“A Meteor of Intelligent Substance”“Something was Missing in our Culture, and Here It Is”"Liberties is THE place to be. Change starts in the mind.” Liberties, a journal of Culture and Politics, is essential reading for those engaged in the cultural and political issues and causes of our time. Liberties features serious, independent, stylish, and controversial essays by significant writers and leaders throughout the world; new poetry; and, introduces the next generation of writers and voices to inspire and impact the intellectual and creative lifeblood of today’s culture and politics. In this issue of Liberties, highlights include: Martha C. Nussbaum on not hating the body; David Nirenberg and Ricardo Nirenberg explain what numbers cannot capture; Maria Stepanova on living out of time during Covid; Pratap Mehta on India’s Voltaire; Michael Kimmage on American rise of decline; Nicholas Lemann on gaining his religion; Samuel Moyn on rights v. duties in contemporary liberalism; William Deresiewicz analyzes our culture's obsession with origin stories; Alastair Macaulay on Merce Cunningam’s singular beauty and importance; Helen Vendler on the tormented life of Gerard Manley Hopkins; Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn on ancient philosophy as self-help; Philip Kitcher on the cost of pre-professionalization at college campuses; Celeste Marcus on The Night Porter as a love story; Leon Wieseltier on Art, Politics, And Confusion; and, new poems by Andrew Motion, Collin Channer, and Aaron Fagan.