FEBRUARY 20. 2026

China’s Afghan Gold Rush Is Turning Deadly

The Taliban government can’t protect Chinese miners from local hostility.

A Blockbuster Captures Japan’s Identity Crisis

“Kokuho” offers an artful meditation on a country in flux.

What a Gripping BBC Drama Gets Wrong About Tehran Prison Life

A former hostage of the Iranian regime reviews a series based on the story of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

The Men Who Sold the World

Social disaster is becoming increasingly affordable. On February 12 the Trump administration rescinded the Endangerment Finding, a 2009 EPA determination

Trump’s Tariffs Are Unlawful, Supreme Court Rules

But it’s unclear what happens to the tens of billions of dollars already taken from U. S. businesses.

Four Years of War in Europe

Eight thinkers on the lasting impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

What is Trump’s China Policy?

Kurt Campbell: “The president clearly wants short-term deals. ”

Ask a Climate Therapist: How do I deal with friends and family who won’t stop polluting?

Your climate values are conflicting with your closest relationships. Here's some advice on how to cope, from therapist Leslie Davenport.

You’ve Done It Again, Michael

Even as the pace of work life quickened exponentially across the next two decades, email inboxes overflowing, media outlets proliferating and then contracting, websites and newsletters dominating and then collapsing, newspapers going online-only and then vanishing altogether, glossy magazines ceasing print or, again, vanishing altogether, only Michael Silverblatt remained unchanged.

U. S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Trump’s Tariffs

The court ruled that the president does not have the authority to impose tariffs during peacetime under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Epstein Links Threaten Norway’s Global Image

The country parlayed a reputation for probity into diplomatic currency. Now that’s in tatters.

Marco Rubio’s Munich Speech Is More Dangerous Than You Think

What the U. S. secretary of state laid bare about the Trump worldview.

Four Scenarios for a Postwar Iran

Trump wants regime change but not the messy aftermath.

All Quiet on the Eastern Front

Russia's war on Ukraine grinds into its fifth year, yet the Kremlin's strategic position is deteriorating on every front.

In India, Lula Puts Middle-Power Diplomacy on Display

Brazil’s president hopes to cooperate on AI, critical minerals, and more.

What Does Trump Want With Cuba?

How the Trump administration is pushing Cuba into a deeper humanitarian crisis, with guests Michael Bustamante and Andrés Pertierra.

How Gender Attitudes Shape Climate Concerns

Women are more likely to worry about the climate crisis than men. The concept of “hegemonic masculinity” explains this gender gap.

Would you pay $49 a month to drink recycled wastewater?

A recent survey found that rural Americans would pay for the privilege of reusing wastewater. Here's the huge potential benefit of that.

Jesse Jackson’s vision for America embraced environmental justice

The civil rights leader, who died earlier this week, linked segregation, pollution, and political power.

Michael Dobson: Flash and Thunder

As Stephen Greenblatt’s Dark Renaissance shows despite itself, it is not Marlowe’s life story that we still need, ...