In 55 wide-ranging lists, TIME surveys the highs and lows, the good and the bad of the past 12 months
Birth Rate Plunges During Recession
The youngest baby boomers will begin turning 50 next year, a noteworthy milestone in the graying of America.
The Invisible World of Nannies, Housekeepers and Caregivers
“She’s like a member of our family.” Behind the well-intentioned sentiment, so often said of nannies and caregivers, lurks a sad truth.
Bashar Assad’s Chemical-Weapons’ Calculus
The U.S. and its allies have made it clear that Syrian strongman Bashar Assad can continue to slaughter his fellow citizens with lead bullets and iron bombs – but that chemical weapons constitute a red line that will trigger a …
“Charlotte Shultz, George's wonderful wife, was having a conversation with him in my presence, and she was saying, “George, you and Sam and Bill are getting old. You're 92, Kissinger's 89, 90, Perry's 83 or 84 and Nunn's 74. Can't you get some younger people involved?" And George replied, “Yeah, Charlotte,” he said, “we were thinking about Colin Powell and Madeleine Albright.”
More Than the Navy’s Numbers Could Be Sinking
Second of three articles
The shrinking size of the fleet is just one variable in considering its adequacy: the ability to perform assigned missions, especially after withstanding whatever threats may exist, is a far better …
Another Day, Another Meeting
A pair of U.S. Army soldiers returns from providing security at a meeting in Farah City, Nov. 18.
What’s Behind Cory Booker’s Food Stamp Challenge
It is all but impossible for politicians to be successful if they cannot relate to their constituents and few do so better than Cory Booker.
Boy, You’re Gonna Carry That Weight…Or Maybe Not!
Militaries have long struggled to strike a balance between how much gear a soldier has to carry into battle. Too much, and he can’t move. Too little, and he might run out of ammo and food, or lack the armor he needs to survive. …
Viewpoint: Banning Women from Combat Is Unconstitutional
When Major Mary Jennings Hegar was serving as a captain in Afghanistan her aircraft was shot down by enemy fire while she and her crew were evacuating injured soldiers.
Study Links Food Allergies To Pesticides In Tap Water
Is our drinking water making us sick?
How You Can Tell the U.S. Has Been at War Too Long
The service is also “seeking sponsorship for a Superbowl XLVII in an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia.”
If More Money Buys a Smaller Fleet, What Will Less Money Buy?
First of three articles
During the third debate of the presidential campaign, President Obama hammered Mitt Romney with a clever retort when Romney pointed out—accurately—that the U.S. Navy had become “the smallest since …