The Lessons of Flight 253 (The Well / Cover)
Missed signs, cumbersome lists and spotty screening permitted a terrorist to take a makeshift bomb on a Christmas flight to Detroit. What the U.S. should learn from a near calamity

Please Remain Standing (Viewpoint)
Alert passengers averted disaster on Flight 253. So let's stop acting like helpless victims


Can Megachurches Bridge the Racial Divide? (The Well / Religion)
Sunday morning remains the most segregated time in America. How some Evangelicals are bridging the divide


2010 and On: Pundits Get Ready for Their Close-Up (Commentary / Tuned In)
Pundits are turning media stardom into political power. How far will it take them?

The Left's Idiocy on Health Reform (Commentary / In the Arena)
The left is attacking health care reform as a sellout--and helping right-wing populists in the process

Remembrance of Things Future (Commentary)
The start of a new year is a chance to plan ahead before history changes everything


Postcard from Banda Aceh (Postcard)
Five years after the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami, a reporter returns to the disaster's ground zero. A town rebuilt, but scars remain

A Bold Opening for Chess Player Magnus Carlsen (Profile)
Computer trained yet deeply intuitive, Magnus Carlsen, the youngest No. 1 player in chess history, is reinvigorating the game of kings

Merkel's Moment (The Well / World)
A trailblazer and the unchallenged leader of Europe's largest economy, Germany's Chancellor now faces an uncomfortable question, How should her country use its power?


Inbox (Inbox)

The Downward Spiral of David Mamet (Theater)
He's America's most influential playwright. But his new play shows how far wrong he's gone

Sherlock Holmes (Holiday Movies)
It isn't surprising that Guy Ritchie would turn Sherlock Holmes into an action hero. What's surprising is how bland the results are

Nine
Richard Corliss takes the measure of the film version of the Broadway musical based on Fellini's genre-creating movie

It's Complicated
Nancy Meyers' wronged-woman's fantasy, starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, is crippled by its own wish fulfillment

Did You Hear About the Morgans?
The Morgans offers what might seem a welcome respite from all the Oscar-wannabe dramas where Grim Death gargles at you from every scene, but its faux-funniness is no less depressing

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
How is it possible that a movie as bad the Squeakquel earned more than $75 million in its first five days of release?


Can Microfinance Make It in America? (The Well / Business)
Grameen makes loans to tiny businesses in the developing world. With credit tight, now seems like the right time to reach the "unbanked" in the U.S. But money isn't everything


Google Builds a Better Browser (Life / Techland)
What does the king of search bring to Web browsing? Simplicity — and speed

Why Overcoming Phobias Can Be So Daunting (Life / Mental Health)
Amid new data on erasing fear, one man's quest to quash his (odd) source of dread
 How to Fix a Phobia
Three common treatments, plus a promising new one


10 Questions for Brian Williams (10 Questions)
The veteran anchor talks Katrina, Jon Stewart and NBC Nightly News. Brian Williams will now take your questions


Brittany Murphy (Briefing / Milestones)

Brief History: Fad Diets (Briefing)

The World (Briefing)
10 ESSENTIAL STORIES

Percy Sutton (Briefing / Milestones)

Kim Peek (Briefing / Milestones)

The Moment (Briefing)
12|27|09: Tehran

The Skimmer (Briefing)
Book Review: Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche by Ethan Watters

Spotlight: Al-Qaeda in Yemen (Briefing)

Verbatim (Briefing)