{"id":5627,"date":"2017-04-08T20:54:13","date_gmt":"2017-04-09T00:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/?p=5627"},"modified":"2017-04-09T09:37:34","modified_gmt":"2017-04-09T13:37:34","slug":"stick-to-baseball-4817","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/2017\/04\/08\/stick-to-baseball-4817\/","title":{"rendered":"Stick to baseball, 4\/8\/17."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I had one Insider post this week, on <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2nS5AoO\" target=\"_blank\">the most prospect-packed minor league rosters<\/a> to open the season. I have already filed a draft blog post on last night&#8217;s outing by Hunter Greene, with additional notes on a half-dozen other draft prospects, including Brendan McKay and Austin Beck. (EDIT: <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2oSoBLw\" target=\"_blank\">It&#8217;s up now<\/a>.) I held my regular <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2nHEYWC\" target=\"_blank\">Klawchat<\/a> on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>I resumed boardgame reviews for <em>Paste<\/em> this week with a look at <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2oKwnHu\" target=\"_blank\">the reissue of Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective<\/a>, specifically the Jack the Ripper &#038; West End Cases set, but found it more like a solitaire puzzle than a cooperative game.<\/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>. The book now has two positive reviews out, one <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kirkusreviews.com\/book-reviews\/keith-law\/smart-baseball\/\" target=\"_blank\">from <em>Kirkus Reviews<\/em><\/a> and one from <em><A href=\"http:\/\/www.publishersweekly.com\/978-0-06-249022-3\" target=\"_blank\">Publishers Weekly<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>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>Long reads first: &#8220;It is the obligation of every person born in a safer room to open the door when someone in danger knocks.&#8221; That&#8217;s from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2017\/apr\/04\/dina-nayeri-ungrateful-refugee\" target=\"_blank\">this must-read piece from Iranian-born professor Dina Nayeri<\/a>, writing in <em>The Guardian<\/em> about the folly and danger of demanding that refugees be &#8220;grateful.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.seattletimes.com\/pacific-nw-magazine\/pearl-jams-hall-of-fame-career-began-in-a-seattle-basement\/?utm_source=twitter&#038;utm_medium=social&#038;utm_campaign=article_left_1.1\" target=\"_blank\">How about the history of Pearl Jam<\/a> to commemorate the band&#8217;s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? I was glad to see the band&#8217;s predecessor, Mother Love Bone, get a mention; <em>Apple<\/em> was an album ahead of its time lyrically and was full of great hooks.<\/li>\n<li>From October: the <em>New Yorker<\/em> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2016\/10\/03\/the-new-star-of-germanys-far-right\" target=\"_blank\">profiled Frauke Petry<\/a>, the new star of Germany&#8217;s neo-Nazi right. <\/li>\n<li>Delaware&#8217;s own Dogfish Head brewery has been <a href=\"http:\/\/www.delawareonline.com\/story\/money\/business\/2017\/04\/07\/dogfish-head-fights-protect-its-brand\/100049976\/#&#038;utm_campaign=fbboost\" target=\"_blank\">aggressively suing competitors over trademark violations<\/a>, incurring the wrath of smaller craft brewers and craft beer aficionados. While the owner is technically right that he has to defend the trademarks to protect them, why couldn&#8217;t he license certain terms, like Namaste, for a nominal fee instead?<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mobile.nytimes.com\/2017\/04\/07\/opinion\/what-is-bashar-al-assad-thinking.html?smid=tw-share&#038;referer=https:\/\/t.co\/lg7q9sTwIJ\" target=\"_blank\">What is Bashar al-Assad thinking<\/a> by using chemical weapons in Syria&#8217;s civil war? I don&#8217;t know, but I would guess what he&#8217;s thinking now is that he&#8217;s discovered how far he can go without provoking a response. He can kill as many civilians as he likes, any way he wants, as long as he doesn&#8217;t use chemical weapons to do so.