The Pulse

Trump is infected . . . with xenophobia

Just before it was revealed that he (and many other Republicans) had been infected with coronavirus, President Trump announced that he aims to limit the number of refugees allowed into the United States next year to just 15,000.

Uncovered Anarcast: Anarchist Spirits

From Occupy to Antifa, why are anarchist ideas and tactics appealing to an ever broader, younger audience?

An "intergalactic memorial carnival" for David Graeber

"This is an invitation to come together across the world for a memorial carnival in the spirit of the one and only, David Graeber, who just left us so suddenly and unexpectedly.

COVID-19 Strikes the President. What Now?

After months of downplaying the threat of the virus that has killed over 200,000 Americans (and, tragically, counting), the president and first lady have both tested positive for COVID-19.

Can Universal Values Survive in the People's Republic?

In his book Rethinking China’s Rise: A Liberal Critique, Xu [Jilin] gives a wide-ranging analysis of China’s recent history. His main point is that China has headed down the dangerous path of historicism...

History Weeps: The Ugliness of Trump's America

The first presidential debate of the 2020 election was possibly the ugliest in the tradition's 60-year existence.

Big Corruption at the Big Banks

Between 1999 and 2017, the world's biggest banks filed over 2,000 "suspicious activity reports" with American federal regulators.

Pandemics and plagues have a way of shifting the course of history

... and not always in a manner immediately evident to the survivors. In the 14th Century, the Black Death killed close to half of Europe’s population.

Google is watching. Here's what it knows about you

In 2018, an Irish technologist named Dylan Curran downloaded the information Google had collected about him. All in all, Curran found, the corporation had gathered 5.5 GB of data on his life, or the equivalent of more than three million Word documents.

The Hypocrisy of Bilious Barr and Pompous Pompeo

American statesmen have breathed a lot of fire over the passage of Hong Kong's draconian, dissent-crushing national-security law. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in particular has been keen to lash out at China, the territory's increasing...