{"id":5485,"date":"2017-02-18T11:06:29","date_gmt":"2017-02-18T16:06:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/?p=5485"},"modified":"2017-02-18T11:07:14","modified_gmt":"2017-02-18T16:07:14","slug":"stick-to-baseball-21817","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/18\/stick-to-baseball-21817\/","title":{"rendered":"Stick to baseball, 2\/18\/17."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>For Insiders, I ranked <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2lLwjCZ\" target=\"_blank\">the top prospects for 2017 impact<\/a>, although we later removed Alex Reyes from the list now that he&#8217;s out for the year. I held my regular <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2lSaZLU\" target=\"_blank\">Klawchat<\/a> on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>On the boardgame front, I reviewed <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2lXb68q\" target=\"_blank\">the light family-friendly game Imhotep<\/a> for <em>Paste<\/em> this week; it was one of the runners-up for the Spiel des Jahres last year, losing to Isle of Skye. Last week, over at Vulture, I wrote about <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2lvqRaA\" target=\"_blank\">some of the best games for couples<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>You can <a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2dtXS3S\" target=\"_blank\">preorder my upcoming book, <em>Smart Baseball<\/em><\/a>, on amazon, or from other sites <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harpercollins.com\/9780062490223\/?utm_source=Keith+Law&#038;utm_medium=athremail&#038;utm_campaign=Smart+Baseball\" target=\"_blank\">via the Harper-Collins page for the book<\/a>. Also, please sign up for <a href=\"https:\/\/tinyletter.com\/keithlaw\" target=\"_blank\">my more-or-less weekly email newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And now, the links&#8230;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Two great investigative reads this week from the <em>New York Times<\/em>. First, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/02\/15\/sports\/olympics\/rio-stadiums-summer-games.html?rref=collection%252Fsectioncollection%252Fsports&#038;action=click&#038;contentCollection=sports&#038;region=rank&#038;module=package&#038;version=highlights&#038;contentPlacement=1&#038;pgtype=sectionfront&#038;_r=1\" target=\"_blank\">already disastrous legacy of the Rio Olympics<\/a>, which should serve as a warning to future bidders (but won&#8217;t). Brazil is still a poor country, and they&#8217;re poorer for the huge investments they made in now-useless infrastructure for the Games. Second, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2017\/02\/17\/world\/americas\/mexico-city-sinking.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\">growing water crisis in Mexico City<\/a>, one of the world&#8217;s largest cities, which also happens to be sinking (as is the other contender for largest city, Shanghai).<\/li>\n<li>Baseball and depression collide in this story on <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalpost.com\/m\/wp\/sports\/mlb\/blog.html?b=news.nationalpost.com\/sports\/mlb\/losing-jake-the-amazing-life-and-tragic-death-of-a-young-blue-jays-prospect\" target=\"_blank\">the life and suicide of Jake Eliopoulos<\/a>, a former day-one draft pick of the Blue Jays who struggled with mental illness and took his own life on his fifth attempt.<\/li>\n<li>Speaking of depression, is it possible that <a href=\"http:\/\/nymag.com\/scienceofus\/2017\/02\/a-new-way-to-understand-and-treat-depression.html?utm_source=pocket&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=pockethits\" target=\"_blank\">it has an actual purpose in evolutionary terms<\/a>?<\/li>\n<li>Thanks in part to decriminalizing many drug offenses, the Netherlands has a lot of empty prison cells, so they&#8217;re using some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/02\/09\/world\/europe\/netherlands-prisons-shortage.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\">to help provide temporary housing to migrants and refugees<\/a>. Our draconian drug laws and privatized prisons have done far more harm than good, and the Dutch and Portuguese present strong models if we ever want to change our policies.<\/li>\n<li>Austin has <a href=\"http:\/\/austin.eater.com\/2017\/2\/14\/14608944\/vigilante-board-game-bar-photos-gallery\" target=\"_blank\">a new boardgame bar and restaurant called Vigilante<\/a>, and I need to visit this place, stat.<\/li>\n<li>Phoenix eats news! The folks behind the wonderful Tacos Chiwas are opening <a href=\"http:\/\/www.phoenixnewtimes.com\/restaurants\/tacos-chiwas-opening-new-tamales-con-cafe-concept-in-phoenix-9086759\" target=\"_blank\">a new tamale place right next door<\/a>. They&#8217;re hoping to have it open around March 4th, just in time for spring training.