The Economics and Politics of Star Trek
Akiva Malamet has interesting posts on these topics at the Econlib site.
Book Reviews
Review: Tripping on Utopia Complicates the History of Psychedelics
Mind-altering drugs have long been seen as tools for both liberation and control.
Review of Dune: Part 2
It's a powerful film that lives up to the promise of Part 1. But there are a few flaws.
The Truth About 'Rural Rage'
Our research was cited in a new book on “white rural rage.” But the authors got the research wrong.
Dune: Part Two Is a Glorious Sci-Fi Spectacle
The sequel is about ecology, politics, economics, imperialism, and much more. But mostly it's about worms.
The Spy in Your Pocket
Byron Tau's Means of Control documents how the private sector helps government agencies keep tabs on American citizens.
A History of Taxpayer Revolts
Linda Upham-Bornstein's "Mr. Taxpayer versus Mr. Tax Spender" delivers an evenhanded view of American tax resistance movements.
Is the Human Brain a Prediction Machine?
In The Experience Machine, philosopher and scientist Andy Clark offers an updated theory of mind.
Review: Godzilla Minus One Rejects the Idea of a 'Noble Death' in War
Director Takashi Yamazaki brings to the screen the most dreadful version of Godzilla since the franchise began.
An Instagram Star Walks the Fine Line Between Self-Creation and Snake Oil
Social media influencer Caroline Calloway might not be a reliable narrator, but Scammer is an honest memoir nevertheless.
The 'No Compromise' NRA Is Neither New nor Uncompromising
The book Vote Gun criticizes the NRA’s rhetoric but pays little attention to gun control advocates' views.
Filterworld Is a Confused Critique of Algorithms
It's Super Size Me for internet intellectuals.
Is Facial Recognition a Useful Public Safety Tool or Something Sinister?
Your Face Belongs to Us documents how facial recognition might threaten our freedom.
Review: Loki Reckons With the Peril of Power
In the second season of his eponymous Marvel series, Loki becomes both more human and more godlike.
Review: The Florida Novels of Charles Willeford
“Just tell the truth, and they’ll accuse you of writing black humor.”
Review of "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes"
The new movie is a compelling film version of Suzanne Collins' prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy.
How a Law No One Understands Brought Down Florida Drug 'Kingpins'
Jordan S. Rubin's Bizarro tells the story of the men who tried and failed to challenge the government's arbitrary rules on synthetic drugs.
Science Fiction, Science Fact: Puzzle #19
"Basis of some COVID-19 vaccine technology"
Janet Reno Is No Hero
A new biography by Judith Hicks Stiehm ignores Janet Reno's many failures as attorney general.
Virginia Postrel & Jim Pethokoukis: How To Get a Great Future
A conversation about economics, progress, science fiction—and kitchen gadgets.
Review: The Cross Florida Barge Canal That Never Was
Libertarians will read Ditch of Dreams as a story about bureaucracy and environmentalism run amok.
Sandra Newman: Reimagining 1984 from Julia's Perspective
At the behest of George Orwell's estate, the acclaimed novelist has brilliantly recast his most famous work.
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off Slyly Remixes the Cult Film's View of Romance and Autonomy
What if Ramona Flowers bears some responsibility for creating her seven "evil exes" in the first place?
The Best of Reason: Milton Friedman Was No Conservative
A new Friedman biography ably explores the economist's ideas but sidesteps the libertarian movement he was central to.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Is a Decadent Hunger Games Retread
Sharp world building and a strong central performance can't save this dystopian disappointment.
The Good Samaritans Who Saved Syrian Refugees
When government relief efforts fail, individuals step up.
Review: Ahsoka Rejects Star Wars' Good-vs.-Evil Binary
George Lucas divided his universe into light and dark. Dave Filoni is dissolving that worldview.
Milton Friedman Was No Conservative
A new Friedman biography ably explores the economist's ideas but sidesteps the libertarian movement he was central to.
The Marvels Is the Tedious Culmination of a Lot of Superhero Homework
In the director's own words, this is "a sequel to five different things."
Review: Inside New York's 20th Century Psychotherapeutic Cult
The Sullivan Institute trapped members and broke up families.
Mitt Romney, Like So Many NeverTrumpers, Was Hobbled by His Own Grubby Political Ambitions
The Mormon wing of the conservative #Resistance turned out to be just as fallible as the hawks and libertarians.
The Best of Reason: Did Evolution Give Us Free Will?
Free Agents author Kevin J. Mitchell makes a neuroscientific case against determinism.
Rachel Maddow's Prequel Is a Deceptively Framed History of the Radical Right
The book blames foreign subversives for ideas long rooted in American life.
Inside a 20-Year Effort To Clean Up the Oakland Police Department
The Riders Come Out at Night frames it as a hopeful sign that police reform is possible.
Did Evolution Give Us Free Will?
Author Kevin J. Mitchell makes a neuroscientific case against determinism.
Review: They Cloned Tyrone Draws on Old CIA Conspiracy Theories
The political commentary in Netflix's sci-fi comedy isn't exactly subtle.
Review: Not Everyone Liked the New Deal
Amity Shlaes anthologizes Franklin D. Roosevelt’s critical contemporaries.
Review: Silo Shows the Perils of Authoritarian Hierarchies
Leaders depicted in the Apple TV+ series outlaw "relics" of the past, even including PEZ dispensers.
The Best of Reason: Power and Progress Is a Wrongheaded Critique of Tech Progress
An undercurrent of the book is that common people want whatever progressive intellectuals want them to want.
Power and Progress Is a Wrongheaded Critique of Tech Progress
An undercurrent of the book is that common people want whatever progressive intellectuals want them to want.
Free Market Book Misstates the History of Free Market Thought
Author Jacob Soll's commitment to an untenable historical thesis distorts the facts.
Review: The Big Break Documents Trump's Washington
Washington Post reporter Ben Terris offers a fair treatment to both conservative and liberal activists in the Trump era.
Robots Aren't Coming For Movie Stars, Yet
Artificial intelligence is not about to replace your favorite actors.
Can Traditional Legal Customs Coexist With Western-Style State Law?
Geoffrey Swenson’s book Contending Orders tackles Afghanistan and Timor-Leste.
The Battlefields of Cable
How cable TV transformed politics—and how politics transformed cable TV
'Private Tyranny' Is Less Private Than You Think
Sohrab Ahmari inadvertently gives even more reasons to reduce the power of the state.
No Such Thing As a Free Lunch: Puzzle #2
"Subject of a 500-year-old purity law in Germany"
We Don't Need a War on Screen Time
Unwired makes an unconvincing argument for heavy-handed tech regulation.