May

What would have been yesterday's most active thread is one that I ended up deleting. I'll talk more about that later, but the next most active thread was titled, "I do not want to see an NP!" and posted in the "Health and Medicine" forum. The original poster is upset because she wants to see an MD during her medical visits but is continually provided a Nurse Practitioner or other Advanced Practice Provider instead. Surprisingly to me, this thread reached 10 pages. That puts it beyond my reading stamina, so I'm not going to be able to say much about the thread. But, skimming the post, I see that a number of posters agree with the original poster, preferring MDs. On the other hand, multiple responders argue that the best nurses are promoted to Nurse Practitioners so they are happy to meet with them. There is some discussion about the reasons it has become so difficult to meet with a doctor. There is apparently a shortage. Posters complained about long wait times for appointments and then, like the original poster, having the doctor replaced by a Nurse Practitioner at the last minute. I believe the length of the thread can be attributed to debate over the qualifications and skills of nurse practitioners. Claims are made about training requirements and then those claims are disputed. I noticed at least one self-described nurse giving the idea that nurse practitioners are particularly skilled the side-eye. Her argument was that the increasing prevalence of online schools means that there are vast differences between programs and many nurse practitioners have not had experience as a nurse. Some see this primarily as a money issue with cheaper nurse practitioners replacing expensive MDs. Related to that, a poster argues that if they see a Nurse Practitioner, it shouldn't cost them as much but they get charged the same as if they were seeing an MD.

Yesterday's most active thread was titled, "Glad MCPS is getting sued". Posted in the "Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)" forum, the original poster supports the right of parent's to opt their children out of school activities that deal with sexual orientation and gender identity. The poster linked to an article describing a lawsuit filed by three families demanding this opt-out right. Essentially, the battle over books in school dealing with sexual orientation and gender identity has come to MCPS, though in a pretty mild form. While there are posters on both sides of this issue, the majority seem opposed to the opt-out demand. They reject the religious concerns expressed by some posters on the basis of separation of church and state. A few posters are not concerned about the subject matter, but simply don't think that some MCPS's choices aimed at inclusivity are challenging enough. They are fine with LGBTQ-friendly books, they just want them to be better written. While much of the discussion focuses on the controversy aspects of sexual orientation and gender identity, others posters argue that this is actually a fairly technical dispute. As one posters outlines very clearly, the families behind the lawsuit are requesting to be allowed to opt-out based on regulations governing instruction about family life and human sexuality. Since the books in question have nothing to do with instruction of human sexuality, that leaves only family life. The poster asks whether the regulations should extend to any book that portrays family life even if that is simply parents, a baby brother, and a grandmother, or only LGBTQ family life? The lawsuit is clear that the families' objections are to gay families and trans gender people and are a result of the families' religious beliefs. While one family is Muslim, the others are various Christian denominations. Frankly, the books involved are fairly mild and both the original poster and the plaintiffs have to stretch a bit to make them appear controversial. At the same time, they are not asking for a ban on the books so MCPS has not entered in to Florida or Virginia territory yet. Nevertheless, despite protestations in the lawsuit that the plaintiffs believe people of all sexual orientations and gender identities must be respected, they appear quite unwilling to have their children simply learn about the existence of such people. As such, I question how much respect can be given to those about whom you don't even want your children to know.

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "What parts of your life/lifestyle are unapproved by DCUM standards?" and posted in the "Off-Topic" forum. The original poster provided no further explanation about the topic of this thread beyond what was in the title. This is somewhat baffling to me because I am not aware of DCUM having approved standards. Rather, from its inception, DCUM has been known for the lack of agreement among its posters. If any conceivable difference of opinion can be found, DCUM posters will argue about it. As a result, I suspect that "standards" in this case are simply something that one or more random posters like while a similar or greater number of random posters don't like. DCUM almost never speaks with one voice and, frankly, if it did it would be rather boring. At any rate, I am fairly certain that "standards" is not the proper term to use in this context. The original poster's examples are vacationing in Wildwood, NJ and Ocean City, MD every summer. This basically makes my point. I don't know anything about Wildwood but a quick search on our travel forum shows that it has a number of fans due to its boardwalk. To the extent posters didn't like it, it's because they prefer Ocean City, NJ. As for Ocean City, MD, just about everyone in the DC area seems to have a love/hate relationship with it. Everyone hates it but everyone still goes there. Frankly, if DCUM had standards, this thread wouldn't meet them. Almost immediately it turns into posters simply posting snide remarks or non-sequiturs. One poster, for instance, claims that DCUM hates mothers. Very keen insight about a website dominated by mothers. And, of course, racists seize the opportunity to come out of their holes. True to form, multiple arguments appear to have broken out though I can't say much about them because I can't bring myself to read more than a few posts. I feel no end of disappointment about threads like this that I consider complete wastes of time.

