One way the past decade wasn't utterly depressing.

• Author: Peters, Charles
• Position: TILTING at windmills - Column

Ten years ago, I knew the time for me to retire from running the Monthly was drawing near. I also knew that Paul Glastris was leaving his job as a speechwriter for Bill Clinton's White House.

I had first met Paul when, as a very young man, he came to a conference we held on neoliberalism in 1983. His interest in our obscure ideology of course caused me to think of him as a potential soul mate, an impression that became a firm conviction after he served as a summer intern a year later and then as editor from 1986 to 1988.

When I retired from the Monthly, I wanted to be sure to turn it over to someone who shared what we called the "gospel." So I immediately began talking to Paul about...