This week I spoke at my first conference since COVID … and came away with a pretty good case of COVID (of the “bad cold” variety). So I’m moving a bit slow and catching up on a bit of TV, but hoping to be back on my feet by Monday. There are a few Kindle deals to take a look at. (Yesterday on the blog: On What Basis Could The Rings of Power Completely Fail?) “Elizabeth the Faithful”—a Small Reflection on our Queen I really enjoyed Michael Haykin’s tribute to Queen Elizabeth II. “Having been born in the mid-1950s, Elizabeth II (1926–2022) is the only monarch I have ever had. And so, it is very strange to hear the time-hallowed refrain, ‘The Queen is dead. Long live the King!’” God save the Queen This is also a lovely tribute. “The rain is falling outside the window, the sound of students from the Westminster school drifts over and blends with the sound of sirens. And there flies the flag on top of Parliament, still not yet at half mast. Soon it may be lowered, tethered, like a million waiting souls, to the frail, fluttering life of an old lady surrounded by doctors and family in Balmoral. That slight, whisper-light weight will drag behind it a freight of emotion and uncertainty that will bury the country for days and weeks to come.” How Manti Te’o’s Fake Girlfriend Helps Explain Transgenderism Brett McCracken: “More than its insights about sports stardom, media hype, or the perils of online dating, … Continue reading Weekend A La Carte (September 10)