The two most active threads yesterday were ones that I've already discussed. The next most active thread was titled, "Republicans and the debt ceiling" and posted in the "Political Discussion" forum. This thread was started back on January 11th, but has been revived and reinvigorated recently as we approach the end of the government's ability to borrow money and, therefore, have sufficient funds to pay its bills. The original poster refers to "20" who are eager to screw around with the debt ceiling. I don't remember the context in which this thread was started, but I assume that the original poster was asking about a group of House Republicans since they have been outspoken about using the debt ceiling as leverage to achieve political goals. The thread has now reached 61 pages, adding 8 pages yesterday alone. I have only read a few posts, but one thing I noticed is how many posters appear to have little understanding of the debt limit and the ramifications of reaching it. For example, one poster claimed, "These have happened before many times with no stock market crash or trillions lost in equity, or significant job losses." This is completely false. The US has never breached the debt limit. We came within two days of doing so in 2011 and that resulted in a downgrade of the US's credit rating which increased borrowing costs. In addition, there was a steep drop in the stock market. Given such confusion, it might be helpful to clarify some of the basics of the debt limit. There are two terms that are often confused, the national debt and the budget deficit. The debt limit applies to the first, the total amount of money that the US owes to lenders. Because of the second, the budget deficit, the government spends more than it takes in as revenue. Therefore, to pay its financial obligations, the government must borrow money. If we reach the debt limit, which we are now just days away from doing, the government will be unable to borrow additional funds and, therefore, will have insufficient funds to meet its financial obligations. The government would likely default on its loans, likely having global financial repercussions. As we saw in 2011, simply getting near the debt ceiling resulted in a credit downgrade and stock market upheaval. A default would have much more serious ramifications. Any number of government services would be impacted and many might cease operation. Another aspect of the debt ceiling that is frequently misunderstood is that the debt is necessary to finance prior spending, not future spending. We can reduce future spending all that we want, but we would still need to increase the debt ceiling simply to pay for past expenditures. Much of the debt is a result of tax cuts approved by Republicans during the Trump administration. This reduced revenue to the government and increased the amount of money that needed to borrowed. By arguing for future spending cuts (but exempting the military and entitlements), while refusing any tax increases, the Republicans are attempting to force major cuts to a relatively small number of programs that are favored by Democrats.

Imagine that you were asked to draft the plot of a sensational story, one that would capture the world's attention. You would probably want your story to take place in a well-known location. New York City, for instance. You would obviously want an element of excitement. So, maybe throw in a car chase. But, to really get attention, you will need personalities guaranteed to attract publicity. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, perhaps? So, Harry and Meghan in a car chase through New York City? That would probably work. But, this isn't just a creative figment of someone's imagination, but something that actually happened. Or, did it? The most active thread on DCUM yesterday was titled, "Prince Harry and Meghan in Near Catastrophic Car Chase in NYC" and posted in the "Entertainment and Pop Culture" forum. The title of the thread initially referred to a "Catastrophic Car Crash" before I corrected it, putting what was always destined to be a dumpster fire of a thread off to a confusing start. The very first response was from a poster doubting the veracity of the story, setting the scene for near mortal combat over what had or had not occurred in the streets of New York. I really don't know what it is about this couple that provokes what I assume are perfectly normal people to go completely berserk and post compulsively as if their lives depended on it. But, in less than 24 hours, this thread reached 30 pages. If we could have harvested the energy generated by fingers frantically hitting keyboards yesterday, we could probably completely replace fossil fuels. Multiple posters were in double digits for numbers of posts. A few were over 30. One was 44 and another 48. I wish I could tell you what the thread said, but I have no interest in reading it. However, I am pretty sure that there is post after post by individuals complaining that the Sussexes seek too much attention, all the while giving them attention. Folks, the opposite of good publicity is not bad publicity. It's no publicity. If you don't like these people, ignore them. My only regret is that Harry and Meghan were not driving Mini Coopers. That would have allowed this whole thing to be turned into the next sequel of "The Italian Job".

