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Murder in six degrees

Peter Ivers — pals with john Belushi to the Circle Jerks — was killed in 1983. A new book recalls his fascinating life — and mysterious death.
You’ve probably never heard of Peter Ivers.

By: MIKE MILIARD | September 10, 2008

Photos: March on the RNC

Protesters rallied in St. Paul
Protesters rallied in St. Paul

By: KATHY CHAPMAN | September 08, 2008

Canada's most picturesque province is surprisingly also the fertile center of an underground marijuana explosion
It seems modern-day islanders have discovered another way to smile through the summer and avoid the blues during the bleak local winters.

By: ALAN R. EARLS | August 19, 2008

Photos: North Korea's surreal Mass Games

While everyone else watches the Olympics, Asia's weirdest sporting event transpires in the world's most secretive country
While the world’s eyes are focused on the Olympic Games in Beijing, just 500 miles away another major sporting extravaganza will kick off in the more austere communist capital of Pyongyang. The Mass Games, held twice annually in North Korea, is the most incredible spectacle to witness in the most secretive country on earth.

By: MICHAEL GAO | September 08, 2008

China, Tibet, and the Olympics

Buddhist scholar Robert Thurman explains the Dalai Lama’s political wisdom, the myopia of the Chinese, and the essence of the Olympics
It is difficult to imagine an American — perhaps any Westerner — with a greater sympathy for, and understanding of, Tibet than scholar-activist Robert Thurman.

By: PETER KADZIS | August 08, 2008

Beijing 2008

Special issue: China, Tibet, and the Olympics
Special issue: China, Tibet, and the Olympics

By: PHOENIX STAFF | August 08, 2008

Chinese democracy

A field guide to oppression in the home of the 2008 summer games
With Beijing 2008 finally at hand, China’s Tibetan occupation remains Hollywood’s cause célèbre .

By: ADAM MATTHEWS | August 08, 2008

Photos: Beijing Snapshots

Starbucks, Celtics jerseys . . . where are we again?
I should have known that a country that vehemently denied SARS and tried to poison our pets and children might be a little less than forthcoming about the asinine, algae-scented shitshow that is the 2008 Olympics.

By: SARA FAITH ALTERMAN | August 09, 2008

Too scared to win?

Barack Obama must fight for his principles, or he’ll give away the keys to the White House
What people want is someone who knows what he believes, says so, and stands up for it even in the face of criticism.

By: JEFF INGLIS | August 13, 2008

Parody flunks out

Political humor is no longer welcome in Academia as administrators choke the life out of parody
Artist Barry Blitt’s brilliant illustration — which sought to satirize the naysayers who portray Obama as a flag-burning, unpatriotic Muslim and his wife as a black-power radical — cut to the core of today’s political paradox.

By: HARVEY SILVERGLATE | July 30, 2008

Where has all the Gonzo gone?

In the first presidential election since the death of Hunter S. Thompson, we finally realize what we've lost
On top of everything else they’ve blighted over their awful eight-year reign, the Bushies did this: they killed Hunter S. Thompson.

By: MIKE MILIARD | July 28, 2008

Street cred

Sports blotter: "This year's Xbox" edition
Sports blotter: "This year's Xbox" edition

By: MATT TAIBBI | July 23, 2008

Does Boston hate the BPD?

A secret survey shows just how low the Boston Police Department’s reputation had sunk two years ago. Is the mayor listening?
When Kathleen O’Toole served as Boston police commissioner, from early 2004 through mid 2006, she and Mayor Thomas Menino seemed in constant denial of the spiraling violence and shocking police scandals that were roiling the city.

By: DAVID S. BERNSTEIN | July 18, 2008

The 11th Annual Muzzle Awards

Silencing free speech
Freedom of expression may be guaranteed by the Constitution. But it’s an idea we have to fight for every day.

By: DAN KENNEDY | July 05, 2008

Immigrant song

How US terror policy is ruining your summer concert season
You, my young British friend, start a band.

By: JASON O'BRYAN | June 18, 2008

Habeas-corpus rights restored to enemy combatants

One of our most important civil-liberty victories to date
This past week, the Supreme Court rejected the Bush administration’s astonishing claim that it had the power to detain suspected “enemy combatants” at Guantánamo Bay — potentially for life — without fair proceedings or meaningful access to the federal courts.

By: HARVEY SILVERGLATE | June 18, 2008

A night in Guantánamo

Staying in a replica cell, with no waterboarding included
I’d volunteered to spend the night in the replica cell (which is modeled on the ones at Gitmo) because we’ve all heard stories about unlivable conditions at Gitmo but can’t come close to imagining what it must be like.

By: JEFF INGLIS | June 18, 2008

Will Harvard drop acid again?

Psychedelic research returns to Crimsonland
In a moment of delightful whimsy in the annals of drug history, Albert Hofmann, after purposely ingesting LSD for the first time, rode his bicycle home and experienced all manner of beatific and hellish visions.

By: PETER BEBERGAL | June 09, 2008