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[Report] Playing Dead

Do the Democrats really want reform?

by Andrew Cockburn,

Current Issue August 2025

[Essay] Your Face Tomorrow

The puzzle of AI facial recognition

by Michael W. Clune,

[Revision] Debt Reckoning

Has the Treasury market started to crack?

by Mary Childs,

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that an American has been present for a mass shooting : 1 in 15

[Harper’s Index]

That an American has been injured in a mass shooting : 1 in 46

[Harper’s Index]

Number of congressional Democrats who have died in office since January 2023 : 7

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Republicans who say that it would be appropriate for the pope to influence U.S. politics : 17

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Republicans who said last year that white people face “some” or “a lot of” discrimination : 66

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of people worldwide who say they would contribute 1 percent of their income toward combating climate change : 7/10

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of American women who would support resurrecting dinosaurs through genetic engineering : 1/8

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that a stuffed animal sold in the United States last year was purchased for an adult : 1 in 5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which Americans who identify as politically moderate are likelier to believe in astrology than conservatives : 60

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who said that the Bible was “true” in 2016 : 36

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who regard religious leaders as trustworthy sources of medical information : 1/3

[Harper’s Index]

Who say that masturbation can “definitely” cause blindness : 1/50

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who say they would bring food to a friend or neighbor if they were sick : 67

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage who believe their friends or neighbors would do the same for them : 42

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of personal medical crowdfunding efforts that meet their fundraising goals : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who trust information about nutrition on social media : 68

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans taking paid online surveys who have used AI to write their responses : 1/3

[Harper’s Index]

Average percentage by which AI-generated misinformation on X receives more views than misinformation produced by humans : 8

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that a recently graduated U.S. computer-engineering major is unemployed : 1 in 13

[Harper’s Index]

Age at which the average American says it would be ideal to buy their first home : 29

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated annual amount that a U.S. household needed to earn to afford a median-priced home in 2019 : $67,000

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans aged 18–44 hoping to have a child this year who are reconsidering it because of the economy : 2/3

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage chance, according to the betting platform Polymarket, that the United States will enter a recession this year : 23

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that an American has been present for a mass shooting : 1 in 15

[Harper’s Index]

That an American has been injured in a mass shooting : 1 in 46

[Harper’s Index]

Number of congressional Democrats who have died in office since January 2023 : 7

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Republicans who say that it would be appropriate for the pope to influence U.S. politics : 17

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Republicans who said last year that white people face “some” or “a lot of” discrimination : 66

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of people worldwide who say they would contribute 1 percent of their income toward combating climate change : 7/10

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of American women who would support resurrecting dinosaurs through genetic engineering : 1/8

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that a stuffed animal sold in the United States last year was purchased for an adult : 1 in 5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which Americans who identify as politically moderate are likelier to believe in astrology than conservatives : 60

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who said that the Bible was “true” in 2016 : 36

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who regard religious leaders as trustworthy sources of medical information : 1/3

[Harper’s Index]

Who say that masturbation can “definitely” cause blindness : 1/50

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who say they would bring food to a friend or neighbor if they were sick : 67

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage who believe their friends or neighbors would do the same for them : 42

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of personal medical crowdfunding efforts that meet their fundraising goals : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who trust information about nutrition on social media : 68

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans taking paid online surveys who have used AI to write their responses : 1/3

[Harper’s Index]

Average percentage by which AI-generated misinformation on X receives more views than misinformation produced by humans : 8

[Harper’s Index]

Chance that a recently graduated U.S. computer-engineering major is unemployed : 1 in 13

[Harper’s Index]

Age at which the average American says it would be ideal to buy their first home : 29

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated annual amount that a U.S. household needed to earn to afford a median-priced home in 2019 : $67,000

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans aged 18–44 hoping to have a child this year who are reconsidering it because of the economy : 2/3

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage chance, according to the betting platform Polymarket, that the United States will enter a recession this year : 23

Weekly Review

July 15, 2025

The U.S. president criticized Brazil’s recent Supreme Court rulings that would require social media companies to actively monitor and remove harmful content from their platforms; and on X, the Sesame Street character Elmo, whose account was hacked, and xAI’s chatbot Grok posted anti-Semitic messages. “Too eager to please,” said Elon Musk of the chatbot’s praise for Adolf Hitler. Read More

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Rachel Cusk and Ben Lerner: Live in Conversation

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Harper’s Art Desk

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“Head of Colossus,” a photograph by Sally Gall, whose work is on view through July 18 at Winston Wächter Fine Art, New York City. Courtesy the artist and Winston Wächter Fine Art

Forever, a painting by Kate Gottgens, whose work is on view through September 13 at Huxley-Parlour, Swallow Street, London © Kate Gottgens. Courtesy Huxley-Parlour

A photograph by Henry O. Head, from his book Twelve Acres, which was published this month by Twin Palms Publishers. Courtesy the artist and Twin Palms Publishers

Anacaona (destroy the beauty that has injured me), a painting by Firelei Báez, whose work is on view through September 21 as part of the exhibition Black Earth Rising at the Baltimore Museum of Art. The accompanying catalog, Black Earth Rising: Colonialism and Climate Change in Contemporary Art, was published by Thames & Hudson. © Firelei Báez. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth

“Head of Colossus,” a photograph by Sally Gall, whose work is on view through July 18 at Winston Wächter Fine Art, New York City. Courtesy the artist and Winston Wächter Fine Art

Forever, a painting by Kate Gottgens, whose work is on view through September 13 at Huxley-Parlour, Swallow Street, London © Kate Gottgens. Courtesy Huxley-Parlour

A photograph by Henry O. Head, from his book Twelve Acres, which was published this month by Twin Palms Publishers. Courtesy the artist and Twin Palms Publishers

“Head of Colossus,” a photograph by Sally Gall, whose work is on view through July 18 at Winston Wächter Fine Art, New York City. Courtesy the artist and Winston Wächter Fine Art

Chance that an American has been present for a mass shooting : 1 in 15

July 15, 2025

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Rachel Cusk and Ben Lerner: Live in Conversation

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The Poison That Tastes Like Home

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Microplastics were found in sixty-two of sixty-two human placentas from a biobank in Texas.

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