<\/li>\n<li>Claims about yogurt and other probiotic foods <a href=\"http:\/\/m.motherjones.com\/environment\/2017\/02\/yogurt-microbiome-gut-ed-yong\" target=\"_blank\">are likely overblown<\/a>, as research indicates that consuming these foods doesn&#8217;t alter the makeup of your body&#8217;s microbiome. (They may still be good for you in other ways, of course.)<\/li>\n<li>There&#8217;s a coffee shop in Brooklyn that sells <a href=\"http:\/\/ny.eater.com\/2017\/2\/9\/14563246\/most-expensive-coffee-nyc-taste\" target=\"_blank\">an $18 cup of gesha coffee<\/a>, sparking faux outrage over the price. The coffee costs that much because the beans themselves are hard to grow and of especially high quality. If you don&#8217;t want to spend that much, you have plenty of other options, from $4 pour-over cups of still-great coffee on down.<\/li>\n<li>This story is from four months ago, but highlights how climate change <a href=\"http:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/2016\/10\/13\/newlywed-bride-dies-10-days-after-wedding-from-heart-attack-beli\/\" target=\"_blank\">seems to be causing a rise in ciguatera toxins&#8217; presence in fish<\/a>. The toxin can be fatal to humans, as it was in this case, and isn&#8217;t removed by cooking.<\/li>\n<li>Meanwhile, a woman in Texas is suing Popeye&#8217;s, claiming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/food\/wp\/2017\/02\/13\/woman-claims-popeyes-meal-gave-her-flesh-eating-screwworms-that-ate-her-from-the-inside-out\/?postshare=3101487004530560&#038;tid=ss_tw&#038;utm_term=.3615f9054723\" target=\"_blank\">she got a debilitating screwworm infection from their food<\/a>. The suit may be baseless &#8211; as the article points out, food served at 165 or higher wouldn&#8217;t have the live parasites &#8211; but I posted it to point out that screwworm infections are almost unheard of in the U.S. now because of a government-run program of eradication using synthetic pesticides in the 1950s.<\/li>\n<li>We might be <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.scientificamerican.com\/guest-blog\/biting-back-developing-a-dengue-vaccine\/?WT.mc_id=SA_TW_HLTH_BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">getting closer to a dengue vaccine<\/a>, according to that editorial by one of the scientists overseeing some of the trials, where he also explains why vaccine development takes so long. (Hint: One reason is that vaccines have to be incredibly safe to be approved.)<\/li>\n<li>Unfortunately, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vox.com\/science-and-health\/2017\/2\/15\/14231266\/anti-vaccine-movement-trump?utm_campaign=vox&#038;utm_content=chorus&#038;utm_medium=social&#038;utm_source=twitter\" target=\"_blank\">the vaccine-denial movement is gaining traction<\/a>, spurred on by President This-is-fine-dog&#8217;s open embrace of the debunked vaccine\/autism claim. The same writer, Vox&#8217;s Julia Belluz, also exposed <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vox.com\/2017\/2\/15\/14622632\/robert-de-niro-rfk-jr-vaccine-press-conference\" target=\"_blank\">the bullshit agenda of RFK Jr. and Robert Deniro<\/a>, who promised $100K to anyone who could prove vaccines are safe, which has already been proven. I&#8217;d like to see people skip Deniro&#8217;s film festival this year as long as he&#8217;s making public health threats like this one. (And, Bob, I&#8217;m sorry, but the most likely reason your son has autism is that the DNA in your old-man sperm was degraded.)<\/li>\n<li>A new group called 314 Action is trying to get more scientists to run for elected office, because <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/why-politicians-think-they-know-better-than-scientists-and-why-thats-so-dangerous-72548\" target=\"_blank\">politicians who think they know more than scientists are dangerous<\/a>. Remember that Republican Congressman Lamar Smith (Texas, where else?), chair of the House Committee on Science is a raging science denier, notably on climate change.<\/li>\n<li>Texas is really pushing hard to turn the clock back a century or more, but their fight with the NFL over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/blog\/2017\/feb\/17\/why-texas-governor-is-pitching-a-losing-battle-with-nfl-over-bathroom-bill?CMP=edit_2221\" target=\"_blank\">so-called &#8220;bathroom bills&#8221; that strip protections from LGBTQ citizens<\/a> looks like a battle they can&#8217;t win. I&#8217;d like to see MLB step up on this one now that a state with major league teams is trying to pull the same crap North Carolina and Mississippi did.<\/li>\n<li>Get ready for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/the-next-gop-assault-on-voting-rights\/2017\/02\/12\/1c775b4e-eff4-11e6-9973-c5efb7ccfb0d_story.html?utm_term=.6501ccb0476c\" target=\"_blank\">a nationwide, GOP-led assault on voting rights<\/a>. If the majority won&#8217;t support your party &#8211; as <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/02\/11\/data-shows-a-downward-demographic-spiral-for-republicans\/\" target=\"_blank\">demographic trends indicate is likely<\/a> &#8211; then the way to retain power is to make it harder for opposing voters to cast their ballots. It&#8217;s on all of us to make sure that doesn&#8217;t happen.