Around the Horn

The mainstream media and climate paranoiacs are using the fires in Brazil to alarm those on the fence in the great debate, as if the conflagrations are the result of spontaneous combustion. In an op-ed piece in today’s NY Post, Rich Lowry answers the dishonesty of celebrity and political know-it-alls. Here are excerpts, edited by yours truly: “… the highest number of fires identified since 2010, not thousands of years ago… The vast majority of these fires are human-lit… Much of the land that is burning was not old-growth rain forest, but land that had already been cleared of trees and set for agricultural use… Surely, the Amazon must be the lungs of the world, responsible for 20% of our oxygen, right? No. This is drivel based on an erroneous understanding of how the atmosphere gets its oxygen… there were nearly a million square miles more of tree canopy around the world in 2016 than in 1982, with Europe, the United States and China all adding to it… The most fervent devotees of climate change don’t really want science, no matter how often they invoke the word; they want drama and memorable images, believing they will catalyze action in a way that a properly modulated account of the best research won’t.” Kudos, sir. Thank you.

The Plaza Cinema just outside Kansas City, Kansas has been showing films since 1907. It’s been in continuous operation for nearly 111 years, the longest running such venue. It started as the Bijou and then was named the Yale and then the Crystal Theatre. These days it has two screens, one for modern fare, the other for classics. Here’s the certificate from the Guinness Book of Records, which is displayed inside, followed by a picture of how the place looks today:

There have been two major developments in MLB in the past 24 hours. The Astros’ Justin Verlander, 36, has thrown his third no-hitter, striking out 14 Blue Jays in the process. His first two no-nos came as a member of the Detroit Tigers. It was his 221st career win. He seems a lock for the Hall of Fame. This season he is 16–5, ERA 2.69. What makes the latter figure even more spectacular is the ease with which batted balls have been launched into the stands in 2019. Last night the Minnesota Twins set the record for home runs in a season, 268 — and there’s still a month to go. The blow was delivered by catcher Mitch Garver. Many have speculated that the ball has been juiced. Why would this be done? Perhaps because attendance has fallen four straight years.

Last week Bad News Billy bought a bunch of books to give to the staffers at Coney Island Hospital who treated him so well after a car accident. The gifts were such a hit that he picked up 20 more today, 19 in Russian and What to Expect When You’re Expecting by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel. My thanks, and also to the woman who purchased six Catherine Coulter paperbacks; and to Mr. Conspiracy, aka Steve, who chose Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations by Thomas L. Friedman, and a book on Catholic Mysticism; and to the gentleman who reminds me of Nikita Khrushchev, who took home two more thrillers in Russian; and to the two women waiting for the bus to AC, who combined to buy three books in Russian, including two volumes of O’Henry translations.

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