Among the Magazines I Read . . .

Among the magazines I read is The Atlantic Monthly. It's a great magazine that covers many consequential subjects. Sometimes many months worth stack up, but I try to get to each issue sooner or later. In the September 2007 issue, much of which is centered around the theme of "Lessons of a Failed Presidency," is an interesting article by Josua Green called "The Rove Presidency." If there is any one reason that stands above the rest, Green contends, it is that Karl Rove operated his time in the White House the way he worked actual elections -- he steamrollered his way to success. When he shifted from trying to get Bush elected to trying to effect policy, he continued with this steamroller attitude, and it didn't work with Congress. He alienated most of the House and the Senate. Green also states in the concluding paragraph:

"The Bush administration made a virtual religion of the belief that if you act boldly, others will follow in your wake. That certainly proved to be the case with Karl Rove, for a time. But for all the fascination with what Rove was doing and thinking, little attention was given to whether or not it was working and why. This neglect encompasses many people, though one person with far greater consequences than all the others. In the end, the verdict on George W, Bush may be as simple as this: He never questioned the big, booming voice of Oz, so he never saw the little man behind the curtain."

National Geographic: What Darwin Didn't Know

National Geographic and The New Yorker have several things in common. One of them is that they are probably read by their subscribers far less than they deserve to be.

The February 2009 issue has two fascinating articles about Darwin. Since 2009 is 200 years since the birth of Darwin and 150 years since the Publication of The Origin of Species, these articles are especially timely. Both articles have the usual gorgeous photographs accompanying their text.

What is especially interesting about the first one, "Darwin's First Clues," is the explanation of how his South American observations gave him the first clues on the road to formulating his theory. These aren't usually stressed or explained in detail, and his visit to the Galapagos Islands is usually thought of as the impetus for his theory. In fact, as the article demonstrates, South America was extremely important in his thoughts.

The second article, "Modern Darwins," discusses how modern genetics fits into Darwin's theory. Since enormous advances have been made in this field in the last few decades, this is very pertinent.

Anyone wanting to understand the general substance of Darwin's theories without making a scholarly study would do well to read these pieces.

Kudos to National Geographic for publishing them !