Monday's Most Active Threads

The most active thread yesterday was somewhat of a surprise to me. Titled, "Succession - Season 4" and posted in the "Entertainment and Pop Culture" forum, the thread is obviously about the HBO Max television series chronicling the Roy family and their business empire. This thread was originally started back on March 26 but added slightly over 10 pages yesterday. I only just watched this episode yesterday, saving me from reading through pages of spoilers in order to write this post. But, in consideration for anyone who hasn't caught up yet, I'll try to avoid spoilers now. A moment in the episode that basically went over my head was caught by our mostly female user base and became the subject of much discussion. I'm still not sure of its significance and based on the pages of discussion it provoked, there is no consensus about its importance among our users. Several posters, however, have strong opinions about the matter, often drawing on personal experience to argue their points. Beyond that, the posts mostly recount fairly memorable scenes. There is a bit of a debate about whether the show should be watched as light entertainment or whether it has deeper meaning worthy of causing introspection among viewers.

The second most active thread yesterday was posted in the "College and University Discussion" forum. Titled, "Yale vs Penn State - Your Honest Opinion Please", the original poster says that her son was accepted at both Yale and Penn State. While her son favors Yale, her husband prefers Penn State because Yale would cost an additional $35,000 a year. As you would expect, posters weigh in on both sides of this decision. Many agree with the father in thinking that there is not much difference in degrees from each school and that the financial difference is significant. Others, disagree, claiming educational advantages for Yale and also believing that Yale will provide significantly more advantages in terms of opening doors. Some posters think the difference between the two schools is so vast that the thread is either a joke of an attempt at trolling. Several posters wonder whether the original poster may have meant the University of Pennsylvania rather than Penn State. But the original poster confirmed that she did mean Penn State. For many posters the issue comes down to whether or not the family has the money for Yale. If they can afford Yale without needing loans, these posters favor paying the additional cost. However, the posters don't believe the extra cost is worth sacrificing the parents' retirement or taking out loans. Other posters cite the strength of Yale's alumni network as a justification for paying more. In response, a poster claims that Penn State's alumni network is enthusiastic and also provides good connections. Many of the points made in this thread have been made in other topics as well. The only thing that stands out is the number of posters who seem to consider Yale to be almost in a class by itself.

Third was a thread titled, "Ralph Yarl: Sweet, young teen shot trying to pick up siblings" and posted in the "Off-Topic" forum. I assume most posters have heard about the shooting of Ralph Yarl, a Black teenager who was shot after ringing the doorbell of a house which he wrongly believed his siblings were visiting. At the time the thread was started, a White man had been taken in for questioning by the police, but then released. For the most part, posters were outraged by this unnecessary episode of gun violence. As such, much of the early discussion focused on guns and gun control. Posters compared the episode to others in which innocent people were shot, and often killed, when they accidentally approached the wrong house. In fact, another case, this one in New York State, came to light in the midst of this thread. Posters also argued about the role of racism, with some thinking that it was obvious that racism was a factor in the shooting and others being more cautious. Similarly, while many posters argued that the shooter should immediately be arrested and charged, other posters suggested waiting for an investigation. There were many comments lamenting the combination of fear and availability of guns that results in such tragedies. The idea of shooting someone just because they are a stranger ringing your doorbell seems senseless. When posters learned that the shooter is 85-years-old, many speculate about the influence of Fox News. The network, which tends to highlight crimes committed by Black offenders and recently has been running footage of Black youths committing vandalism in Chicago, was accused of causing the man to fear young Black men. On page 9, posters learned that the shooter has been charged with two felonies, providing some satisfaction to the posters who had been demanding charges. In subsequent discussion, there is debate about the shooter's mental health and the possible role of dementia.

The final thread at which I'll look today was posted in the "College and University Discussion" forum. Titled, "Where are all the Ivy admits coming from you wonder? Dalton NYC 2023 Matriculations", the thread is another addition to the forum's obsession with college admissions, particularly to Ivy League universities. As I have described in several earlier blog posts, some DC-area "elite" schools have not seen the admissions achievements for which they hoped. The original poster of this thread documents the record of The Dalton School to show that it's students are still enjoying significant success in Ivy League admissions. Many posters attribute this to the parents, saying that wealth and connections in New York are on an entirely different scale than elsewhere. There is some irony in that in earlier threads posters had lamented that their privilege had not led to Ivy admissions while, in this thread, posters complained that other's privilege did lead to such results. Live by privilege, die by privilege, I guess. In contrast, some posters point out that the acceptance lists do display significant racial diversity. Multiple posters claimed to have found evidence that the families of some of those with Ivy League acceptances had made significant contributions to the schools or held positions on the boards. Much of the discussion revolves around the New York City private school scene and other specifics about how wealthy New Yorkers go about educating their kids. Frankly, none of that is interesting to me so I stopped reading.