Odds & Ends #2

More Food For Thought

Well, we’re coming to the end of the month and I thought I’d share another grab-bag of items. First, you may have noticed that I’ve taken the newsletter to a paid format. It’s a big step for me, and I hope you will follow me into this next stage. Paying for a subscription will now get you access to the archive, new posts, and allow you to comment and email. I hope you’ll consider it and spread the word!

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Baseball Blues, continued

Statues of Babe Ruth & Ted Williams at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Cooperstown, NY

Not long after my post about baseball, Matthew Walter published an op-ed piece in The New York Times on April 6 entitled, “Baseball Is Dying. The Government Should Take It Over.” I mentioned in my piece that I think sports—especially baseball—should be taken out of the private market and put into public ownership. Walter, who’s the editor of the Catholic literary magazine The Lamp , expands this argument. I think nationalization should occur as a matter of principle, but Walter argues from a position of necessity. He cites the aging of the fan base, plunging Little League participation, and the plummeting attendance for both in-person games and television as evidence of an emergency: