If your Senator is on this list, call them and tell them not to cave on the shutdown without getting ACA funding.

I’m usually way behind on TV series, often by decades, but I just watched the first episode of Pluribus and holy crap! Twilight Zone–style sci-fi of the highest order. I can’t imagine they can sustain that (which is why I prefer films to TV) but the pilot itself is essential viewing.

Just one week until “Stay Woke” and “Anti-Antifa” are out. Here’s a clip of “Anti-Antifa” a quick ripper that doubles as a grammar lesson for those among us who are missing the point. Thank you to @davyandrewsdavy.bsky.social for providing the guitar solo for this one. Out November 14th!

Post you from a different era (c. 2003)

Today was a good day.

There are 133 counties and county-equivalents in Virginia and New Jersey. In 127 of them, the vote shifted to the Democrats since November 2024. On average, the shift was 6 points to the left.

First time in 24 years New Jersey elected a governor who wasn't either a Republican or a Goldman Sachs executive

Update: Mostly held steady in October. Actually saw first steady increase in weight of the year in the second half of the month, but I still finished tied for my lowest mark of the year. As of this morning, I'm down 33.5 pounds from New Year's.

Thank you to Paul for this incredible project. I just hope the archives, which have already been taken down, can find a new home.

I regret to inform everyone that my pedantic brain couldn’t let me live until I knew whether or not dodger blue and blue jays blue are the same blue. They are ONE PANTONE NUMBER APART.

The below is an absurdly lax standard for what is and isn't a swing. The unofficial standard is the front of the plate, not the foul line, but I'd argue if the bat passes over any part of the plate it should be ruled a swing, as that could produce a fair ball. I did argue that seven years ago here:

NEW: Video footage shows Jack naming his first state Supreme Court nominee — spoiler alert, he's an extremist who believes that Roe v. Wade led to a "culture of death," believes in an abortion ban WITHOUT exceptions, and opposes gay marriage.

Doctor’s office waiting room is playing a very narrow band of mid-1990s “alt-rock” top 40 (Matchbox 20, Goo Goo Dolls, DMB, Bush, Counting Crows, Hootie, etc.). Awful. Hated it then and it is unchanged by time. Miserable, soulless, artless crap.

Hey, @mikiesherrill.bsky.social: Dispatch from the Brunswicks:

My first thought: Oh, what a great picture. My second thought: Why is Shane Victorino on Ichiro's HOF plaque?

I'm honored to have President @barackobama.bsky.social on Team Mikie. This movement is about delivering something better for New Jersey — lower costs, more opportunity for our kids, and a government that's truly accountable to the people.

I hear Bob Melvin's available . . .

Depending on where you start counting, and if you include Pin Ups, #12 is somewhere from "Heroes" to Let's Dance in David Bowie's discography. If you disqualify Graffiti Bridge as a soundtrack/compilation of unreleased material, Diamonds and Pearls is in the conversation.

Pregame show: “it all comes down to this!” This is the first game of a best-of-five series in the second of four rounds of playoffs. It very much does *not* all come down to this.

Schlittler threw 90% fastballs, 10% breaking balls. All 18 swing and misses on fastballs. 12 K, 0 BB. Maybe the most shove it down your throat and nothing you can do about it pitching performances in baseball history.

Yankees/Blue Jays ALDS Cross 'em off the list: the Blue Jays are 1 of 4 teams the Yankees have never faced in the postseason (White Sox, Nationals/Expos, and Rockies)

I’m less annoyed by replay umpires calling guys out for coming off the bag than most, but I think, if you reach the base safely and then come off, you should get credit for the stolen base (or double, etc.), and the out should count as a pick-off.

I'm watching two games at once while working on something else on my computer, and nearly 800 miles away, and I got that Nico Hoerner caught-stealing call correct when the ump didn't. Wild.