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "NYTimes: College educated workers are leaving DC due to high housing costs" and posted in the "Real Estate" forum. The original poster linked to an article in the New York Times which reported that several major cities have become too expensive even for those with college degrees and, as a result, those cities are seeing a net outflow of college-educated residents. Washington, DC was one of the cities discussed in the article. The article addresses a concern that is discussed almost constantly in the Real Estate forum — the high cost of housing. For years, posters in the forum have posted their predictions that real estate prices would drop any minute now. But, prices continued to rise. It is perfectly understandable that some would eventually give up on the housing market and look elsewhere. For some reason, a number of posters in the thread were under the impression that those leaving DC were choosing rural areas instead. As a result, there are a number of posts comparing and contrasting rural areas to DC. But, as several posters pointed out, the outflow was mostly to other cities. One of the points in the article was that those making the move were still able to access that same amenities they enjoyed in DC, but more affordably. While some posters were quick to attribute the migration out of DC to crime and the increasingly visible unhoused population, others pointed out that the time period that the Times analyzed was during the pandemic, a time when urban amenities were much less available and working from home was prevalent. Both of those developments decreased the attractiveness of living in DC. Many of the posts in the thread are from posters describing their own personal experiences, several of them having moved from DC to other cities. Those posters seem generally happy with their choices. Other posters, many still living in DC or the environs, use the thread to describe a number of things that they dislike about DC. When it comes to complaints about DC, I understand dissatisfaction with crime or the high cost of living. Those are things outside an individual's control. But one of the most common criticisms I see is about DC residents who the posters describe as "pretentious", "materialistic", or "social climbers". This only describes a very limited subset of DC residents and people with those traits can be found nearly everywhere. If those are the only type of people to whom you are exposed in DC, you need to broaden your horizons. But, regardless of the posters' feelings about the friendliness of those living in DC, the discussion always returned to the cost of housing. There is a sort of "nobody goes there anymore, its too crowded" phenomenon going on. I suppose that as prices continue to grow out of reach of more and more people, they will either have to stabilize or even drop. The constant predictions of exactly this notwithstanding, it doesn't seem to be happening yet.

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "Physicians Assistant yelling “HELP ME” while stealing a CitiBike ?" and posted in the "Off-Topic" forum. For the cave dwellers out there who have yet to become familiar with this story, it involves a video that was originally posted on TikTok but, after going viral was circulating just about everywhere. In the video, a woman is shown sitting on a CitiBike — a New York City bikeshare service — while a young man holds the bike's handlebar. The woman is yelling "help, help me!" while the man calmly insists that it is his bike. He holds a phone in his hand that appears to show a CitiBike rental while the indicator on the bike shows that the bike has been rented. The woman at some point starts to cry, though the authenticity of her tears is questioned by people in the video. Eventually, the women gets off the bike and walks away. Why is a thread about this yesterday's most active thread, you ask? Well, I left out some context. The woman is White and the young man is Black. To many, this seemed like an example of a White woman weaponizing her screams for help and tears against an innocent Black man and, as is the tendency these days, was enough to cause the video to go viral. The original poster of this thread posted because she didn't understand what all the fuss was about and wanted it explained to her. Several posters helpfully explained what was happening in the video and others added additional context. As the thread goes on, posters scrutinize the video as if it were the Zapruder film, engaging in a number of disputes about what is shown and what is not shown. Most posters felt that the woman was at fault, with some questioning the state of her mental health. Several reserved judgement because they believed the video was either inconclusive or may have been edited. A number of posters seemed to bend over backwards trying to exonerate the woman, causing exasperated posters to complain about the lengths to which people will go to excuse the behavior of White women. Several White women, on the other hand, agreed that the woman's behavior was unacceptable, but questioned whether she deserved to be the victim of an Internet mob. One poster posted about a statement by the woman's employer saying that they were looking into the incident and several posters expected her to be fired. Fundamentally, this incident is not about the bike, but the long history of White women exploiting prejudices to the detriment, and even endangerment, of Black men. But, on the spectrum ranging from Emmett Till to Central Park Amy, frankly, this incident should not even register. Unfortunately however, Internet pile-ons don't generally involve much in the way of nuance.

