f you're like me, you live in an area of the world where, outside of an apocalyptic fluke, tornadoes will never hit. In my state, we're lucky even to see "dust devils," those runt-like twisters so wimpy they're almost humorous. (Dust devils aren't quite so humorous if you walk into one and end up with dirt in your eyes and leaves in your hair, but they're still fairly funny.) Anyway, here are two stories that explain what it's like to experience real tornadoes. The kind that can rip your roof off and make you wet your pants. The kind that hit Nashville last week.

Sometimes economic policies can wreak destruction just as powerfully as any natural disaster, if not moreso. Some say the North American Free-Trade Agreement is one such policy, allowing large corporations to lay off workers in the United States while edging out small businesses in foreign lands. In Mexico, a large subversive group called the Chiapas has been protesting these NAFTA effects -- which are only exacerbated by that country's corrupt government -- for some time now. Here's a recap.

For the last few months I've been trying to avoid discussing the Clinton scandals, because like sex, once you start it's hard to stop. (Or so they tell me.) But I'll break the rule this week, if only to mention this article detailing some of the trickle-down untrustworthiness that has resulted from the Bubba brouhaha, and this editorial about Clinton's Starr wars. Sorry, no columns yet about the lovely Elizabeth Gracen, the latest old presidential flame to spill the beans (to use a mouth-watering mixed metaphor). But I'll bet when such columns do materialize, nobody suggests Gracen is lying.

Finally, get a load of this article about Tom Tomorrow's comic strip "This Modern World." Seems he pissed off a few folks when he ran these panels a couple weeks back. Hello?! Didn't the complainers understand the point he was making? The density of such self-appointed cultural censors never ceases to amaze me. Jeez people. Go rent "The Tin Drum" and leave the rest of us alone.

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With Enemies Like These...
Put up or shut up, Mr. Starr. [11]
Memphis Flyer Editors

Condom Nation
Having a rubber in your wallet -- even a taxpayer-subsidized rubber -- doesn't mean you're going to get laid. [12]
Jeff Smith

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The Storm
Reflections on the tornado that struck Nashville last Thursday. [2]

The Storm Part Two
More reflections on the tornado that struck Nashville last Thursday. [3]

Wall Street's Latest War
Chiapas activist Cecilia Rodriguez keeps talking about a new way of being -- one that has wholeheartedly rejected the future mapped out for Mexico in the new world order. [4]
Tim Vanderpool

Conspiracy -- Again!
For about a year now -- long before Monica Lewinsky -- that has been David Bresnahan's mantra. It has framed his post-legislative existence like no other cause, like no other business. Then he got burned. [5]
Katharine Biele

This Conservative World
A political cartoon stirs up controversy. [6]
Jim Hanas

Letters to the Editor
Memphis Flyer readers speak out. [7]

Intel Outside
Intel says it puts a lot into New Mexico's economy -- but what is it putting into our environment? [8]
Brendan Doherty

First Japanese Naturalized
44 years ago this week. [9]
Sue Schuurman

Chain Smokers Link Arms?
They're smokin' mad and some say they're not going to take it any more. [10]
David Madison

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The Hiding Place
The nesting instinct strikes hen-to-be Margaret Renkl. [13]
Margaret Renkl

Odds & Ends
Timed-release news capsules from the flipside. [14]
Devin D. O'Leary

Mr. Smarty Pants
Our resident know-it-all unearths the latest trivia. [15]
R.U. Steinberg

Now What?
Can't get enough news? You're in luck -- more news is created every day. Our Now What? page offers a plethora of recommended links to help keep you living in the present. [16]

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