What happened on February 20, 2005
BOOKS
Discoveries By Susan Salter Reynolds
In the absurdist corners of contemporary life By Richard Eder, Richard Eder, the former book critic for The Times, was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for criticism in 1987.
The eternal theater of Arthur Miller By Carlos Fuentes, Carlos Fuentes is the author of more than 20 books, including "The Death of Artemio Cruz," "The Old Gringo" and, most recently, "This I Believe: An A to Z of a Life." This tribute was translated from the Spanish by Alfred Mac Adam.
Chameleonic existence in a world gone mad By Gideon Lewis-kraus, Gideon Lewis-Kraus is deputy editor of the Threepenny Review.
Failed visions of civic virtue By Jonathan Kirsch, Jonathan Kirsch is the author of, most recently, "God Against the Gods: The History of the War Between Monotheism and Polytheism."
After Oz By Lucille Clifton
Compromise. How's that for a revolutionary concept? By Matthew Scully, Matthew Scully is the author of "Dominion" and, until recently, served as special assistant and deputy director of speechwriting for President Bush.
L.A. novels: a coming-of-age story By Susan Salter Reynolds, Susan Salter Reynolds is a Times staff writer and contributes the Discoveries column in Book Review.
OPINION
We Aren't Fighting to Win Anymore By Andrew J. Bacevich, Andrew J. Bacevich is professor of international relations at Boston University and author of "The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Seduced by War" (Oxford University Press, 2005).
A Year-Round Party for Blacks By Al Franken, Al Franken is the host of "The Al Franken Show" on Air America Radio, which can be heard weekdays from 9 a.m. to noon on KTLK-AM 1150 in Los Angeles.
A Soviet Memorial Etched by Ambiguity By D.J. Waldie, D.J. Waldie is the author of "Where We Are Now: Notes From Los Angeles" (Angel City Press, 2004).
Dubya Does Europe By Ivo H. Daalder and Charles A. Kupchan, Ivo H. Daalder is senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Charles A. Kupchan is professor of international affairs at Georgetown University and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
The Forecast for Mainz: Chilly By Jeanne Rubner, Jeanne Rubner is a reporter and editorial writer with the Sueddeutsche Zeitung in Munich.
Labor's Lost Love By Jonathan Tasini, Jonathan Tasini, president emeritus of the National Writers Union, is president of the Economic Future Group.
Yeaaaaa arrrrgg ghhhh!!! By Joel Pett, Joel Pett is the Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist of the Lexington Herald-Leader. His work also appears in USA Today.
A Second-Term Shift? By Nancy E. Soderberg, Nancy E. Soderberg, a senior national security advisor in the Clinton administration, is the author of "The Superpower Myth, the Use and Misuse of American Might."
Schwarzenegger's Risky Scribble By Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, Sherry Bebitch Jeffe is a senior scholar in the School of Policy, Planning and Development at USC and a political analyst for KNBC.
The Times Quotes Firebrands and Convicts the City's Cops By Jack Dunphy, Jack Dunphy is a pseudonym for a Los Angeles police officer who writes for the National Review Online.
MAGAZINE
Suddenly, Africa By Erin Aubry Kaplan, Erin Aubry Kaplan is a staff writer at the L.A. Weekly.