-town interracial affair becomes a destructive juggernaut in the latest novel of obsessive passion from the author of "Endless Love." (03/06/2003)

Literary daybook, March 6
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/06/2003)

Tom the Dancing Bug By Ruben Bolling
Honest George's car lot: Our customers keep comin' back! (03/06/2003)

Freedom ride By Elizabeth Woodman
I watch -- and worry -- as my son enters adulthood behind the wheel of a car. (03/06/2003)

Letters
"This show makes me sick!" Readers respond to "Who Wants to be Married by America" by Sheerly Avni. (03/06/2003)

Building a better war By Mary Papenfuss
As the U.S. marches toward an invasion of Iraq, Human Rights Watch is trying to do what critics say is impossible: Wield public opinion to create a more humanitarian war. (03/06/2003)

More chatter from al-Qaida By Jake Tapper
A radical Islamist warns of another big attack soon, while U.S. experts debate: Did the arrest of Khalil Sheikh Mohammed make us more or less safe? (03/06/2003)

Bad week for hideous men By Tina Brown
Who's creepiest, Saddam, Robert Blake or preppie murderer Robert Chambers? Plus: What the Iraqi gangsta doesn't get about playa hatin'. (03/06/2003)

It's time for Powell to resign By William O. Beeman
Forced to do the bidding of Caligula-quoting hawks, Secretary of State Colin Powell should salvage his honor and -- like his predecessor Cyrus Vance -- make a principled exit (03/06/2003)

Romancing Mrs. Daschle By Arianna Huffington
Why a lobbyist's strongest resume-builder is marriage to a Capitol Hill power player. (03/06/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
Tony Blair is ruining his credentials as an honest broker. Plus: George Will's hypocrisy on the Estrada filibuster. (03/06/2003)

Don Juan or Bill Gates? By Cary Tennis
He's charming and talented, but he has no friends and spends all his time either on the computer or reading! (03/06/2003)

Unleashing the dogs of cyber-war on Iraq! By Brian McWilliams
Saddam Hussein could lose Internet access at the flip of a switch, and there's not much his geeks can do about it. (03/06/2003)

White House vs. whitehouse By Farhad Manjoo
Doesn't the vice president have better things to do than trample the First Amendment rights of a Web satirist? An interview with whitehouse.org's John Wooden. (03/06/2003)

"Ten" By Andrew O'Hehir
In Tehran, even the hookers wear head scarves, and other things I learned from Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami's extraordinary film. (03/05/2003)

I'm a TV viewer -- get me out of here! By Heather Havrilesky
Watching faux-celebrities marinate in the Australian rain forest for 15 painful hours proves that even in the alternate universe of reality TV, less is more. (03/05/2003)

Recommended listening By Dan Kois
Sue Garner and Freakwater's Catherine Irwin play somber, intimate ballads on two rewarding solo releases. (03/05/2003)

Bestsellers
This week's bestselling books courtesy of Powells.com (03/05/2003)

Literary daybook, March 5
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/05/2003)

"A Dangerous Place" by Marc Reisner By Katharine Mieszkowski
Plunged into the Bay? Smothered in the superstore? Californians may have forgotten about their looming apocalypse, but eco-journalist Marc Reisner's final work is here to remind them. (03/05/2003)

The K Chronicles By Keith Knight
Cop quiz: Which incident resulted in the indictment of 10 members of the SFPD? (03/05/2003)

Smooching Sybil
I had to break up with him five times -- once for each of his personalities. (03/05/2003)

Michael Savage's long, strange trip By David Gilson
How a Jewish kid from the Bronx went from swimming naked with Allen Ginsberg to spewing the ugliest bile on talk radio. (03/05/2003)

The Bush lies pushing the world to the brink By Robert Scheer
The biggest one: A war on Iraq will make the Middle East an oasis of peace and security. (03/05/2003)

The Salon interview: Stanley Crouch By Laura McClure
The career provocateur says an Iraq attack could provoke Saddam to use nuclear weapons and trigger more terror -- but won't say whether he's for or against the war. (03/05/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
While Sami Al-Arian was under FBI investigation for ties to terrorist organizations, the GOP was courting him and his Muslim voting bloc for the 2000 election. (03/05/2003)

Am I fickle? By Cary Tennis
I am exhilarated by the chase, but once I catch the girl I lose interest. (03/05/2003)

Custom jeans for every butt By Sarah Lidgus
Levi's promises individualized denim for every fancy. But one explorer discovers that mass customization is trickier than it looks. (03/05/2003)

