The Atlantic | January 2002 | Table of Contents

In Post & Riposte:

A New Grand Strategy
Should the U.S. step back from its role as sole superpower and let other regions assume responsibility?

Suburban Greatness
Are suburban middle-class Americans hardy enough to handle a war if necessary?

Women of God
What are your impressions of nuns today?

Ready for Action
What's the appeal of violent action movies?

Mr. Goodbar Redux
Has the romance gone out of romance today? Are dating advice books an insidious influence?

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In This Issue

Letters to the Editor

INNOCENT BYSTANDER: The Gold Standard
by Cullen Murphy

A Renaissance of Liberalism by Michael Kelly
On the Playing Fields of Suburbia by David Brooks
The Mullahs and the Postmodernists by Jonathan Rauch
Strong Fiber After All by Richard A. Posner
Washington Desk: Councils of War by James Fallows
Telecommunications: Keeping the Net Secure by Reed Hundt

At Large: Coping Strategies by P. J. O'Rourke
Moscow: The People's Choice by Jeffrey Tayler
London: The Fruits of the Tory Revolution by Geoffrey Wheatcroft
New York City: How to Make the Country's Most Dangerous Job Safer by Eric Schlosser

The Hard Questions
The first war of the twenty-first century demands unsentimental thinking about many subjects. Here are five.

A New Grand Strategy by Benjamin Schwarz and Christopher Layne
What Went Wrong? by Bernard Lewis
The Gospel According to Osama bin Laden by Reuel Marc Gerecht
A Nasty Business by Bruce Hoffman
The Futility of "Homeland Defense" by David Carr

Centerpiece: Women of God
What does it mean to be a nun in the modern world?
by Mary Gordon

Tells
The unconscious mannerisms that give poker players away
by Andy Bellin

Burn Your Maps A short story by Robyn Joy Leff

Special Collections Grandfather's Box
by Richard Rubin

Wherever A poem by William Pitt Root [with audio]
Trapeze A poem by Deborah Digges
Postolka A poem by Christian Wiman [with audio]
Three Poems by Ellen Bryant Voigt [with audio]

TRAVEL: At Anchor in the Galápagos by Edward J. Larson
PALATE AT LARGE: Five Lakes Grill by Corby Kummer
GARDENS: Plant Zoos by Hatsy Shields
MOVIES: Ready for Action by Francis Davis
SPORT: The Last Squash Tennis Player by James Zug

Incomparable Naturalism
On Anton Chekhov, by Philip Hensher

The Land of Counterpane
The novels of Jan Karon, by Martha Spaulding

New and Noteworthy
Osama bin Laden's mindset; two extraordinary novels; the peaceful collapse of "The Evil Empire"

Mr. Goodbar Redux
Books about dating, reviewed by Cristina Nehring

The Puzzler by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon

Word Court by Barbara Wallraff