The Best of the Beast, May 19-25
Our favorite stories for your weekend reading list.
How Pfizer Helped Make ‘Spice,’ The Deadly Fake Potby Abby HaglageA designer drug tied to the overdose of thousands partially initiated in the labs of one of the world’s biggest pharmaceutical companies.
‘Over My Dead Body’: Spies Fight Obama Push to Downsize Terror Warby Eli LakeThe Obama administration concluded in 2012 that al Qaeda posed no direct threat to the U.S.—and has sought to scale back the fight ever since, over intel officials’ rising objections.
Obama Let the VA Scandal Become a Political Circusby Jacob SiegelThe president spoke out forcefully on the VA scandal that’s blamed for dozens of deaths. But his words came too late; this is now a spectacle and a political circus.
Bob Dylan’s ‘Da Vinci Code’ Revealedby Chris FrancescaniResearchers say they’ve uncovered more than 1,000 items lifted from other authors in Dylan’s ‘Chronicles.’ And that’s just the beginning.
The Facebook Page Where Iran’s Women Are Unveiling Onlineby Nina StrochlicMeet the young Iranian exile whose stealth Facebook page—it allows women to post pictures of themselves without their hijabs—has outraged the authorities in Tehran.
Giving Adderall to Toddlers Is So Completely, Utterly Wrongby Russell SaundersThe American Academy of Pediatrics recommends ADHD not be diagnosed until at least the age of 4. So why are so many doctors prescribing meds to 2- and 3-year-olds?
Jude Law and the Great Male ‘He-Vage’ Crisisby Tim TeemanJude Law went shopping this week in a T-shirt that barely contained his huge chest. When, and why, did men start brazenly displaying their hairy cleavage—and wouldn’t modesty be better?
The Conservatives’ Great Black Hopeby Evan GahrDr. Ben Carson has been held up as a potential 2016 presidential candidate. He has no political experience, but Republicans now say that doesn’t seem to matter.
Can Maya Rudolph Save the Variety Show?by Kevin Fallon‘The Maya Rudolph Show’ attempts to bring the variety format back to prime time. The show was expectedly hilarious. But is that enough to revive the dated genre?
The Heart Association’s Junk Science Dietby Dr. Barbara H. RobertsScience shows the low-fat diet to be BS, and yet the American Heart Association keeps touting it as the ‘heart healthy’ choice. Why? The quick answer: money, honey.
Why ‘Game of Thrones’ Loves Porn Starsby Aurora SnowSome say the nudity in Game of Thrones is exploitation under the guise of ‘sexposition.’ Others, namely adult film stars, call it work.
Skirts Should Be a Normal Choice…for Both Women and Menby Erin CunninghamSchoolboys in France stirred up gender norms when they eschewed pants last week. But men in skirts shouldn’t be a provocative sight…it should be a choice as normal as women in pants.
Inside a Hollywood Hit Job: How Sting Artist James O’Keefe Tried to Set His Latest Trap—And Got Stung Himselfby Caitlin DicksonSting artist James O’Keefe says anti-fracking filmmaker Josh Fox is one of his latest victims. But Fox says his own secret tape reveals O’Keefe’s true methods.