The Progressive magazine

You want frustration -- try being stuck on a transcontinental flight that has to make an unscheduled stop to pump out the heads. The good that came from this odd day locked in a tightly packed plastic box with a lot of none at all contented fellow cattle was that I read the October issue of The Progressive magazine from cover to cover.

I find it is too easy to take this old faithful print publication for granted -- a monthly cannot be timely; it is not slick, and neither is it highbrow. But sometimes it manages to be very thoughtful. Some provocative articles held my attention today:

• Our Al Qaeda Problem -- Sasha Abramsky challenges the left to propose a way of understanding Bin Laden's fanatic movement that goes beyond being anti-imperialist in relation to the West, but still advocates for a democratic alternative to anyone's theocracy. I agree we have work to do, though I have many quibbles with Abramsky. Worth pondering.

• a Randall Robinson interview -- the founder of TransAfrica tells why he has given up on the U.S., explains why African Americans need and deserve reparations, and slams Colin Powell and Condi Rice.

• a thoughtful review of new books on the death penalty, questioning whether the abolition movement should lean on showing that innocent persons are sometimes sentenced to execution.

It was nice to be reminded that there are thoughtful print pubs struggling on while so many of us turn to the Internet.