Best of Salon: 2002

We introduced the metrosexual and warned of the dangers of touch-screen voting. Plus: 40 must-see movies, and the kitschification of 9/11.

Published November 11, 2005 10:30AM (EST)

In honor of our 10th anniversary this month, Salon is scouring our archives for the best stories we've published. Every day for 10 days, we will be highlighting one year's worth of memorable pieces. We hope you enjoy them. And use our automated-letters feature at the bottom of this story to tell us what you think we missed.

Forty movies every film fan should see
Are you cinematically literate? Salon's A&E editor picks the best and most influential movies of all time.
By Andrew O'Hehir

Masterpiece: The Chrysler building
New York's most glorious skyscraper, its art deco eagles poised for flight, is a timeless work of Jazz Age poetry in steel.
By Stephanie Zacharek

The kitschification of Sept. 11
America hid from the harsh realities of the attack behind a maudlin curtain of heavenly firemen and weeping angels.
By Daniel Harris

Free speech and the Internet; a fish story
A legal dispute between online aquatic plant enthusiasts and a pet supply store illustrates the perils of casual opining on the Web.
By Katharine Mieszkowski

When outfits attack
In honor of Table Talk's 10th anniversary, we're remembering our favorite posts and exchanges of all time. This week: The legendary spandex anaconda.

Culture war is hell
Sept. 11 may have brought the country together as never before -- but that hasn't fooled William Bennett. He is going cave by cave until every humanist and moral relativist has been smoked out.
By Louis Bayard

The Israeli "art student" mystery
For almost two years, hundreds of young Israelis falsely claiming to be art students haunted federal offices -- in particular, the DEA. No one knows why -- and no one seems to want to find out.
By Christopher Ketcham

Meatmarket.com
n the competitive world of online dating, singles brand themselves as sexy commodities. But what happens when the wrapping comes off?
By Heather Havrilesky

Sam I ain't
Forget his embarrassing, scenery-chewing performance in "I am Sam" -- Sean Penn is one of the two greatest actors of his generation.
By Stephanie Zacharek

Outside the law, Part I of II
Pending lawsuits allege that U.S. military contractors on duty in Bosnia bought and "owned" young women. But the accused men have never been -- and will never be -- brought to justice.
By Robert Capps

Crime without punishment, Part II
Investigators knew employees for U.S. military contractors in Bosnia bought women as sex slaves. But because of legal loopholes and bureaucratic confusion, no one was prosecuted.
By Robert Capps

Dot-com noir
When Internet marketing goes sour: A sordid tale of spyware, "junk traffic," bodybuilding and a half-baked plan for Hollywood glory.
By Brian McWilliams

Black-and-blue in ones and zeros
Digital photography is revolutionizing the prosecution of domestic violence cases.
By Karin Halperin

Invisible women
Sure, Denzel and Will and Eddie have conquered Hollywood. But as Halle Berry's lonely Oscar nod makes all too clear, black actresses still get no respect in the movie biz.
By Stephanie Zacharek

Death in the desert
Mexican migrants are dying at record rates as they try to cross treacherous desert into Arizona. Critics blame the U.S. Border Patrol -- and they're preparing to sue
By James Reel

Meet the metrosexual
He's well dressed, narcissistic and bun-obsessed. But don't call him gay.
By Mark Simpson

Dykes on bikes with mikes
Lynn Breedlove takes us to her manic world of speed freaks, strippers and queer-core punk rock.
By Amy Benfer

Cat people vs. dog people
Who is more annoying? Our intrepid reviewer plunges into the overflowing litter box of pet lit to find out.
By Laura Miller

Lights! Camera! Apocalypse!
Washed-up Hollywood stars battle the antichrist and his smooth-talking liberal minions in the wacky parallel universe of "end-times" Christian movies.
By John Gorenfeld

Ask the pilot
By popular demand: The full, unexpurgated story of what happens when dry ice is mixed with blue toilet acid at 33,000 feet.
By Patrick Smith

Voting into the void
New touch-screen voting machines may look spiffy, but some experts say they can't be trusted.
By Farhad Manjoo

The air industrys worst nightmare
Just days ago, national security executives met secretly with airline CEOs to warn them that al-Qaida may be planning to fire shoulder-launched missiles at commercial jets in the U.S. There's virtually no defense.
By Paul J. Caffera


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