Outside the Beltway

It’s worth reminding ourselves, in a country where so many are trying to figure out the best way to keep excess fat off our bodies, how recently abject poverty was widespread here

They might not be able to fix the economy or the healthcare system or agree on an efficient tax policy but Congress has managed to reach accord on one of the most serious problems facing America: loud television commercials.

Business is booming for box sets of 1960s acts remastered into the original mono.

A Vanity Fair piece imagines what John Lennon’s life would have been like had he survived an assassin’s bullet.

The UFCW of Nevada pays temporary workers minimum wage to demand fair treatment and wages from Wal-Mart.

Jon Stewart has made the transition into the post-Bush era much more effectively than his protege, Stephen Colbert.

The super rich have a lot larger share of total income than they did a generation ago. Are they taking it from the rest of us?

Beloved comedian and character actor Andy Griffith’s popularity in his home state has plummeted since making commercials endorsing ObamaCare and some Democratic candidates.

Has the digitization of entertainment — DVRs, iPods, iPods, digital cameras, Netflix, and so forth — transformed it from fun into work?

What’s the deal with iTunes?

Has MAD MEN jumped the shark? Or is it getting better?

Christopher Walken does a dramatic reading of Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” recycles a Steve Allen bit from before I was born. But it’s still hilarious.

Radio host Dr. Laura Schlessinger is quitting her radio show following a firestorm over her use of the N-word.

Students entering college today have never worn a wristwatch and think email is slow.

A mere thirty years after the Rubik’s Cube craze died out, a team of math geeks has proven once and for all that the puzzle can be solved in 20 moves or less from any position.

It’s rumored that Rick Gervais, who starred in the British original version of “The Office,” will reprise his role of David Brent and replace Steve Carrell on the American version of the show.

When I saw Esquire’s headline, “A Rather Strange Conversation with William Shatner,” my thought was, Is there any other kind?

A Princeton economist has devised a formula for a classic sitcom paradox.

Muhammed may be in a bear suit, but he still got an Emmy nomination.

Another depressing poll demonstrating American historical ignorance.

After 69 years fighting crime in a star-spangled bathing suit, Wonder Woman will get a super hero costume.

The actress best known for her role as Blanche Deveraux on “The Golden Girls” has died of a stroke.