Children with disabilities play sports far less than their peers. The lack of play can be impactful. Parents of children with disabilities see their child’s health worsen more without sports. How do we fundamentally change our mindset about disabilities? projectplay.org/news/project...

The Challenger space shuttle explosion and ACC men’s basketball tournament in elementary school.

Only a very small number of high school athletes will play pro sports. Yet 1 in 10 youth sports parents think their child can go pro, and 2 in 10 view Division I college sports as realistic, according to a survey by the Aspen Institute. projectplay.org/news/project...

One in five young athletes play their primary sport more than nine months a year - and one in ten plays one sport year-round, despite expert recommendations to play multiple sports. The main reason parents give? The fear of not making a high school team. projectplay.org/news/project...

With antisemitism on the rise, including on college campuses since October 7, it’s ironic and meaningful for three Jews to be coaching in the Final Four. www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/...

The average U.S. sports family spent $1,016 on their child’s primary sport in 2024, up 46% since 2019, according to the Aspen Institute’s latest parent survey. That’s twice the rate of price inflations in the U.S. economy. projectplay.org/news/2025/2/...

“I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you better.” Gut-wrenching eulogy by Yarden Bibas for his wife and sons Ariel and Kfir, who were buried together today in Israel. www.timesofisrael.com/sorry-i-coul...

CDC removes gender, equity references in public health material. “It’s Orwellian.” The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System is valuable data to understand child health, including physical activity, mental health and young people who identify as LGBTQ. www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...

I generally feel safe with air travel. But Reagan National Airport can be frightening. There’s just too much congestion in the air space — and Congress added 5 more flights last year despite warnings by Sen. Tim Kaine and others. www.newsweek.com/reagan-airpo...

Holocaust survivors fear Europe is forgetting the lessons of Auschwitz. www.bbc.com/news/article...

“Women’s sports have also been held to the ridiculous standard of being expected to be comparable to their male counterparts now despite the guys having had a half-century or longer head start.” Spot on.

This is the story I’ve been waiting to read all Washington Commanders season. What’s life like for Daniel Snyder? Spoiler alert: He’s miserable. Great reporting that Joe Gibbs helped save the sale in the 11th hour. www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/...

As Mark Andrews becomes a meme and gets mocked for the worst day of his football life, let’s remember that he helped save a woman’s life. Perspective is hard after brutal losses. But there is more to life than football. www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/ne...

The Washington Commanders in the NFC Championship Game is surreal. There were so many toxic years with Dan Snyder that made it impossible to care about them. Nothing unites the DC region like Washington’s football team. A new generation of fans are about to learn this.

Unnecessary touching of Patrick Mahomes is apparently a penalty. The officiating in Chiefs-Texans has been something else.

Outstanding article by @dkthomp.bsky.social on the anti-social century. Americans are now spending more time alone than ever through self-imposed solitude. It’s changing our personalities, our politics, and even our relationship to reality.

If you are displaced due to LA fires, we all want to help. I have room for 8 people in Salt Lake City. It’s a 9 hour drive. I can pay for gas or flights. We all feel helpless and want to do something. Please reach out. Will help if I can.

Scientists on Friday confirmed that 2024 was the first to surpass a dangerous warming threshold of 1.5 Celsius that nations had pledged not to cross.

Powerful work by Nolan Trowe photographing disability rights advocates crawling up steps of the Pa. Capitol. “I’m sick to death of pity and fake sympathy. I don’t need it. Nobody does. We need real empathetic, tough people.” www.washingtonpost.com/photography/...

Excellent and sobering column. We have so many challenges ahead of us tied to climate.

I’ve always been a massive pessimist, but the extent to which our information environment around disasters has degraded over the last 3 years has been far worse than even I could imagine.

Orioles article. “It’s the responsibility of a GM to manage multiple objectives within the front office. That Elias seems singularly focused on building a system for sustainable success, even if it comes at the expense of winning in the present, is confounding.” blogs.fangraphs.com/orioles-rost...

A wilderness survival trainer spent years undercover, climbing the ranks of right-wing militias. He didn’t tell police, FBI, family or friends. Then he sent ProPublica a massive trove of documents to warn what a new generation of militia leaders looks like. www.propublica.org/article/ap3-...

Horrific act of violence to start 2025 and on the eve of the Sugar Bowl. Prayers to those impacted and the city of New Orleans. www.nola.com/news/crime_p...

What a catch. What a quarterback. After decades of mostly miserable football with a toxic owner, Washington has won 11 games for the 1st time since its 1991 Super Bowl season.

