The Week’s Best Longreads: The Daily Beast Picks for July 14, 2012

The Lethal Presidency of Barack ObamaTom Junod, EsquireSure, we as a nation have always killed people. A lot of people. But no president has ever waged war by killing enemies one by one, targeting them individually for execution, wherever they are, even when the collateral damage is innocent American lives.

How the Mormons Make MoneyCaroline Winter, BusinessweekThe Church of Latter-day Saints has amassed financial holdings worth billions. Here's an inside look at its business empire.

The Chickens and the BullsWilliam McGowan, SlateThe rise and incredible fall of a vicious extortion ring that preyed on prominent gay men in the 1960s.

Will Tumblr Sell Out?Rob Walker, The New York Times MagazineThe founder and C.E.O. has a vision for his Web company as a “platform for creativity” unblemished by commercialization. But isn’t that what all 26-year-old tech prodigies say?

A Buddhist Retreat’s Death SagaLizzie Crocker, The Daily BeastA Buddhist ‘Retreat for Peace’ in the rugged Arizona mountains has been less than peaceful lately, as a top student was expelled and later found dead in a cave. The Daily Beast’s Lizzie Crocker went looking for answers.

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