Bringing democratic control to the conduct of foreign policy requires a struggle merely to force the issue onto the public agenda.

The White House and the media need one another in order to be successful in their jobs. The White House depends on the media to make its case to the public; the media need the White House to fill their airtime and news columns.

Apple is a wonderful company for its customers and investors. So, too, Pixar. (NeXT, not so much...) But Apple is also an engine of misery for its subcontracted Chinese workers.

Americans get mad as hell with reasonable frequency but quickly return to their families and sitcoms.

America's great newspapers have staffs that range from 50 percent to 70 percent of what they were just a few years ago.

Trends in circulation and advertising - the rise of the Internet, which has made the daily newspaper look slow and unresponsive; the advent of Craigslist, which is wiping out classified advertising-have created a palpable sense of doom.

History is replete with examples of empires mounting impressive military campaigns on the cusp of their impending economic collapse.