Issue of November 10, 2008

November 10, 2008

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Tombstones
The toys bankers aren’t buying.
by Lizzie Widdicombe

Q. Are the toy makers victims or part of the problem?

Theatre of War
Iraq veterans watch “Black Watch” in Brooklyn.
by Rebecca Mead
Q. Everman mentions Plato's tripartite soul. Where is justice? What are some alternatives worse than war?

THE FINANCIAL PAGE
Everyone’s Watching
On the data surplus.
by James Surowiecki
Q. Is the problem too much data or not enough information? Is this really a problem if people still make money?

ANNALS OF BUSINESS
The Uses of Adversity
When disadvantage won on Wall Street.
by Malcolm Gladwell
Q. Yale or P.S. 13, insider or outsider, genuine or phony? Ultimately didn't Weinberg trade on his social reputation making him an insider?

A REPORTER AT LARGE
Suffering Souls
The debate over psychopathy.
by John Seabrook

Q. Is there a down side to this research? Does it simplify or complicate psychopathy for society?

A CRITIC AT LARGE
How money went postmodern.
by John Lanchester


Audio: Lanchester on why derivatives are like modernist art.
Q. “the you-have-got-to-be-kidding-me method of accounting.” -- What really happened with Allied Capital? Is this the same as crying "Fire!" in a theater?