I'm quite pleased with how the MLB playoff bracket worked out this year. Division rivalries in the AL (3 AL East teams on one side; ALCS will be AL East victor vs. a team from Central or West). And (with Reds gone) winners (LAD, PHI) vs. losers (just one total WS title since 1909) brackets in NL.

That last out in the Bronx was very Mike Piazza in the 2000 World Series.

When I started this, my pie-in-the-sky goal weight was 175 lbs. Today, I weighed in at 174.2, down 32 pounds since New Year's. I've lost 15.6% of my body weight (on purpose). Beach vacation & fall football/marching-band events slowed my pace the last two months, but I'm still going . . .

That's my (future) governor.

I need this on a shirt.

Cancelling those subscriptions was easy and incredibly effective. A reminder of the power of collective action and following the money. I'd cancel my Paramount+ subscription to try to get Colbert renewed, but I never had one.

I'm still weirded out by the B-52's poster in the Spın̈al Tap sequel that omits the (grammatically incorrect but established typographical element of the band name) apostrophe.

Please let this be Jack Cittarelli's Howard Dean moment.

Michael Franks "Popsicle Toes," Steely Dan's Gaucho, and the Manhattan Transfer.

Impressive. Via xcancel.com/The_x_Truth/...

Breaking News: A hard-fought international treaty to protect ocean life, decades in the making, cleared a final hurdle. It allows for the establishment of enormous conservation zones in international waters.

I just learned that you can eliminate the AI results in your searches by including "-ai" in your search terms. Amazing. I'm going to train myself to type "-ai" at the start of every search.

Tonight's tribute to Robert Redford and his character Roy Hobbs from The Natural by the New York Mets tonight. This is so perfect. It’s cinema. Amazing work by @johndemarsico.bsky.social and his SNY team. (Video by John himself on Twitter) #LGM

Yo, New Jersey! Check your registration and make a plan to vote to elect @mikiesherrill.bsky.social governor to cut costs, secure our safety, and protect our rights.

Some news: yesterday was my last at Rolling Stone. For now, I'm going solo, doing all my TV reviewing, recapping, etc., at my newsletter. I hope you'll consider subscribing. Many more details here:

No matter how hard MLB might like, in this current moment, to disentangle Roberto Clemente’s race and ethnicity from his legacy, that’s impossible. It’s dishonest and dishonorable, sure, but you also cannot talk about Clemente and what made him important without that. Great piece.

My very good buddy and overall sweet little guy Fisher took a bad tumble this morning and is racking up medical bills. I know times are tough, but if you can spare a few bucks for his recovery we would be so grateful. www.gofundme.com/f/fisher-rec...

If the AL had split up evenly into East and West divisions in those two decades, the White Sox would have won the West six(!) times in 1957-60 and 1963-64.

I feel like, if you made this a trivia question, even White Sox fans wouldn’t guess the White Sox as one of the top 5 teams.

1,000 Outfielders to See Before You Die by Steven Goldman (@stevengoldman.bsky.social) www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article...

Whether it’s a review or essay, text or video, criticism is seeing what’s in front of your face, using your brain and common sense to see it for what it is, and saying that straight and without euphemism. That’s something journalism always needs, but holy hell does it need that now.

Republicans are trying to remove protections for New Jersey doctors if they provide abortion care. Jack will work hand-in-hand with anti-choice extremists to appoint "ultra-conservative" judges to the state supreme court and sell out women and doctors in New Jersey. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/08/h...

This whole thread.

I quite enjoyed today's MLBTRivia question in the Newsletter. Thought I'd share it here: Red Sox rookie Roman Anthony is likely done for the regular season with a 137 OPS+ in 303 PA. Who was the last Red Sox rookie to post an OPS+ of 130 or better in a minimum of 300 PA?

Happy Labor Day, Everybody!

Thanks to this, I learned they made six episodes of a League of Their Own sitcom in 1993, five of those episodes made it to air, and one of them was directed by Tom Hanks and co-starred a chimpanzee.