<\/li>\n<li>Texas Republican Lamar Smith heads the House Committee on Science even though he&#8217;s among the worst science deniers in Washington. Now ER doctor Ryan Allen <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdpac.com\/campaigns\/204570\/for-the-health-of-texas\" target=\"_blank\">is trying to run against the popular Congressman<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>With the ongoing call for reducing regulations as a whole, and specifically speeding new medications to market, NPR ran an editorial <a href=\"http:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/health-shots\/2017\/04\/04\/522583228\/taking-shortcuts-in-drug-testing-can-put-patients-at-risk?utm_source=twitter.com&#038;utm_campaign=science&#038;utm_medium=social&#038;utm_term=nprnews\" target=\"_blank\">pointing out the drawbacks of this approach<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li>Why are Americans <a href=\"http:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/society\/why-americans-have-come-to-worship-their-own-ignorance\/?utm_source=pocket&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=pockethits\" target=\"_blank\">so in love with their own ignorance<\/a>? Professor Tom Nichols attempts to answer this question in a Q&#038;A with Maclean&#8217;s and in his new book, <em><a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2nsJ9ul\" target=\"_blank\">The Death of Expertise<\/a><\/em>.<\/li>\n<li><em>Parents<\/em> goes for science in an op ed that explains <a href=\"http:\/\/www.parents.com\/recipes\/healthyeating\/why-i-dont-feed-my-family-organic-food\/\" target=\"_blank\">Why I don&#8217;t feed my family organic food<\/a>. I&#8217;m with the author on every point but the antibiotics: The concern about them isn&#8217;t that they end up on the plate, but that they&#8217;re used at all, and the organic label is one of the few ways to ensure that you&#8217;re not supporting the overuse of antibiotics by factory farming outfits.<\/li>\n<li>There&#8217;s a new theory behind the cause of celiac disease &#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.popsci.com\/virus-triggers-celiac-disease#page-2\" target=\"_blank\">a group of scientists claims a virus is triggering it<\/a> in people already genetically predisposed to the autoimmune disease. The real upshot: Eating processed, hybridized wheat is not what causes celiac, no matter what your local quack tells you.<\/li>\n<li>An unvaccinated Laguna Beach High School student <a href=\"http:\/\/m.ocregister.com\/articles\/story-748719-measles-.html\" target=\"_blank\">contracted measles and may have exposed other students<\/a>. I hope they make his parents pay any associated medical costs if the highly contagious, dangerous disease spreads at all. You make that choice, you face the consequences.<\/li>\n<li>Another consequence? Getting measles <a href=\"https:\/\/www.princeton.edu\/main\/news\/archive\/S43\/10\/03O18\/index.xml?section=topstories\" target=\"_blank\">may weaken your immune system for up to three years<\/a> after the infection. So, survive measles, die of something else!<\/li>\n<li>A British court has ordered <a href=\"http:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/uk\/home-news\/vegan-mother-vaccinate-children-high-court-toxin-free-kids-mmr-anti-vaxxer-a7670881.html\" target=\"_blank\">a loony-toon vegan &#8220;all-natural&#8221; mother to vaccinate her damn kids<\/a>. Given the description of her parenting, she shouldn&#8217;t have custody at all.<\/li>\n<li>An early fish biologist <a href=\"https:\/\/thewalrus.ca\/the-case-against-eating-fish\/?utm_source=pocket&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=pockethits\" target=\"_blank\">gives the case against eating fish<\/a>. I would argue that this is the case for eating fish (and meat) far more judiciously than we do &#8211; knowing where it comes from, how it was raised or caught, and paying more attention to pollution and ocean acidification.<\/li>\n<li>I got thrown out of a bar in New York City &#8230; but now a new one is opening, <a href=\"https:\/\/mobile.nytimes.com\/2017\/04\/06\/dining\/coup-bar-nyc-trump.html?hpw&#038;rref=food&#038;action=click&#038;pgtype=Homepage&#038;module=well-region&#038;region=bottom-well&#038;WT.nav=bottom-well&#038;referer=https:\/\/t.co\/BgWVNUUSlw\" target=\"_blank\">called Coup, with proceeds going to fight Donald Trump&#8217;s agenda<\/a>. One of the bartenders\/co-owners is Sother Teague of Amor &#038; Amargo, a bitters-focused cocktail bar I enjoyed tremendously the one time I visited (including a chat with Mr. Teague himself).<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/sf\/world\/2017\/03\/31\/while-trump-promotes-coal-other-countries-are-turning-to-cheap-sun-power\/?utm_term=.dd9234efdf83\" target=\"_blank\">Solar power is becoming cost-competitive with nonrenewable fuel sources<\/a> in many markets, but hey, keep propping dirty coal, you fucking idiots.