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For almost half a millennium, the phrase "call a spade a spade" has served as a demand to "tell it like it is." It is only in the past century that the expression began to acquire a negative, racial overtone.

In the video game Gone Home, you are alone in an empty house trying to piece together the whereabouts of your family. The story that unfolds along the way is at times touching, humorous and emotionally honest.

Racial disparities exist, but what causes them can be complicated. Harvard anthropology student Jason Silverstein says it has to do with a lack of empathy. Host Michel Michel Martin talks with Silverstein about a Slate article he wrote titled, 'I Don't Feel Your Pain.'

Virginia gubernatorial candidates Terry "The Macker" McAuliffe and Ken "Cooch" Cuccinelli may not have much in common politically, but they both do have catchy nicknames. As they meet for their first debate on Saturday, here's a look back at a few other notable political sobriquets.

Neil Gaiman's new book is based on a speech he delivered to graduates of Philadelphia's University of the Arts. When life gets tough, he told them, "make good art." It's advice that served him well when he turned a failed '90s TV series into the "much-loved" novel Neverwhere.

Whether it's logs of phone calls or GPS data, commentator Geoff Nunberg says it still says a lot about who you are: "Tell me where you've been and who you've been talking to, and I'll tell you about your politics, your health, your sexual orientation, your finances," he says.

The conventional shorthand for the IRS scandal is that employees "targeted" conservative groups for extra scrutiny in the applications for tax-exempt status. Except, as an inspector general's report showed, it wasn't just conservative groups that got extra scrutiny. Plenty of liberal groups had to produce extensive documentation answer dozens of questions, too.

City Councilman Eric Garcetti and City Controller Wendy Greuel are in an all-out blitz for votes ahead of Tuesday's election to replace the term-limited Antonio Villaraigosa. But observers say the race hasn't garnered much interest — even though Greuel could become the first female mayor.

Explore three non-symphonies with epic sweep: Terry Riley's minimalist masterpiece In C, Phil Kline's holiday boombox parade Unsilent Night and John Luther Adams' percussion extravaganza Inuksuit.