Slap-fighting, defecating runners and a notorious criminal black bear
These are the best things I found on the internet this week!
What’s up newsletter fam!
I didn’t really plan it out this way, but this week’s roundup of the most interesting, entertaining and educational content from around the interwebs contains a heavy dose of sports. Maybe it’s because my new job is sports-focused, or maybe it’s because the calendar flipped over to my favorite month of the year — March. Bring on the madness.
What’s the coolest story or thing you found on the internet this week? Reply to this email and shoot me a link. Would love to hear from you.
We’ll start, as we must, with Ukraine. There we find a recent Olympic silver medal-winning skier huddling with his family in a parking garage to stay safe from Russian bombs. The most poignant picture is from last month in Beijing, when the bronze medalist from Russia (!!) gave him a hug to celebrate their scores.
Elsewhere in Ukraine, a mechanic attempted to sink the luxury yacht belonging to his boss, who is the CEO of a Russian military weapons company. Then the mechanic turned himself in and admitted full responsibility for all charges. "I don't regret anything I've done and I would do it again."
Meanwhile in Arizona, terrorism of a different kind. There’s a rumor going around that world-class runners were barred from using this highly sought after high school track in Sedona because one of them, ehem, relieved himself on it.
And in Columbus, Ohio, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Logan Paul hosted the “Slap Fighting Championship,” in which two grown men who look like human grizzly bears smack each other as hard as they can. Check out the video of the winning slap.
What about actual black bears? In Lake Tahoe, California, new evidence exonerates one notoriously rotund bear named Hank The Tank, who was believed to have been solely responsible for burglarizing three dozen homes in the area in recent months. The findings will save the bear’s life, for now. Also included is a hilarious and terrifying compilations of bear encounter videos.
You all ever see that Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis movie The Campaign about an insane local political election? Well truth is far stranger than fiction. In this campaign for a seat in the Texas Railroad Commission, one candidate showed her breasts, another died tragically and a third is accused of corruption. An insane story from Texas Monthly.
Perhaps you’re starting to catch the theme here. The world’s usual descent into insanity appears to have accelerated this week. In Mexico they had to call off a soccer match in the middle of the second half when a literal riot broke out in the stands and spilled down onto the field as people hit each other with chairs and pipes.
Ok, every week I try to offer up one wholesome laugh. Got a good one for you. It’s basically a Rocky training montage for a 10-month-old baby trying to “bulk.” The cuteness is rivaled only by the comedy.
Twitter is going through huge changes after founder Jack Dorsey stepped down as CEO. Now the future of Twitter, and quite possibly the entire internet, is decentralization. Figure out what that means in this smart story from The New York Times.
I never thought any comedian could challenge my love for fellow Ball State alumni David Letterman, but I can’t deny that his successor Stephen Colbert is quickly approaching. WSJ Magazine profiled Colbert, who is balancing his comedy with being a kind of therapist for our cultural insanity. The way he speaks so unapologetically about love, and his faith, are so inspiring to me.
Thanks for reading and sharing! On Friday we’re talking Cyrano and Hulu’s No Exit, see ya then!