COVER
Getting Real About the High Price of Cheap Food (The Well / Cover Story)
He's raised on grass and hay and lives happily on a pasture by the ocean. His meat is free of antibiotics, but can we afford to eat it? We can't afford not to
From Farm to Fork
Photos: Food has a carbon footprint all its own, but by sourcing locally and sustainably, Palo Alto-based Bon Appétit Management Company is searching for a greener way to produce your lunch
NATION
Obama, the Gay-Marriage Flip-Flopper (The Well / Commentary)
The President is proving not to be deft in handling the unhappiness of his once fervent gay constituency
John Kerry: Back in the Hunt (The Well / Nation)
John Kerry has become something Republicans never imagined and Democrats need: a bipartisan dealmaker
A Health Care Glossary (The Well / Nation)
ESSAY
The GOP Has Become a Party of Nihilists (Commentary / In the Arena)
The irrational attacks on health-care reform show what the GOP has become: a party of nihilists
Joel Stein: If I Ran the Death Panels (The Awesome Column)
If there are going to be death panels, you're really going to want me on yours. Me and Paula Abdul
WORLD
How the Virgin Mary Survived Sri Lanka's Civil War (Postcard: Sri Lanka)
The Catholic feast of the Assumption took on special meaning on the island nation as pilgrims once again could travel to a shrine to the mother of Jesus
Will Iran's 'Kennedys' Challenge Ahmadinejad? (The Well / World)
The Larijani brothers occupy key positions in Tehran, and their relations with the President have been strained. But their attitude to his government will be based on the calculations of power
BRIEFING
The Moment
8|19|09: Kabul
The Skimmer
Book Review: The Healing of America: The Global Questt for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care by T.R. Reid
The World
10 ESSENTIAL STORIES
Spotlight: A Mission to Burma
Verbatim
The World's Fastest Human
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's Jamaican sprint sensation Usain Bolt, who continues to run faster than anyone in history
Don Hewitt (Milestones)
Former South Korean President Dies at 85 (Milestones)
Kim Dae Jung, who died on Aug. 18 of heart failure in Seoul at age 85, was not the father of democracy in South Korea, but he was its consolidator
Death of the Guitar Man: Les Paul (1915-2009) (Milestones)
In the popular mind, guitarist Les Paul existed for half a decade: the years 1950-54, when he and his vocalist-wife Mary Ford enjoyed 16 Top 10 hits, including "How High the Moon" (No. 1 for nine weeks) and "Vaya Con Dios" (No. 1 for 11 weeks)
Robert Novak (Milestones)
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Comedy in the Obama Age: The Joking Gets Hard (Comedy)
With a President who isn't a punch line, these are trying times for stand-up comics. But they are trying
Inglourious Basterds: Stalking History and Hitler (Movies)
Tarantino's World War II saga revives the art of tense film dialogue — and knocks off Hitler
Short List
TIME'S PICKS FOR THE WEEK
BUSINESS
The Rage Over Goldman Sachs (The Well / The Economy)
CEO Lloyd Blankfein has a great backstory. But it's lost in the noise over his firm's lopsided earnings--and its outsize bonuses--as the rest of the country struggles. Is Goldman a paragon of Wall Street smarts or a showcase of its greed?
Can Microsoft's Bing, or Anyone, Seriously Challenge Google? (The Well / Technology)
Microsoft is spending massively on its new search business. Is Bing a better engine? Maybe. Can Google play defense? We may soon find out
Own-ward Bound? (Money & Main Street / Real Estate)
Prior to the real estate bust, cost and mobility made renting a house a better deal than owning. But the equation is changing
The Clunker Debunker (Money & Main Street / Cars)
Sure, if you have to have a new car, the timing is great. But in a highly disrupted auto market, used cars and leases can still deliver value
SOCIETY
Fantasy Football: Is It Going to Our Heads? (Life / Sport)
Football's online offshoot has taken on a life of its own. Are we getting too caught up in it?
Study Suggests HPV Vaccine Is Safe, but Doctors Wary (Life / Health)
The Gardasil vaccine appears to be safe, but doctors are not ready to mandate immunization
Where Pneumatic Tubes Rule (Life / Going Green)
In Sweden, a smart way to move garbage
The Future of Green Cities in a Swedish Eco-Town
On a former industrial site, the city of Stockholm has created a sustainable village of 7,000 earth-friendly apartments
PEOPLE
10 Questions for Jeremy Piven (10 Questions)
The Entourage star's latest film is The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard. Jeremy Piven will now take your questions