>> Mic Harrison (formerly of Superdrag) brings some alt-country goodness to the Velvet Lounge tonight, with The High Signs and Julie Ocean (ex-Velocity Girl). Show starts at 9 p.m. >> SILVERDOCS is in its first full day, so head on up to Silver Spring to check out a wide array of documentary film on offer. We'd recommend Oliver Hodge's Garbage Warrior at 8:45 p.m., about New Mexico architect Michael Reynolds, who builds homes out... more ›

MONDAY: Leftover anger from last week's G8 Summit? Check out John Perkins at Politics and Prose tonight. He'll be discussing his newest book The Secret History of the American Empire: Economic Hit Men, Jackals, and the Truth about Global Corruption, which details the shady deals behind U.S. foreign aid to developing countries. 7 p.m. TUESDAY: Hurricane season is upon us yet again, and this August will mark the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's devastating impact... more ›

MONDAY The perniciousness of apartheid, as well as its utter inanity, is well distilled in the person of Sandra Laing. While born to white parents, her darker complexion caused authorities to classify her as black at age nine, then white again at age eleven. For people too casually comfortable with discrimination, Judith Stone’s account of Laing’s life, When She Was White: The True Story of a Family Divided by Race [in South Africa], is a... more ›