Sunday roundup

The damage in Joplin is disorienting.

Nicholas Kristof is starting to think that India is catching up.
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Even if torture could be effective, it's still wrong.

The Times declares South Florida "seemingly an incubator of law-breaking innovation."

In China, dog lovers are fighting the concept of dog meat and sparking a debate.

Maureen Dowd interviewsChristine Laguarde. Five Myths addresses women in combat.

Naomi Wolf reflects on what has and hasn't changed since she wrote "The Beauty Myth," which she opens with this anecdote:

Recently, I was at a party, and a man who, like myself, was in his late 40s, arrived with a woman 20 years younger. It took only a few moments of conversation before the rest of the group realized that the two had very little in common. And yet I did not feel the frisson of envy among the men present, nor did I see a bristle of jealousy from any of the stylish, accomplished women in their 40s. In fact, the mood of both genders was tender, almost pitying. The man may have imagined that he was showing off the youth of his date the way he might show off a new Maserati; but parading her around like an acquisition seemed only to make his friends feel sorry for him.

Here's how hot one can look at 74.

Jonathan Franzen on love, the self, and consumerism. The Post, too, addresses gadget addiction today.

These days we run more than we set.

A writer struggles with the limits of naming female anatomy.

Funny, just this morning I was unimpressed, even turned off, by the writing in the Groupon in my inbox. That might be why I disagree with the quiz question and answer on page 3.

Wow, you know vegan cheese and its alleged inadequacy have gone mainstream when they're in an article about Beyonce (well, about wedding music).