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[Letter from Kenosha] The Art of Losing

Can Democrats win back postindustrial America?

August 2020

Current Issue August 2020

[Miscellany] False Dawn

A zuihitsu from the early months of the pandemic

by Khadijah Queen

[Letter from Germany] In Plain Sight

The search for Syrian war criminals in Europe

by Annie Hylton

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which streaming of N.W.A’s “Fuck tha Police” increased in the week following George Floyd’s death : 272

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which the Minneapolis police used force more often against black people than white people over the past five years : 7

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Minneapolis police officers who live in Minneapolis : 7

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of white Americans who had an unfavorable view of the police before police brutality protests began in May : 18

[Harper’s Index]

Who did a week later : 31

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who would be comfortable with the military being deployed to their community in response to protests : 2/5

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated cost of outfitting a police officer with riot-control gear : $790

[Harper’s Index]

Of outfitting a hospital worker with standard personal protective equipment : $11

[Harper’s Index]

Number of the ten largest U.S. novel coronavirus clusters that are linked to correctional facilities : 7

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage decrease since 2006 in the incarceration rate of black Americans : 34

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which this rate remains higher than that of white Americans : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of unemployed workers in Massachusetts who receive unemployment benefits : 66

[Harper’s Index]

Of unemployed workers in Florida who do : 8

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of jobs that require close contact and cannot be done remotely that are done by women : 77

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of fathers assisting with remote learning who believe they are doing most of the instruction : 1/2

[Harper’s Index]

Of mothers assisting with remote learning who agree : 1/33

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which the number of accounts on Facebook’s messenger app for children under 13 has increased since March : 3.5

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of remote-learning children in households making under $25,000 a year who log on once a week or less : 2/5

[Harper’s Index]

Of those in households making over $100,000 a year who log on every day : 4/5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who view the coronavirus as a major threat to their finances : 41

[Harper’s Index]

To their health : 38

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of U.S. adults who say they would refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccine : 19

[Harper’s Index]

Of Republicans who say so : 28

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of U.S. coronavirus cases that have occurred in counties that Donald Trump won in 2016 : 27

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage change since last year in the number of Democrats who have a “great deal” of trust in medical scientists : +43

[Harper’s Index]

In the number of Republicans who do : -3

[Harper’s Index]

Number of Doctors Without Borders medical staff who have been assigned to the U.S. coronavirus response : 21

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated number of U.S. lives that could have been saved if social distancing had been implemented a week earlier : 35,287

[Harper’s Index]

If social distancing had been implemented two weeks earlier : 58,322

[Harper’s Index]

Number of U.S. governors whose favorability ratings related to the pandemic have been higher than Trump’s : 49

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated portion of New Yorkers who left the city as the pandemic hit : 1/20

[Harper’s Index]

Of New Yorkers living on the Upper East Side who did : 2/5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of U.S. adults working from home during lockdowns who have napped while on the clock : 59

[Harper’s Index]

Who have been late to work : 44

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that an American always wears pants when working from home : 1 in 2

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who say an ex reached out to them during lockdown : 1/4

[Harper’s Index]

Portion who responded : 4/5

[Harper’s Index]

Average number of times per week that an American forgot what day it was this spring : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of respondents to a recent survey who did not know what day it was when they responded : 59

Weekly Review

Harper’s Podcast

False Dawn

The constant surprise of COVID-19

Subscribe to the Podcast

Monday Gallery

Smoked Fish

Smoked Fish, a painting by Chase Hall, whose work is on view through August 28 at C L E A R I N G, in Brooklyn, New York.

© The artist. Courtesy C L E A R I N G, Brooklyn, New York/Brussels

Past Issues

Harper’s Finest

[Article] from the March 2003 Issue

Jesus Plus Nothing

by Jeff Sharlet

At Ivanwald, men learn to be leaders by loving their leaders. “They’re so busy loving us,” a brother once explained to me, “but who’s loving them?” We were. The brothers each paid $400 per month for room and board, but we were also the caretakers of The Cedars, cleaning its gutters, mowing its lawns, whacking weeds and blowing leaves and sanding. And we were called to serve on Tuesday mornings, when The Cedars hosted a regular prayer breakfast typically presided over by Ed Meese, the former attorney general. Each week the breakfast brought together a rotating group of ambassadors, businessmen, and American politicians. Three of Ivanwald’s brothers also attended, wearing crisp shirts starched just for the occasion; one would sit at the table while the other two poured coffee.

The sperm of mallards with more colorful bills has stronger antibacterial properties.

Psychologist Spike Lee found that telling harmful lies makes people desire mouthwash, whereas writing harmful lies makes people desire hand sanitizer.

NASA had failed to sufficiently sanitize planetary probes to avoid the invasion of alien environments by Earth life.

Humans absorb large amounts of bisphenol A by handling cash-register receipts after using hand sanitizer, and larger amounts if they then eat french fries.