This Week’s Issue: Are We Entering a New Political Era?

Plus: the dark side of Congo's cobalt rush; turning to tech to cure loneliness; and Ryan Murphy's "Halston."  View in browser | Update your preferences     American Chronicles Are We Entering a New Political Era? The neoliberal order seems to be collapsing. A generation of young activists is trying to insure that it's replaced by progressive populism, not by the fascist right. By Andrew Marantz Listen to this story Have a world-class narrator read this to you.     Annals of Espionage Are U.S. Officials Under Silent Attack? The Havana Syndrome first affected spies and diplomats in Cuba. Now it has spread to the White House. By Adam Entous     A Reporter at Large The Dark Side of Congo's Cobalt Rush Cell phones and electric cars rely on the mineral, causing a boom in demand. Locals are hunting for this buried treasure—but are getting almost none of the profit. By Nicolas Niarchos     Brave New World Dept. What Robots Can—and Can't—Do for the Old and Lonely For elderly Americans, social isolation is especially perilous. Will machine companions fill the void? By Katie Engelhart     Comment In Gaza, an Impasse Cannot Be Mistaken for Stability With its continued occupation of the West Bank and its harsh blockade of Gaza, Israel threatens its own future. By Steve Coll     A Critic at Large From Guns to Gay Marriage, How Did Rights Take Over Politics? The N.R.A., the Supreme Court, and the forces driving the country's most intractable legal debates. By Kelefa Sanneh     On Television It's Ryan Murphy's World—"Halston" Is Just Living in It In the Netflix series, Murphy keeps such a tight rein on Halston's world that the designer is unable to breathe as a subject. By Naomi Fry     Books Why Did So Many Victorians Try to Speak with the Dead? Many explanations have been offered for Spiritualism, but the movement was more than a fad. By Casey Cep     Books What the Bolinas Poets Built Along the coast of California, a vibrant literary community came together, but its many styles could not be defined together. By Dan Chiasson   Humor from The New Yorker     Shouts & Murmurs A Letter to My Future Child We don't make the decision not to conceive you lightly. What if, as a teen-ager, you fill the bathroom with Axe body spray? By Cora Frazier     Cartoons from the Issue Cartoons from the Issue Drawings and drollery from this week's magazine.   You're receiving this e-mail because you signed up for This Week's Issue from The New Yorker. Was this e-mail forwarded to you? Sign up.   Unsubscribe | Manage your e-mail preferences | Send newsletter feedback | View our privacy policy    Copyright © Condé Nast 2021. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.