Sunday Best: Americans are down on the economy. They shouldn’t be.

There are reasons to have hope.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story November 14, 2021 The U.S. economy may be booming, but recent data suggests that many Americans feel otherwise. Why? Snarled supply chains and higher prices for things like food and rent hardly help. But that can't be the full story, Paul Krugman writes, because while gloomy about the state of the country's finances, Americans still seem to be feeling pretty good about their own. So what's really going on? And will morale ever lift? There are reasons to believe it might, Spencer Bokat-Lindell explains in Times Opinion's Debatable newsletter. After all, he says, "much of the recent economic turmoil started with the pandemic; much of it could end with it too." — Jennifer Brown Blue States, You're the Problem Why do states with Democratic majorities fail to live up to their values? By Johnny Harris and Binyamin Appelbaum Shira Inbar Guest Essay You Are the Object of a Secret Extraction Operation Ending data extraction is the key to ending surveillance capitalism. By Shoshana Zuboff Anna Parini Guest Essay 'Look at My Face,' I Told a Man Before He Was Executed The death penalty is wrong, but we can still uphold the dignity of the condemned. By Helen Prejean Kiran Joan Guest Essay How to Teach a Little Girl to Love Her Brown Skin "I don't like my skin color," my beautiful, brown-skinned daughter told me. "I wish my skin was lighter. It's prettier." By Wajahat Ali Eiko Ojala Guest Essay The Shadow of Ronald Reagan Is Costing Us Dearly Social welfare has been a boogeyman of the right and left since Reagan. By Claire Bond Potter EDITOR'S PODCAST PICK RAKASH MATHEMA/Getty Images Got Climate Doom? Here's What You Can Do to Actually Make a Difference Genevieve Guenther and David Wallace-Wells on what matters and doesn't in your personal fight against climate change. By 'The Argument' Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT Subscribe Today New York Times Opinion curates a wide range of views, inviting rich discussion and debate that helps readers analyze the world. This work is made possible with the support of subscribers. Please consider subscribing to The Times with this special offer. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Sunday Best from The New York Times. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. Subscribe to The TimesGet The New York Times app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018