Tish Durkin
Should Obama confront China on currency manipulation?
Paul Krugman and others are pushing Obama to demand that China devalue the yuan. As he prepares for his first presidential trip to Asia, here's why the president should ignore their pleas.
Is China dangerous?
Sarah Palin was widely ridiculed for her speech in Hong Kong last month. But Chinese nationalism bubbles nonstop and the alarm Palin raised about the authoritarian regime wasn't stupid—not by a long shot.
Chinese women redraw the social map
No longer bound by ancient village ties, urbanization has unleashed a new generation of Chinese women. For some, it means a Western haircut and a degree from an elite technical college. For others, it means a chance to forage in the city garbage heap.
Eunice's death reminds me: I'm a Kennedy, too
Eunice Kennedy Shriver was a model of the kind of energetic idealist that big, roiling families like the Kennedys once produced. If hypocrisy was a byproduct of their ideals, it was a price well worth paying.
Obama, health-care reform, and the abortion card
Abortion foes want to make sure health-care reform doesn't advance abortion rights. Here's why Obama should give them what they want.
Why Sarah Palin can't be president
Some people would follow Palin anywhere—but there aren't enough of them to get her elected
Attention, Narcissist Horndogs
An Open Letter to Our Nation's Next Brazen Narcissist Horndog Politician du Jour
Europe's mixed messages
In recent elections, Europeans voted right. But they were thinking left.
Sarah Palin's Pavlovian response
Whatever Palin's defenders may cry, her troubles don’t stem from ideology, misogyny, or snobbery but from personality. To run for national office is to have shots fired constantly at oneself and one's family. To win is to master the art of whether, when, and how to fire back. If Palin can't restrain herself from attacking a teenager who is painfully well placed to attack her back, she is not getting anywhere near the White House.
The Irish Debacle
Ireland surged in the 1990s with low taxes and soaring home values. Now not even St. Patrick can save the Irish economy.


