Surrogacy Is the New Battleground in Reproductive Freedom
Critics on both the left and the right decry surrogacy as exploitative, especially when carriers are compensated.
March 2025
You Can't Evict Polly
The right to a reasonable accommodation has produced some absurd results.
Features
Google Is Big. Does That Make It a Monopoly?
To understand the federal government's case against Google Search, you need to understand the different visions over monopoly and government power.
The Most Controversial Paper in the History of Psychedelic Research May Never See the Light of Day
Researchers gave psilocybin to two dozen religious clergy. Was it guided by science, religion, or some awkward combination?
The Strange Case of The Immortality Key
Many people depicted in a supposedly "groundbreaking" book on psychedelics and religion are now speaking out against it.
Javier Milei Ended Rent Control. Now the Argentine Real Estate Market Is Coming Back to Life.
"The effects were immediately seen by everyone and they were all beneficial," says the former vice president of Argentina's central bank.
Editor's Note
Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' Sets Up Another GOP Budget Showdown
Almost exactly one year after Congress swore off self-inflicted fiscal crises, we're back to the same tired theatrics.
Topics
Photo: The First Nuclear-Powered Battery
A radioactive isotope embedded in a diamond has the potential to power devices for thousands of years.
Will Trump and the New GOP Congress Get to the Bottom of COVID-19's Origin?
It's a good sign that the president is calling on critics of the federal government's lack of transparency to staff his administration.
Will Trump Embrace the AI Future or Succumb to His Protectionist Impulses?
Trump and Biden both backed trade restrictions that ultimately lead to higher prices for the computer chips necessary to power artificial intelligence.
How To Recover From Debanking
Thousands of people have lost their bank accounts over "suspicious" activity. Here's what to do if it happens to you.
Trump and California Are Set To Duke It Out Over Environmental Policy Again
During Trump's first term, California filed numerous lawsuits seeking to halt deregulation.
Ayn Rand in Ukrainian Crimea
What the Russian-born author would have thought of Russia's war in Ukraine
Trump Praised His A.G. Pick for Reducing Opioid Overdoses. In Reality, Drug Deaths Surged Under Her Watch.
Pam Bondi cracked down on "pill mills" in Florida. The result was increased consumption of black-market alternatives.
Gay Penguins Face Florida's Classroom Speech Regulations
The authors of a picture book about two male penguins raising a chick together argue excluding their book from school libraries violates their free speech rights.
The Media Love Negative Trends, but America Keeps Moving in the Right Direction
Remember the bee apocalypse? The U.S. reversed that trend. What other trends can we reverse?
Culture
Can Ultimate Frisbee Heal the Middle East?
The spread of Ultimate Frisbee testifies to a kind of Western soft power in the Middle East, one far friendlier than bombs or bullets.
Books
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.
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.
Reviews
Review: A Sci-Fi Exploration of a Shadowy Government
The deeply weird Southern Reach Series reminds us that human institutions can turn people into something unrecognizable.
Review: A Novel About Walls, Both Literal and Figurative
Author Haruki Murakami offers a potent reminder of the value of free movement.
Review: Netflix's Biggest Heist Ever Documentary Takes Bitcoin Seriously
The film exemplifies the new age of mainstream respectability the token has entered.
Review: Wicked Is a Letdown for Fans of the Books
The movie musical fails to deliver on the more interesting antiauthoritarian themes of its source material.
Review: Rethinking the Stanford Prison Experiment
Did participants exhibit a natural inclination for cruelty, or were they just doing what they thought researchers wanted?
Review: Armored MMA Is Like UFC but With Medieval Weapons
A bizarre new sport is reaching audiences online, a testament to the value of social media.
Review: Gladiator II Is a Historical Epic About the Dangers of Political Power
Director Ridley Scott explores what happens when people from the fringes of society rise to power.
ETC.
CIA Analyst Martin Gurri on Trump, Chaos, and Optimism
In a post–2024 election conversation, Gurri discussed his vote for Donald Trump and why he is cautiously optimistic about the next four years.
Brickbats: March 2025
News of politicians, police, and bureaucrats behaving badly from around the world.