Letters
A primer in artificial intelligence: Smart readers respond to John Sundman's "Artificial Stupidity." (03/05/2003)

The Fix By Karen Croft
A roundup of the day's best dirt. (03/04/2003)

This week on DVD
Baseball, bandleaders, submarines, a Jew in the Hitler Youth, the Osbournes' first season, Brad Pitt in Tibet. Plus: If you watch "The Ring" on DVD, does it still kill you? (03/04/2003)

Back to the boards By Liesl Schillinger
In an increasingly flat-screen world, stars like Al Pacino and Gwyneth Paltrow look to theater for a human connection. Will the rest of us follow? (03/04/2003)

Innocence abroad By David Bowman
Anti-irony crusader Jedediah Purdy, back from the Middle East, talks about terrorism, violence, the Calvinist heritage of Las Vegas and his new book about America's role in the world. (03/04/2003)

Literary daybook, March 4
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/04/2003)

Story Minute by Carol Lay
The new fence. (03/04/2003)

Letters
Readers respond to "Little Osama," by Claudia Kolker. (03/04/2003)

Who wants to be married by America? By Sheerly Avni
Fox's latest reality installment invites us to participate in an orgy of vanilla heterophilia. (03/04/2003)

Uncle Sam's dirty tricks? By Jake Tapper
Alleged U.S. spying at the U.N. -- huge news in the rest of the world, ignored here -- provides fodder to festering anti-Americanism. (03/04/2003)

San Francisco comes undone By Joan Walsh
In an unprecedented political blood bath, a grand jury indicts the police department's top brass. After a morning of chaos the police chief takes a mysterious medical leave, but turmoil reigns. (03/04/2003)

Joe Conason's Journal
The Iraqi News Agency finally responds to Salon readers -- but did it get the right message? (03/04/2003)

Battle of the NBC titans! By Suzy Hansen
In dueling ads for and against war with Iraq, conservative Fred Thompson of "Law and Order" faces down "The West Wing's" Martin Sheen. Who wins? Salon's ad panel decides. (03/04/2003)

Martial dating By Cary Tennis
How can I find a man who isn't afraid of my self-defense skills? (03/04/2003)

Toys were us By Andrew Leonard
The best book yet about the dot-com years shows how the battle between etoy and eToys.com encapsulated the idiocy -- and the idealism -- of that weird era. (03/04/2003)

Me and Kate and Claudia By Amy Reiter
Here's some reality that's not on TV: What's up with me (think diapers!) and the future of Nothing Personal. (03/03/2003)

Digging their way out By Heather Havrilesky
Back from the dead, the characters on "Six Feet Under" are finally learning how to live, and the effect is more devastating than ever. (03/03/2003)

Salon recommends
What we're reading, what we're liking. (03/03/2003)

Literary daybook, March 3
Real and imaginary events of interest to readers. (03/03/2003)

This Modern World By Tom Tomorrow
The Loyal American's Guide to War Preparedness. (03/03/2003)

Little Osama By Claudia Kolker
How the murder of a Muslim boy in Houston fanned the flames of anti-Americanism in Pakistan. (03/03/2003)

All talk, no compassion By Dave Lindorff
After promising a bold new investment in AmeriCorps, the White House has let the volunteer program and its crucial services fall into crisis. (03/03/2003)

Senate report: FBI still unprepared By Jake Tapper
A bipartisan report says the agency is still too cautious in dealing with terror suspects -- and has promoted the agents who bungled the Moussaoui case. (03/03/2003)

Powell's moment of truth By Eric Boehlert
He went from being the Bush administration's voice of moderation to its leading advocate for war. With a diplomatic meltdown looming, the secretary of state is in the hot seat. (03/03/2003)

Post-blow job blues By Cary Tennis
I like to give oral sex to my husband, but I resent it when he won't reciprocate. Until he does, I'm on strike! (03/03/2003)

Linux does Windows By Farhad Manjoo
Desktop open-source operating systems are ready for prime time and available from Wal-Mart. But if they look and act just the same as software from Redmond, what's the point? (03/03/2003)

Sack college football, not Title IX By Allen Barra
Don't blame the law that opened up sports to women for the demise of men's sports programs -- blame the good old boys who won't touch the biggest cash drain, football. (03/01/2003)

The Salon Interview: Dennis Kucinich By Jake Tapper
The lefty long-shot presidential candidate has found new fans because of his antiwar stance. He explains his "holistic candidacy" -- and past pro-life votes -- to Salon. (03/01/2003)