McCarthyism, Past—and Present?
Clay Risen's Red Scare book wrongly frames it as an exclusively conservative hysteria.
Books
The Best Democracy Is Anarchy
"Anarchism and democracy are—or should be—largely identical," wrote the anthropologist David Graeber.
Can We End Racism by Ending the Idea of Race Itself?
Author Sheena Michele Mason offers an alternative vision for anti-racism.
Abundance Makes the Case for 'Supply-Side Progressivism'
Progressives used to believe in building more stuff. Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson want to do that again.
In Praise of Zeppo and Shemp
Two new biographies tell the stories of the unsung members of the Marx Brothers and the Three Stooges.
6 Cases That Paved the Road to Mass Incarceration
In Justice Abandoned, a law professor argues that the Court got these key decisions wrong.
Why Economic Sanctions Against Iran Are Backfiring
How Sanctions Work argues the consequences of economic warfare don't always serve American interests.
What If Native American Tribes Had Gotten Their Own State?
Historian Donald L. Fixico explores a forgotten moment in Oklahoma history and its lessons about liberty.
Inside the Russian Occupation of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone
Harvard historian Serhii Plokhy's book tells the stories of soldiers, stalkers, and squatters in Chernobyl during Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
When COVID Authoritarianism Met Border Authoritarianism
All 194 countries in the World Health Organization imposed COVID travel restrictions. The authors of When the World Closed Its Doors argue it was a failure.
Rise of the 'Constitutional Sheriffs'
Two new books dissect the "constitutional sheriffs" movement, which seeks to nullify laws adherents see as unconstitutional.
Pulp Pleasure and Political Propaganda
Revolution in 35mm is a collection of essays exploring an era of political violence in cinema.
How FDR Built the American Security State
Historian Anthony Gregory explains how liberalism can be used to build an apparatus of repression.
Libertarianism From the Ground Up
In Common Law Liberalism, legal scholar John Hasnas offers a new vision for a free society.
Are Humans Abandoning the Physical World in Favor of Smartphones?
The Extinction of Experience condemns digital technology but the book is full of contradictions and cherry-picked examples.
Blaming Bill Buckley for Racism, January 6, and More
Historian David Austin Walsh tries and fails to rebut Jonah Goldberg's Liberal Fascism thesis.
A Look Back at the Panic Over Big Money in Politics
Law professor Ann Southworth offers a balanced take on the fallout from the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision.
Anthony Fauci, the Man Who Thought He Was Science
On Call, Anthony Fauci's new memoir, can't disguise the damage caused by his COVID-19 policies.
Empires Thrive on Pluralism, Not Brutality
Empires with more room for cultural difference were more successful, anthropologist Thomas Barfield argues.
When Leftists Were Free Traders
In Pax Economica, historian Marc-William Palen chronicles the left-wing history of free trade.
Nuclear War: A Scenario Is a Disaster Porn Thriller
Author Annie Jacobsen envisions a swift end of the world after nuclear conflict erupts.
When Attacks on Anarchists Accidentally Improved Free Speech Law
After the crackdown on anarchists died down, it became more difficult to imagine anyone could go to jail in America solely for political heresy.
What Causes Capitalism?
British economist Geoffrey M. Hodgson argues private property and individual enterprise fueled the Great Enrichment.
A Brief, Biased History of the Culture Wars
Kliph Nesteroff's book Outrageous turns into a screed against conservatives.
The Dark Side of Alexander Hamilton
The first treasury secretary's plans would have created cartels that mainly benefited the wealthy at the expense of small competitors.
How To Be the President's Kid
From Alice Roosevelt to Hunter Biden, we've never been sure how to reconcile American democracy with American dynasties.
DARE Didn't Make Kids 'Say No' to Drugs. It Normalized Police in Schools.
DARE to Say No details the history of an anti-drug campaign that left an indelible mark on America.
Blaming Tech for Teen Troubles
Jonathan Haidt’s clever, insufficient case against smartphones.
Central Planners Can't Fix Iraq—or Detroit
In Fragile Neighborhoods, author Seth Kaplan applies his Fixing Fragile States observations domestically.
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.
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.
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.
Janet Reno Is No Hero
A new biography by Judith Hicks Stiehm ignores Janet Reno's many failures as attorney general.
The Good Samaritans Who Saved Syrian Refugees
When government relief efforts fail, individuals step up.
Milton Friedman Was No Conservative
A new Friedman biography ably explores the economist's ideas but sidesteps the libertarian movement he was central to.
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.
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.
We Don't Need a War on Screen Time
Unwired makes an unconvincing argument for heavy-handed tech regulation.
The Chicago Boys' Deal With the Devil
The Chile Project surveys neoliberalism's most polarizing experiment.
Thank Dutch Merchants, Not a Strong State, for Capitalism
Pioneers of Capitalism chronicles centuries of bottom-up economic evolution in the Netherlands.
How Pirates in Madagascar Spread Enlightenment Ideas
Pirate Enlightenment documents an interracial experiment in stateless self-governance.
