PicoBlog

Most debate resolutions concern policies[1] that do not exist in the status quo and likely will not exist in the near future, if ever. Lincoln-Douglas resolutions in recent history have included such improbable policies as banning handguns (Jan-Feb ’16), establishing a draft (Sep-Oct ’17), and eliminating plea bargaining (Jan-Feb ’18). Debaters seeking to bypass arguments about the likelihood of these policies passing might invoke fiat. A long-standing and widely accepted tenet of competitive debate, fiat is the principle that debaters need not prove that their advocacy is probable, only that it is desirable.

Readers, your narrator will appear Thursday morning on America’s Newsroom to discuss the horrible case of the Bronx daycare center used as a front for a fentanyl operation — resulting in the sickening of three children and the death of another. Is there a case that more clearly exemplifies everything going wrong in our cities today? Including of course a nexus to our ever-porous southern border? Please tune in as we discuss why the feds are suddenly so interested in this case.

The great pandemic novel was published two years before the pandemic. (That’s nothing: the great pandemic movie hit screens in 1993.) It was written by Ottessa Moshfegh and its nameless narrator decides to hibernate for just one year. Unlike those under lockdown, she isolates by choice: “My hibernation was self-preservational,” she reports. “I thought that it was going to save my life.” But her account of its monotony is resonant as well as darkly comic:

The tiger He destroyed his cage Yes YES The tiger is out —by Nael, age 6 The child in all of us never got rid of the disappointment of how crude our material existence is. What do you mean I don’t live forever, I can’t fly, I can’t make myself invisible, I’m not strong enough to pick up a mountain? Only an adult is dumb enough to rationalize the sadness of all these things we can’t do.

One other quick bit of unconventional-Bible-movie news: Variety reports that Tyler Perry and DeVon Franklin are teaming up to produce “faith-based” films for Netflix, and the first project out the gates will be a modernization of the book of Ruth: The first film under the new deal will be “R&B,” written by Mike Elliott (“Brown Sugar,” “Just Wright,” “Like Mike”) and Cory Tynan (“Play’d: A Hip Hop Story”). The project is a modern-day retelling of Ruth and Boaz, one of the most iconic love stories in the Bible.

You asked for it, I wrangled it. I did a call out some time back, calling for Wild guest suggestions from you all. A number of you flagged Aboriginal scholar Tyson Yunkaporta, founder of the Indigenous Knowledge Systems Lab at Melbourne’s Deakin University. I’d come across Tyson in various weird-ass “sensemaking” circles, in which he is often called upon … ncG1vNJzZmirkaeuqcPIpaqopl6owqO%2F05qapGaTpLpwvI6tsKynnmLGtrrKmqeoqqSWerO7zJqlnJ1dmbK0wNGosKw%3D

ESPN’s Pete Thamel has reported that UConn offensive coordinator Nick Charlton is leaving to join the NFL’s Cleveland Browns. Charlton joined UConn when head coach Jim Mora took over in 2022 and also held the associate head coach title. He was previously head coach for two seasons at Maine, where he spent four years in his first staff job after a stint as a GA at Boston College, his alma mater.

UConn women’s basketball extended an offer to 2025 guard Kelis Fisher and also hosted her on campus for an unofficial visit this past weekend. Fisher, the No. 22 player in the class of 2025, is a 5-foot-9 point guard out of Baltimore who will play at IMG Academy in Florida this season. Her AAU team reported the offer while … ncG1vNJzZmitk6S7r8PBm66enZuhxm%2B%2F1JuqrZmToHuku8xop2itk6S7r3nOn52eqqNitbC%2F06xka2hianqowcCrm2ajlaG2tA%3D%3D

Helpful links: Follow me on Twitter, shop for my books, and read free chapters from my books. Welcome to Episodic Content, my newsletter in which I share news about my writing and publish features and interviews about video games and other topics. Today, I'm thrilled and proud to reveal the second of two collectible covers for Long Live Mortal Kombat: Round 1, the first book in my trilogy about the making of Mortal Kombat games and the culture surrounding them.