<\/li>\n<li>Trump&#8217;s assault on the free press included <a href=\"https:\/\/mobile.nytimes.com\/2017\/02\/13\/business\/the-gateway-pundit-trump.html?_r=0&#038;referer=https:\/\/t.co\/idj7zEa9iS\" target=\"_blank\">credentialing a pro-Trump\/white nationalist blog<\/a> whose 28-year-old founder has promised to &#8220;troll&#8221; other media.<\/li>\n<li>It appears that the White House&#8217;s failed travel ban, which they&#8217;re promising to reinstate, has <a href=\"http:\/\/www.economist.com\/blogs\/gulliver\/2017\/02\/i-m-banned\" target=\"_blank\">already hurt American businesses by deterring international travel to the U.S.<\/a>. Trump promised to create jobs, but his biggest move to date will likely destroy them.<\/li>\n<li><em>Haaretz<\/em> argues that <a href=\"http:\/\/www.haaretz.com\/opinion\/.premium-1.772405?v=9EF4CECDDA73760B96CBC133EFE7591F\" target=\"_blank\">Trump is an anti-Semite, and no Jewish person should support him<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Activist Attorneys General in left-leaning states <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vanityfair.com\/news\/2017\/02\/attorney-general-maura-healey-donald-trump\" target=\"_blank\">represent one of the strongest arms of the anti-Trump movement<\/a>, one that this <em>Vanity Fair<\/em> editorial argues he underestimated.<\/li>\n<li>Author Kevin Birmingham, whose book <em><a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/1Ta75pW\" target=\"_blank\">The Most Dangerous Book<\/a><\/em>, about the writing and publication of James Joyce&#8217;s <em>Ulysses<\/em>, was one of my favorite reads from 2016, spoke at length about <a href=\"http:\/\/www.chronicle.com\/article\/The-Great-Shame-of-Our\/239148\/?utm_source=pocket&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=pockethits\" target=\"_blank\">the great shame of universities abusing &#8220;adjunct&#8221; professorships<\/a>, using such de facto freelancers to keep costs down (even as tuition keeps rising, so where&#8217;s that money going?).<\/li>\n<li>There was a very strange heist in London last week &#8211; thieves <a href=\"http:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/news\/crime\/rare-antique-books-worth-2-million-stolen-in-mission-impossible-heist-in-west-london-a3464706.html\" target=\"_blank\">broke into a storage facility and stole over &pound;2 million worth of rare books<\/a>, including one of the original copies of Copernicus&#8217; treatise on the movement of the sun and planets. No one can figure out why they did it, since such books would be impossible to fence, but there&#8217;s fascination over their daring way of getting into the building.<\/li>\n<li>This BBC audio segment <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/programmes\/p04s04kn\" target=\"_blank\">explores left-handedness&#8217; prevalence and reasons it exists<\/a>, as well as debunking &#8220;ambidextrousness&#8221; and explaining how we can be right-footed or left-eyed (like Lisa Lopes).<\/li>\n<li>Alabama is embroiled in its own scandal, as the corrupt Governor <a href=\"http:\/\/www.al.com\/news\/birmingham\/index.ssf\/2017\/02\/lawmaker_who_started_impeachme.html\" target=\"_blank\">appointed the Attorney General who was supposed to investigate him to Jeff Sessions&#8217; vacated Senate seat<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li>The Oroville Dam evacuations created a temporary surge in refugees, and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/nation\/la-me-sikh-temples-oroville-evacuees-2017-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">a local Sikh temple opened its doors to them<\/a>, building new connections with their neighbors in the process.<\/li>\n<li>Finally, this piece about <a href=\"https:\/\/medium.com\/@justaride\/why-liberals-are-wrong-about-trump-c865b12c72a7#.91iaj3ip5\" target=\"_blank\">why liberals are wrong about Trump<\/a> is a must-read regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For Insiders, I ranked the top prospects for 2017 impact, although we later removed Alex Reyes from the list now that he&#8217;s out for the year. I held my regular Klawchat on Thursday. On the boardgame front, I reviewed the light family-friendly game Imhotep for Paste this week; it was one of the runners-up for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[60,828,84,131,190,870,807],"class_list":["post-5485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-boardgames","tag-climate-change","tag-coffee","tag-food-safety","tag-links","tag-stick-to-baseball","tag-vaccines","entry"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5485"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5486,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5485\/revisions\/5486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}