How American Politics Went Insane
It happened gradually—and until the U.S. figures out how to treat the problem, it will only get worse.
July/August 2016
In This Issue
The mystery behind Jesus’s (probably fake) wife, white nationalism in the GOP, the timepieces of the rich and famous (and powerful), a potential diagnosis on American politics, Liberia after Ebola, and much more
Cover Story
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The Unbelievable Tale of Jesus’s Wife
A hotly contested, supposedly ancient manuscript suggests Christ was married. But believing its origin story—a real-life Da Vinci Code, involving a Harvard professor, a onetime Florida pornographer, and an escape from East Germany—requires a big leap of faith.
The Republican Party’s White Strategy
Embracing white nativism in the 1990s turned the California GOP into a permanent minority. The same story may now be repeating itself nationally.
When the Body Attacks the Mind
A physiological theory of mental illness
After Ebola
The disease has left a terrible legacy—and another outbreak is likely.
Women Are Writing the Best Crime Novels
They don’t seem to believe in heroes as much as their male counterparts, which in some ways makes their storytelling a better fit for the times.
Dispatches
Edmon de Haro The War on Stupid People
American society increasingly mistakes intelligence for human worth.
Federico Parra / Getty Big in Venezuela: Rolex Revolutionaries
For those who’ve benefited from the country’s political revolution, flaunting wealth with pricey timepieces is getting more complicated.
John Cuneo Being Chelsea Clinton
The former first daughter has maintained a wide buffer of privacy while enjoying the influence and access her fame confers. Having it both ways will get trickier if her mother wins in November.
James Walton The Science of Beer Goggles
Alcohol makes people impulsive, vain, and uncharitable—and it just might help them maintain committed relationships.
Waggonner & Ball New Orleans Learns to Love Water
A city that’s long struggled to stay dry embraces its inner swamp.
Mike McQuade The Curse of the Loyal Sports Fan
The Chicago Cubs’ customers show up win or lose—which may explain why, until now, the team has mostly done the latter.
Alvaro Dominguez Your Coffeemaker Is Watching You
Get ready for home appliances that track your movements and know what you want before you do.
Joe McKendry Stonewall Jackson Takes a Nap
A short book excerpt
The Culture File
Oliver Barrett The Electric Surge of Miles Davis
Between 1968 and ’75, he plugged into the musical zeitgeist and opened his music to distortion and groove-based repetition, either transcending or repudiating his roots in acoustic jazz.
Sarah Illenberger The Assault on Antidepressants
Twenty-three years after Listening to Prozac, Peter Kramer comes to the drug’s defense.
Wesley Allsbrook The Tender Arsonist
In Jesse Ball’s sixth novel—part thriller, part coming-of-age story—a teenager seeks escape through fire.
Cristiana Couceiro; Express / Getty; Kazuhiro Nogi / AFP / Getty Why Extreme Gymnastics Will Dominate the Rio Olympics
Has athleticism eclipsed aesthetic spirit? Dvora Meyers’s book traces the evolution of the sport.
Penguin Press The Humanity of The Wicked Boy
The former journalist Kate Summerscale tells the true story of a child who murdered his mother in Victorian London.
Departments
The Conversation
Readers respond to our May 2016 cover story.
Graham Roumieu What Accident Most Changed the Course of History?
A big question
Poetry
Tools
A poem
