Discipline and Publish Kenneth E. Hartman’s memoir about serving life without the possibility of parole [“Christmas in Prison,” December] is the most cogent and accurate depiction of life in the…
It’s the Dynasty, Stupid Doug Henwood nailed the rightward political drift and military hawkishness that define Hillary Clinton [“Stop Hillary!” Essay, November], but I cannot resist adding something Clinton said…
A Bird Too Big to Fail The PBS described by Eugenia Williamson (“PBS Self-Destructs,” Essay, October) bears little resemblance to the enterprise I am proud to serve as chief programming…
Then It’s Settled As someone who has been to Gaza, Israel, and the West Bank eight times as a human rights observer and peace activist, I was struck by Khalil…
Disputation Car Kevin Baker’s article on American rail travel [“21st Century Limited,” Folio, July] covered much of the same territory I did in my recent book, Train. But Baker came…
The Curiosity Gene As Maud Newton vividly describes [“America’s Ancestry Craze,” Criticism, June], the search for one’s genealogical roots can become so consuming that it feels like a sickness. My…
Coach Thyself I found it funny and appropriate that many life-coaching programs discussed by Genevieve Smith were founded by salesmen and accountants [“50,000 Life Coaches Can’t Be Wrong,” Report, May].…
Empath Report As a medical educator, I appreciated the considerable insights in Heidi Julavits’s essay on empathy and doctors [“Diagnose This,” April]. Columbia University’s Program in Narrative Medicine and other…
In Memoriam We are deeply saddened by the death of Matthew Power, our friend and a contributing editor. Sixteen years ago, Matt was an intern at the magazine, and since…
Deutschland Unter Alles The February cover image that accompanied the forum on the future of the euro [“How Germany Reconquered Europe”] is offensive and thoughtless. By riffing on the Nazi…
Serve and Volley John P. Davidson did indeed train to be a household manager at Starkey International for his article on private service [“You Rang?,” Folio, January], but what he…
Chicago Style Thomas Frank’s “Chicago Is the Future” [Easy Chair, December] articulated the increasing sense of alienation I’ve felt each time I’ve returned to my hometown since my departure in…
Have It Their Way In Thomas Frank’s Easy Chair column on low wages for employees of the fast-food industry [“Home of the Whopper,” November], a reference to the plantation owned…
It’s the Dynasty, Stupid Doug Henwood nailed the rightward political drift and military hawkishness that define Hillary Clinton [“Stop Hillary!” Essay, November], but I cannot resist adding something Clinton said…
Crimes Against Humanities Thomas Frank’s insightful lamentation about the demise of the humanities in higher education [“Course Corrections,” Easy Chair, October] notes the mammoth cost of attending college in the…
Divide and Conquer I was troubled by Nicholson Baker’s essay calling for the elimination of Algebra II from high school curricula [“Wrong Answer,” September], which fails to acknowledge the great…
Buy the Book Mark Kingwell’s essay on the future of reading [“Beyond the Book,” Readings, August] reminds us that for hundreds of years books were the only tool that made…
Poetic Justice Attacks on contemporary poetry in general as too obscure, too private, and in thrall to specialists — attacks such as Mark Edmundson’s essay in the July issue [“Poetry Slam”] —…
Exchanging Fire Dan Baum misses the mark for the best way to control gun violence [“How to Make Your Own AR-15,” Report, June]. The truth is that guns don’t kill…
Having a Cow It’s telling that the photographs accompanying Ted Conover’s report on working in an industrial slaughterhouse [“The Way of All Flesh,” May] show only living animals and the…
Live Free or Die Trying Michael Ames suggests that the future of the Republican Party may be the Ron Paul movement [“The Awakening,” Letter from Tampa, April], but the Ron…
All’s Well That Ends Wells In his report on the fracking boom in North Dakota [“Bakken Business,” Letter from Elkhorn Ranch, March], Richard Manning fails to mention the rapid falloff…
Workers Undocumented In his report [“This Land Is Not Your Land,” February], Ted Genoways indicts a few citizens and politicians in Nebraska as a stand-in for the discrimination perpetrated by…
Alarmed and Dangerous I read Eula Biss’s essay about the contemporary fear of vaccines [“Sentimental Medicine,” January] days after the violent deaths of twenty small schoolchildren in Newtown, Connecticut, and…
Electoral College Victoria Collier’s report on the precariousness of this country’s voting system [“How to Rig an Election,” November] voices legitimate concerns but misdirects its anxiety. Many election-integrity advocates have…
In Memoriam Harper’s Magazine is deeply saddened by the recent deaths of two good friends. George McGovern had served on the Harper’s Magazine Foundation board of directors since 1990, Nikolai…
Paper Routs In “The Only Game in Town” [Report, September], David Sirota unjustly mentions an old publisher of Philadelphia’s two dailies in his catalogue of newspaper owners who use their…