Is Joe Biden gaslighting America?

When it comes to winning a US election, is the answer still “It’s the economy, stupid”? The phrase, memorably articulated by Bill Clinton’s advisor James Carville, suggests that how Americans feel about their personal finances will determine the election outcome. …

Has Beyoncé killed Jolene?

Not long ago, a post crossed my timeline featuring a black-and-white, heart-stoppingly gorgeous photo of Dolly Parton in the Sixties. The caption read, simply: “What the hell did Jolene look like?” One can only wonder.

As a musical artefact, “Jolene” …

The man who betrayed El Chapo

“Of all the drug lords I had business relationships with, [El Chapo] was probably the most difficult one,” Margarito Flores tells me. Over years, Flores and his twin, Pedro, distributed 60 tonnes of cocaine, as well as heroin and crystal …

The Constitution won’t save America

Last month, the US Supreme Court considered arguments in a landmark case on the legality of America’s metastasising censorship-industrial complex. The case, Murthy vs Missouri, rests on whether White House requests that Twitter and Facebook take down alleged Covid misinformation …