<\/li>\n<li>The Kentucky Coal Museum <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/3e5fd639c846473f85846e4a77486119?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&#038;utm_source=Twitter&#038;utm_medium=APSouthRegion\" target=\"_blank\">is installing solar panels to reduce its energy costs<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li>Fox News has its moments of clarity, like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/the-fix\/wp\/2017\/04\/03\/the-left-and-right-agree-fox-news-destroyed-epa-chief-scott-pruitt-over-climate-change\/?utm_term=.370228d23cb9&#038;wpisrc=nl_most&#038;wpmm=1\" target=\"_blank\">when Chris Wallace just emasculated EPA chief and climate change denialist Scott Pruitt<\/a> on air. Wallace did what journalists should do: set party aside and stick to the truth in the face of someone who continues to lie.<\/li>\n<li>Spanish scientists have developed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scientificamerican.com\/article\/atomic-spins-evade-heisenberg-uncertainty-principle\/?WT.mc_id=SA_TW_CHEM_NEWS\" target=\"_blank\">a new way of measuring a particle&#8217;s spin<\/a> that appears to soften the limits set out in Heisenberg&#8217;s Uncertainty Principle.<\/li>\n<li>Some Kansas high school students started asking questions about their new principals&#8217; resume, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/morning-mix\/wp\/2017\/04\/05\/these-high-school-journalists-investigated-a-new-principals-credentials-days-later-she-resigned\/?tid=ss_tw&#038;utm_term=.6e5d74db8580\" target=\"_blank\">eventually uncovering a fraud that led to her resignation<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li>A <em>Washington Post<\/em> editorial calls <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/mitch-mcconnell-the-man-who-broke-america\/2017\/04\/07\/8e12f1d8-1bbd-11e7-9887-1a5314b56a08_story.html?tid=pm_pop&#038;utm_term=.177266e172de\" target=\"_blank\">Mitch McConnell the man who broke America<\/a>. Whatever he is, the people of Kentucky keep electing him and the GOP keeps giving him power. <\/li>\n<li>An Iowa legislator <a href=\"http:\/\/iowastartingline.com\/2017\/04\/04\/iowa-legislator-proposes-masturbatory-emissions-fine\/\" target=\"_blank\">has proposed a bill that would fine men for masturbating<\/a> and require rectal exams before doctors could prescribe erectile dysfunction medications. <\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/kfor.com\/2017\/02\/07\/four-day-school-week-paying-off-for-local-districts-lawmakers-want-a-change\/\" target=\"_blank\">One in five Oklahoma school districts operates a four-day week<\/a> for budgetary reasons. It&#8217;s hardly surprising that that state, which has produced some of the worst science-denying and anti-woman legislation in the last few years, puts education at the bottom of the priority list.<\/li>\n<li>A woman writes <a href=\"http:\/\/www.huffingtonpost.com\/entry\/to-the-guy-who-took-my-picture-without-my-permission_us_58e078a2e4b0d804fbbb73c4\" target=\"_blank\">about calling out the creep who took her picture in a bar without her permission<\/a>. It&#8217;s on all of us to say something when we see this kind of behavior from men.<\/li>\n<li>Jared Kushner went to Iraq and <a href=\"http:\/\/taskandpurpose.com\/jared-kushner-iraq-storybook-pictures\/\" target=\"_blank\">someone added children&#8217;s-book text to the pictures<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I had one Insider post this week, on the most prospect-packed minor league rosters to open the season. I have already filed a draft blog post on last night&#8217;s outing by Hunter Greene, with additional notes on a half-dozen other draft prospects, including Brendan McKay and Austin Beck. (EDIT: It&#8217;s up now.) I held my [&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":[821,53,735,818,131,852,889,776,870,807],"class_list":["post-5627","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-anti-science","tag-beer","tag-cocktails","tag-denialism","tag-food-safety","tag-music","tag-organic-agriculture","tag-physics","tag-stick-to-baseball","tag-vaccines","entry"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5627","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=5627"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5627\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5631,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5627\/revisions\/5631"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5627"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5627"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5627"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}