Cover Story

THE END OF SOCIAL SECURITY AS WE KNOW IT?
By Robert Dreyfuss
Wall Street is pushing for the program’s privatization, and both parties are listening.

“With politics in its current state, the more caricature the better — if only for a good laugh to deflate the buffoons.” — “Drawn & Quartered

FEATURES

CLOSE SHAVES
By Frank Viviano
A foreign correspondent’s life is sometimes spared by just a hair.

DRAWN AND QUARTERED
by Steven Heller
An art critic picks the top 20 political caricature studies of the past 20 years.

HOW PARADISE LOST
By Gray Brechin
California’s lush farmland once produced bountiful harvests. Now it grows houses.

THE SPIRAL OF INEQUALITY
By Paul Krugman
The widening gap between rich and poor is a result of politics, not just economics.

THE END OF SOCIAL SECURITY AS WE KNOW IT?
By Robert Dreyfuss
Wall Street is pushing for the program’s privatization, and both parties are listening.

WHY WE NEED IT
Interviews by Sydney Lewis
We asked Social Security recipients how much they value their monthly checks.

SAFE AND SECURE?
By Ann Monroe
A look at the various plans for Social Security money once it leaves your paycheck.

DÉJÀ VIEWS
By Theda Skocpol
Conservatives have hated Social Security from the start.

BILL’S BIG BACKERS
By Thomas Ferguson
Disney, defense, and oil helped Clinton come back from his 1994 low.

BOB’S BEST BUDDIES
By Thomas Ferguson
How Bob Dole got the financial stamina to outlast his rivals.

DEPARTMENTS

EDITOR’S NOTE
Uncivil War.

BACKTALK
Gary Snyder’s natural voice; America’s soul; Amway’s hard sell.

OUTFRONT
Does Anybody Give A Hoot?
MoJo’s December Hellraiser!
Nicole Hollander: The Turkey Hotline
ABC’s Unconventional Spin
Hollywood’s Political Odd Couples
Update

HOME/PLANET
A few hints about ecotraveling light.

VISIONS
Al Franken is a really nice guy.

OUTSPOKEN
Newt’s sister, Candace Gingrich.

HOT!MEDIA
Resources for advanced hellraising.

PAULA POUNDSTONE
The X-mas Files.
PLUS: Letters to Paula