COVER

NATION

Besuboru (Chronicles)

Like It Oughta Be In these last (and very rainy) days of Japanese major league baseball, all eyes were on the Central League's embattled first-place Yomiuri Giants:

In the Eyes of Newt (Congress)

The minority whip has his sights on a G.O.P. takeover of the House

Netwatch (Chronicles)

News, Culture, Controversy on the Internet

The High Price of Gridlock (Congress)

Lawmakers head home to voters who appear primed to punish Democrats for the mess in Washington

WORLD

Back to Square One (Diplomacy)

Clinton could face another showdown as Pyongyang backtracks in the nuclear negotiations

Maybe Next Time (Bosnia)

Izetbegovic proposes a six-month delay in lifting the arms embargo -- saving Clinton a hard policy decision

HEALTH & MEDICINE

Prozac's Worst Enemy (Medicine)

A psychiatrist argues in books and on TV that drugs don't help the mentally ill. His critics say he's crazy

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

BUSINESS

Get Asia Now, Pay Later (Trade)

Doing business in China means spawning imitators; will American companies get gypped in the end?

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

A Blast to the Heart (The Arts & Media / SHOW BUSINESS)

With his vast, enthralling Pulp Fiction, director Quentin Tarantino gives Hollywood a welcome jolt

CINEMA: Fast Pitch (Arts & Media / CINEMA)

Albert Brooks is hilarious in the best baseball comedy ever

THEATER: Just Keeps Rollin' Along (Arts & Media / THEATER)

Make-believe at its best, Hal Prince's lavish Broadway staging of Show Boat brings back the glory of Jerome Kern's music

BOOKS: Sketchbook (Arts & Media / BOOKS)

Barry Lopez explores the edges of the natural world

SPECIAL SECTION

The Cruel Sea (Disasters)

The Baltic ferry Estonia sinks with the loss of more than 900 lives

TO OUR READERS

ESSAY