The Economist January 12th - January 18th 2008 torrent

Did you know :: In The Simpsons episode \\\"Catch \\\'Em If You Can\\\", Homer is traveling by air in first class and says \\\"Look at me, I\\\'m reading The Economist. Did you know Indonesia is at a crossroads?\\\" and when questioned by his wife, he simply replies \\\"It is!\\\" Four days later, with its customary dry wit, The Economist alluded to the quote, and published an article about Indonesia referring to the \\\"crossroads\\\". The title of the issue was \\\"Indonesia\\\'s Gambit\\\". About seven months later, The Economist ran a cover headline reading \\\"Indonesia at a Crossroads.\\\"



Leaders
=======
America\\\'s election
Up in the air

Colour revolutions in the former Soviet Union
A bit faded but still bright enough

Emerging-market multinationals
Wind of change

America\\\'s economy
A long slog

America in the Middle East
George Bush drinks in the last-chance casbah

Letters
=======
On Kenya, beauty, Canadian workers, Muslims, words, shopping malls


United States
=============
The Democrats
The Comeback Kid, part two

The Republicans
The Mac is back

Primary colour
On the campaign trail

Obamamania
Has the magical mystery tour hit the buffers?

Kenya
Saving the world in his spare time

Nevada and California
Into the West

Bipartisanship
Squeezed out?

Lexington
The Republican crack-up


The Americas
============
Venezuela
Ch�¡vez slows to a trot

Chile
The centre cannot hold

Peru
Suffer the children

Canada
Islam and phobias

Brazil
The granny from Ipanema

Correction: Mexico\\\'s oil industry


Asia
====
Islam in Indonesia
Where �soft Islam� is on the march

Executions in China
The bullet or the needle

Marshall Islands
Home on the range

Censorship in China
Caution: lust

Nepal
The tumbrel rolls


Middle East & Africa
====================
Kenya
Kibaki v Odinga: no compromise yet

The Arabs
Between fitna, fawda and the deep blue sea

Israel
Where do we go from here?


Europe
======
Georgia
Misha bounces back

Rubbish in Naples
See it and die

French politics
L\\\'hyperpr�©sident

German media
The mirror crack\\\'d

Spain and the Catholic church
The bishops\\\' revolt

Turkey and tolerance
Deviating from the path

Charlemagne
Those naive American voters


Britain
=======
The London mayoral race
Political capital

Energy prices
Higher still and higher

Nuclear power
The wind, the sun�and the atom

Bad women
Ma\\\'s behind bars

Interest rates
The central bank\\\'s dilemma [Britain only]

Health-care charges
Please, sir, can I have some more? [Britain only]

Racing changes
Turf wars [Britain only]

Bagehot
The decider

[Britain only] Articles flagged with this icon are printed only in the British edition of The Economist


International
=============
Charles Taylor in the dock
Bringing bigwigs to justice

Islam and democracy
The practice�and the theory

Avoidable deaths
Where do all the dollars go?


Business
========
The music industry
From major to minor

Consumer electronics
Everything\\\'s gone Blu

Chinese toys
No fun and games

The Volkswagen trial
What did he know?

Starbucks v McDonald\\\'s
Coffee wars

Chrysler
Reality bites

The one-lakh car
No lakh of daring

Face value
Totally different


Briefing
========
Emerging-market multinationals
The challengers


Finance & Economics
===================
Banks and the credit crunch
Stepping beyond subprime

R-word index
Warning lights

German banks
Slow motion

Buttonwood
Riding the cycle

Health-care economics
Comparison shopping

The Chinese yuan
Revaluation by stealth

Economics focus
Same as it ever was


Science & Technology
====================
Drug addiction
Going by the book

Astronomy
Where the shadows lie

Co-operative breeding
The perils of togetherness

How to find a mate
The scent of a woman (and a man)

Correction: British physics


Books & Arts
============
New fiction
Searching for truth, whatever that is

American history 1
Durably democratic

American history 2
Towards perfect freedom

The Mafia in Naples
Gangsters go global

American kids
In praise of nerds

Medieval ivories
Pause as you pass


Obituary
========
George MacDonald Fraser