SocraticGadfly: Top blogging for November: heavy on baseball and conspiracy thinking

December 03, 2019

Top blogging for November:
heavy on baseball and conspiracy thinking

This is a list and quick notes on top blog posts in November by readership. Not all were written in the last month.

In fact, the first, which went viral last month, was about "Could an Iranian bomb LOWER tensions?" It's just a brief piece, with just one link, written before the Quartet of Obama, EU, Russia and China reached the nuclear control deal with Iran. Trump's saber-rattling has brought the idea back to life, as despicable as nuclear weapons in general are.

Numbers 2, 4 and 8 are baseball related. First, I tackle what MLB veterans who missed their shot with the writers should be voted into Cooperstown. Second, I do some baseball alt-history to suggest a possible "real" single-season home run record holder. And at No. 8, I wonder if the St. Louis Cardinals will sign a starting pitcher in free agency while offering my ideas that they should, and who it should be.

Nos 3 and 6 directly, No. 10 indirectly and No. 7 slightly, are all connected to conspiracy thinking. On No. 3, I discuss the difference between conspiracy and conspiracy theory. At No. 6, I talk about Green Party presidential candidate Howie Hawkins battling conspiracy theory nutters in the party. In No. 10, I look at the ironic reality of Jackie Kennedy's Camelot legend — a legend that of course fueled conspiracy theories. In No. 7, I offer my hot take on 2012/16 Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein saying she's down with conspiracy theorist Jesse Ventura seeking the Green presidential nomination along with antivaxxer RFK Jr as Veep.

No. 5? My old longform profile of old frenemy (if that?) on Twitter, the late Chris Chopin, aka Actual Flatticus, or Actual Flatus, is trending again, I think because of his birthday anniversary. (And, for all his Twitter bromancers, if you do a Google search under his real name, and limit results to the past year, you get just one page of hits.)

No. 9? My calling out many fellow leftists for uncritically accepting as legitimate former Bolivian President Evo Morales' run for an unconstitutional additional term.

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