Slate Articles

Mad Men, Season 6

Seth Stevenson — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:52:56 GMT

Hanna, Paul,

Apple and the Idiocy of Taxing Profits

Matthew Yglesias — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:48:21 GMT

How does a company earn almost $30 billion over four years with no employees and no physical office? That’s the miraculous tale of Apple Operations International, an Ireland-based shell company established by Apple for the purpose of making profits disappear from the prying eyes of the tax man. Every large international firm has lots of fungible money, and tax law varies substantially from place to place, so companies shift that money around in tricky ways to minimize taxes. Viewed from the United States, Apple Operations International looks like an appalling tax dodge. The company, such as it is, is not registered in the United States, so the IRS can’t tax it even though it has no employees, no physical presence in Ireland, and has held 32 of its last 33 board meetings in Cupertino, Calif. Viewed from Ireland, it also looks like an appalling dodge. It’s exempt from Irish taxation, too, on the grounds that it’s not managed in Ireland.

Can a City be a Tornado Magnet?

Brian Palmer — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:35:36 GMT

A massive tornado struck the city of Moore, Okla., on Monday, killing dozens of people, with many still missing. Before Monday’s disaster, the Oklahoma City suburb was struck by major tornadoes in 1998, 1999, 2003, and 2010. Is there something about Moore that attracts twisters?

Where to Hide From Mother Nature

Brendan Koerner — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:18:00 GMT

A tornado devastated parts of Oklahoma City on Monday, twisting schools, hospitals, and neighborhoods into rubble and killing dozens of people. Tornado Alley is a dangerous place to live. Considering all the tornadoes, hurricanes, fires, and floods that afflict the United States, what is the safest place to live? Wyoming? Maine? West Virginia? Slate crunched the numbers in 2005. The original story is below.

How Did "Tornado Alley" Get Its Name?

Jeremy Singer-Vine — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:15:00 GMT

Yesterday’s devastating tornado in Oklahoma spun through the heart of “Tornado Alley.” In 2011, Explainer asked how and when this region got its name, especially since some of the deadliest tornadoes take place outside its boundaries. The original story is below.

NBC Couldn’t Save Save Me

June Thomas — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:13:00 GMT

In the opening moments of a new TV show that premieres this week, a disheveled, hammer-wielding woman stands over her sleeping husband, considering whether to kill him. Deciding against homicide, she heads down to the kitchen, where she chugs a beer, greedily rips into a massive hoagie, and chokes to death.

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Learning to Love the Poems of Edward Thomas

David Rivard — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:00:00 GMT

I came to “There’s Nothing Like the Sun,” and Edward Thomas’ work in general, quite late, thanks to some of my more inane prejudices. The image I’d developed of Thomas’ poems (without having read many of them) didn’t hold much appeal, not for somebody like me, who has lived in cities all his life. I’ve always loved best the American poets who have been most tuned in to life in those places: Williams and O’Hara in particular. Thomas’ sensibility initially seemed to me the product of “cottage England.” His interest in the natural world seemed … well, sort of unrelenting.

Mad Men, Season 6

Hanna Rosin — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:30:00 GMT

Paul, Seth:

Thanks for Nothing

Emily Yoffe — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:15:00 GMT

Emily Yoffe, aka Dear Prudence, is on Washingtonpost.com weekly to chat live with readers. An edited transcript of the chat is below. (Sign up here to get Dear Prudence delivered to your inbox each week. Read Prudie’s Slate columns here. Send questions to Prudence at prudence@slate.com.)

Who's Your Daddy?

Daniel Engber — Tue, 21 May 2013 09:45:00 GMT

First Jackie learned her brother Alex was her uncle. Then things got a little weird.