Weekend Links 6-5-20

We are back after an unexpected hiatus. Actually, I had taken some time off from the day job and consequently spent less time online than normal. As a result, this week's post is a little bit longer as I have been saving a few things that I had wanted to share. Hopefully this week's post will offer you will a needed diversion from the concerns of the week.

As I write this I am waiting for baseball to return. Tom Verducci from Sports Illustrated checked in with Vin Scully to see how he is recovering from his recent fall. Turns out he is missing baseball too. 

Meanwhile, MLB.com writers share their favorite baseball books. Lots of great titles on this list. 

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Negro Baseball Leagues. Check out this article on why black baseball still matters after all this time. 

Recently at Arlington National Cemetery they opened a 105 year old time capsule. They discovered that the contents had hardly aged. 

Nostalgia alert: Necco Wafers will soon be available in stores again.

This is a fascinating story: a real life Lord of the Flies that turned out far differently from the novel. 

Ranking the 10 best Sherlock Holmes stories.

Why is classic crime fiction still so popular? You can't do any better than asking Martin Edwards. His book The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books is an indispensable resource. 

More interesting history: How the Black Plague gave rise to the British pub culture.

Alan Jacobs' advice to journalists: stop saying "experts".

This brings back memories: the history of Pac-Man.

An appreciation of one of the best crime dramas of all time: The Rockford Files.

Finally, if there is one writer I can heartily recommend in these dark times it is P. G. Wodehouse. His sunny dispositon and endless optimism is the perfect antidote to these dark times. This New Yorker article explores what happened to Wodehouse following his ill-advised radio broadcasts from Germany during his internment.  Meanwhile, this BBC article headline says it all: the man who wrote the most perfect sentences ever written. 

Daily Links 10-11-13

Recovering the lost Doctor Who, the Civil War in color, how to accumulate frequent flyer miles without flying, how many spaces follow a period, and much more in today's links.

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Over 100 previously lost episodes of Doctor Who have been discovered in Ethiopia:

A group of dedicated Doctor Who fans tracked down at least 100 long-lost episodes of the show gathering dust more than 3,000 miles away in Ethiopia.

It was feared the BBC ­programmes from the 1960s – featuring the first two doctors William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton – had vanished for all time after the Beeb flogged off a load of old footage.

But after months of ­detective work the tapes have been unearthed at the Ethiopian Radio and Television Agency.

A television insider said: “It is a triumph and fans ­everywhere will be thrilled."

“This is a really big deal for the BBC and is set to make them millions from the sale of the DVDs.”

Ya think?

Hat tip: Neatorama

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Two professional colorists, a Briton and a Dane have created a remarkable collection of color civil war photographs:

General Ulysses S. Grant

General Robert E. Lee

There are many more photographs and the full story in this article. (Hat tip Power Line)

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Settling the important questions: one period or two at the end of a sentence?

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This is interesting: how to accumulate frequent flyer miles without boarding a plane.

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Stop worshipping, it's time for "Special Music":

Special music to me is a big “everyone stop worshiping, it’s time for the special music” part of the service.  Question: Intimate worship to the creator of the universe isn’t special enough for you?  ”Ok, lame worship is over, now it’s time for the SPECIAL music!” (“special” said in a very sarcastic voice of course)

My biggest problem with special music isn’t the title though (they could call it “super happy fun exciting time” for all I care), it’s that people come to church to experience God! Or maybe they didn’t and they don’t even know that an experience with God is what they need.  Either way, people are hurt and broken and an experience with God is what they need.

We have one or two hours to present God (most likely less if your church is still doing “special music”) and give people an opportunity to experience him.  AND WE’RE WASTING IT WITH “SPECIAL MUSIC?”  People need God! They don’t need to sit and hear Jim and sister Karen perform the bluegrass song they wrote.  People can get mediocre performances anywhere in the world.  What are we as a church giving them that they can’t get in the world?

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The true story of the Nobel Winners who foiled Hitler.

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Manuscript pages of Great Expectations.

Random Thoughts

A few stories of interest from the past week....

Earlier this week came the not totally unsurprising news that Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees was tied to a clinic that allegedly provided him with performance enhancing drugs (PEDs). If confirmed this would be the second known instance where he had taken PEDs. He previously admitted to taking the drugs from 2001 to 2003 but when he made the admission in 2009 he proclaimed himself to be clean. Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports suggested that A-Rod is finished. I tend to agree. Even if the PED story isn't true it's hard to see how A-Rod will be able to rehabilitate his image. Age and injuries have caught up with the slugging third baseman and his career has nowhere to go but on a continued downward spiral. This might be a good time to consider retiring rather than trying to slog through these allegations any further.

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This week marked the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Few novels or novelists have  developed such a strong following as Austen or her most famous novel. The BBC has an interesting look at why Americans are drawn to the British author.

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Speaking of British entertainments, Downton Abbey has been causing quite the stir on the American side of the Atlantic. The Wall Street Journal has an interesting interview with series creator Julian Fellowes that provides some surprising insights into the hit series.

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Having a daughter about to graduate high school has caused me to think (and read a lot) about the changing face of higher education. Arthur C. Brooks offers some interest insights into the college dynamic in a New York Times column entitled My Valuable, Cheap College Degree. Peter Berkowitz offers 10 Ways Liberal Education Fails Students - and Society. Finally, Mark Cuban boldly declares that Colleges are Going to Start Going Out of Business (language warning).

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Robert Epstein, author of The Case Against Adolescence, has a thought-provoking interview with Psychology Today about the problems facing modern teenagers. Among his more interesting assertions is that teenagers spend too much time with other teenagers. He makes several good points in the interview and while I don't necessarily agree with everything he says it's worth a read. (Hat tip: Joe Carter)

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Twitter surprise of the week: I am constantly surprised by the people I find on Twitter. This week's great discovery is that Dick Van Dyke is tweeting. He's @iammrvandy and definitely worth a follow.

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Finally, the oddest story of the week: A group of men have been playing a game of tag for 23 years.

Media Alert

I'm scheduled to appear on World, Have Your Say on the BBC World Service between 1pm and 2pm ET today. We'll be discussing tonight's vice-presidential debate and the influence of the media on the election. You can hear the program online at the BBC World Service homepage or on Sirius and XM Radio.

UPDATE: My co-blogger at Stones Cry Out managed to snag the audio from today's program. The whole thing was a complete surprise to me and I'm flattered that the folks at the BBC thought what I wrote about the debate was noteworthy. Thanks to them for the opportunity to participate in the program.