COVER
What We Can Learn from Flight 253 (Cover)
Missed signs, cumbersome lists and spotty screening permitted a terrorist to take a makeshift bomb on a Christmas flight to Detroit. What the U.S. should learn from a near calamity
The Lesson: Passengers Are Not Helpless (Viewpoint)
Alert passengers averted disaster on Flight 253. So let's stop acting like helpless victims
NATION
Can Megachurches Bridge the Racial Divide? (The Well / Religion)
Sunday morning remains the most segregated time in America. How some Evangelicals are bridging the divide
ESSAY
2010 and On: Pundits Get Ready for Their Close-Up (Commentary / Tuned In)
Pundits are turning media stardom into political power. How far will it take them?
The Left's Idiocy on Health Reform (Commentary / In the Arena)
The left is attacking health care reform as a sellout — and helping right-wing populists in the process
Remembrance of Things Future (Commentary)
The start of a new year is a chance to plan ahead before history changes everything
WORLD
Memories of Aceh: Indonesia Five Years After the Tsunami (Postcard)
A TIME reporter recalls ground-zero of a cataclysm and the global outpouring of relief that helped Banda Aceh recover
A Bold Opening for Chess Player Magnus Carlsen (Profile)
Computer trained yet deeply intuitive, Magnus Carlsen, the youngest No. 1 player in chess history, is reinvigorating the game of kings
Merkel's Moment (The Well / World)
A trailblazer and the unchallenged leader of Europe's largest economy, Germany's Chancellor now faces an uncomfortable question, How should her country use its power?
LETTERS
Inbox (Inbox)
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Downward Spiral of David Mamet (Theater)
He's America's most influential playwright. But his new play shows how far wrong he's gone
Sherlock Holmes: Impressive Abs, Unmemorable Action (Holiday Movies)
It isn't surprising that Guy Ritchie would turn Sherlock Holmes into an action hero. What's surprising is how bland the results are
Nine: Not a 10 and Certainly Not an 8-1/2
Richard Corliss takes the measure of the film version of the Broadway musical based on Fellini's genre-creating movie
It's Complicated: But Not Complicated Enough
Nancy Meyers' wronged-woman's fantasy, starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, is crippled by its own wish fulfillment
Did You Hear How Bad The Morgans Is?
The Morgans offers what might seem a welcome respite from all the Oscar-wannabe dramas where Grim Death gargles at you from every scene, but its faux-funniness is no less depressing
Alvin 2: The Unspeakable Squeakquel
How is it possible that a movie as bad as Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel earned more than $75 million in its first five days of release?
Short List
TIME'S PICKS FOR THE WEEK
BUSINESS
Can Microfinance Make It in America? (The Well / Business)
Grameen makes loans to tiny businesses in the developing world. With credit tight, now seems like the right time to reach the "unbanked" in the U.S. But money isn't everything
SOCIETY
Google Builds a Better Browser (Life / Techland)
What does the king of search bring to Web browsing? Simplicity — and speed
Why Overcoming Phobias Can Be So Daunting (Life / Mental Health)
Amid new data on erasing fear, one man's quest to quash his (odd) source of dread
How to Fix a Phobia
Three common treatments, plus a promising new one
PEOPLE
10 Questions for Brian Williams (10 Questions)
The veteran anchor talks Katrina, Jon Stewart and NBC Nightly News. Brian Williams will now take your questions
BRIEFING
Brittany Murphy (Milestones)
Fad Diets
Relying on fad diets to shed a few pounds has been a tradition for centuries, even though there's scant evidence of their effectiveness
The World
10 ESSENTIAL STORIES
Percy Sutton (Milestones)
Kim Peek (Milestones)
The Moment
12|27|09: Tehran
The Skimmer
Book Review: Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche by Ethan Watters
Yemen: Al-Qaeda's New Staging Ground?
The local franchise of al-Qaeda has issued a claim of responsibility for the Detroit terrorism incident. It also boasts greater and more terrifying ambitions