More Jayden Daniels (because why not?): It's pretty rare for an #NFL QB to throw 3 TD passes & rush for 127 yards in the same game. How rare? Only these 3 guys had ever done it before Daniels did tonight. #Commanders

More than a third of U.S. parents reported antisemitism in their children’s classrooms. A higher proportion of Jewish parents (71%) reported classroom antisemitism than non-Jewish parents (37%). www.timesofisrael.com/more-than-a-...

Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas! For only the 5th time since 1900, the first night of Hanukkah starts on Christmas. www.cbsnews.com/news/hanukka...

Could two followers please copy and re-post this tweet to show that someone is always there? National Suicide Prevention Hotline Call: 0800 689 5652 (UK) 1-800-273-8255 (USA) 1.833.456.4566 (Canada)

Good read by @daniellibit.bsky.social. This was always the correct answer when college athletic departments stressed they can’t pay players. Don’t pay coaches so much. Coach and player compensations are directly linked. www.sportico.com/leagues/foot...

Jayden Daniels is special. He plays with so much poise and joy. It must be infectious with his teammates. Best NFL rookie QB since _____?

A new ProPublica analysis shows a stark pattern across the Deep South: Alongside about 200 majority-Black public school districts are private academies filled almost entirely with white students. @jenniferberryhawes.bsky.social, @natlash.bsky.social, @mrsimon22.bsky.social propub.li/3BFytzN

This is such a sobering and beautiful story/tribute to the Harry Edwards, who's fighting terminal cancer. His impact on sports and culture over the last 50 years can't be properly described, but WaPo writer Michael Lee succeeds with these words: www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/...

America in 2024: “Honestly, I’m hoping it’s aliens and that they come and get me. Like, please: Get me the hell out of here.” www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

MLB found days spent on the injured list by pitchers increased from 13,666 in 2005 to 32,257 in 2024. The study asserts that the pursuit of velocity and max-effort pitching are the "primary forces driving the long-term increase in pitcher injuries." thescore.com/mlb/news/316...

There are now betting odds for high school and Pop Warner football. What could go wrong? Awful. You think there's pressure on some kids now to perform in sports? Watch what happens when a young athlete costs his team the game and gets harassed by adults who lost money. www.forbes.com/sites/jaygin...

I've been to Baton Rouge many times covering LSU football. It was rewarding to return and explore the youth sports landscape within a highly competitive sports city. Check out the Aspen Institute's State of Play Baton Rouge report. Read: projectplay.org/communities/...

U.S. Senate passes bill for grant program to support CPR and AED training in schools, and the development of cardiac emergency response plans. Much needed. Next up should be better funding for schools to hire athletic trainers. www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/...

Thanks to NIL, SEC baseball programs have the financial firepower to effectively outbid an MLB team even for an early-round pick. www.nytimes.com/athletic/596...

Every story you read about Bob Holt is accurate. Bob was so kind and curious — a wonderful combination. We need more Bob Holts in the world. theronhiggins.com/f/he-was-jus...

I don’t watch college football as much anymore. I watched today and it was jarring how the whole sport seems so angry. Kind of like our country.

I don’t follow college football that closely so I missed the rule change that a win isn’t official until your flag is planted on the losing team’s logo — pepper spray now legal

Does anyone want to win Michigan-Ohio State? Two inept offenses. Also, someone please give Gus Johnson some tea for his voice.

The Los Angeles Defers, er Dodgers, are playing chess while everyone else plays checkers. They’re going to be loaded again. Feels like MLB is moving into a period of a Dodgers dynasty.

From my segment today on @cnbc.com. We face a grim and avoidable resurgence of once vanquished childhood infectious diseases if we follow down the current path being taken in Washington.

Calling Bluesky an echo chamber misses the point, because what Bluesky offers is a chance to redefine how humans treat one another online, where so many of us live. www.thestar.com/opinion/star...

Excellent column. “Beyond the sheer ugliness of someone’s daughter being accused of being transgender if they look too masculine or are just naturally more athletic than their peers, do we really want to go down the road of genital checks so that your 12-year-old can play soccer?”

“Physical gifts are distributed unequally, and so are advantages. There are lots of differentials in sports, maybe none bigger than money — the money to pay for coaching and lessons, money to train, money to eat properly so your body develops.” www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/...

More evidence that Bluesky is helping publishers by not deprioritizing links.

No matter what region, county or city @aspeninstitute.bsky.social's Project Play community team works in, we hear a similar question from parents: how do I find the right sports provider for my family and child? Learn how @boston.gov created a valuable online youth sports directory.