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "CVS Sangamore" and posted in the "Metropolitan DC Local Politics" forum. The original poster provided a link to a video filmed within the CVS store located on Sangamore Street in Bethesda showing a man stuffing a bag full of items pulled from the stores's shelves. Behind him, another man casually exits the store carrying a similar fully-loaded bag over his shoulder before the first thief follows him out. The video documents one of several similar robberies that have targeted CVS stores in DC and Bethesda recently. Some of the stores have been robbed multiple times in recent days. The original poster and most of those replying want something to be done about these robberies. But, posters can't agree on who is to blame. The most popular targets for criticism are "liberals" who are allegedly soft on crime, are accused of defunding the police, and said to have ordered the police to stand down. Other posters point out that it took police 45 minutes to respond to the robbery and blame the police for not doing their jobs. The police are defended by posters who argue that it is a low-paying job in which the risk/reward balance often discourages officers from acting. One poster is intent on blaming Amazon and eBay, posting an excerpt from an article reporting that organized groups orchestrate these robberies and resell the stolen goods on online marketplaces He wants them to crack down on the sales. Posters warn that if these robberies continue, the stores will close. The point to recent store closings in San Francisco which has become a sort of poster child for conservatives.

The two most active threads yesterday have already been discussed, so I'll start with what was actually the third most active thread yesterday. Titled, "Algebra 2 is currently offered at TPMS" and posted in the "Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)" forum, this is quite a bizarre thread. The best way that I can think of to convey the essence of this thread is to transport us all back to the time of my youth when I would occasionally stay up late to watch the "The Twilight Zone", the original not the remakes. Imagine the voice of Rod Stirling introducing an episode as you read this. So, come with me, if you will, to the Twilight Zone. For the last several days a poster has revived several old threads in the MCPS schools forum in order to highlight old posts about the math class offerings in various MCPS schools. The argument this poster is trying to make is that Algebra 2 is only offered at "a few wealthy schools" and either implying or explicitly claiming (I'm not sure which) that Algebra 2 is not offered at Takoma Park Middle School. This thread was created in response to that poster to assure everyone that Algebra 2 is indeed being offered by TPMS. Yes, dear readers, this is what resulted in the third most active thread yesterday. The very first response is from the poster who has been reviving all the threads, who simultaneously claims that Algebra 2 is only being offered at Frost Middle School and that TPMS does offer the class, albeit reluctantly. I'm not sure how both of these claims can be true, but the poster goes on to repeat this contradictory argument multiple times. The poster, who also has a bad habit of replying to their own posts, would ultimately end up posting 42 times in this 11 page thread. Not that they are obsessed or anything. I can't fully immerse myself in this particular twilight zone and haven't read all of the pages. But, from what I understand, some MCPS elementary schools offer a class called AIM. I have no idea what that stands for, but the class seems to be some sort of advanced math that prepares students for algebra. Many of the students who complete this class naturally want to continue into algebra and, eventually, algebra 2. Therefore, TPMS provides a class to meet this demand. Apparently, students who did not take AIM in elementary school are not able to take algebra 2, presumably because they lack the prerequisites. Depending on your point of view, this is either a huge travesty of justice that represents the gross inequities plaguing MCPS or a completely normal and acceptable arrangement. Basically, this debate went around and around until I eventually locked the thread. Yes, I had to lock a thread about Algebra 2. It truly is the Twilight Zone.

As has been my habit, I didn't post on this blog over the weekend. Therefore, today I'll discuss the most active threads since Friday. The most active thread during that period was titled, "UK Coronation" and posted in the "Entertainment and Pop Culture" forum. Obviously, this thread is about the coronation of King Charles III. At 34 pages, you would think that this thread would have covered just about everything, but you would be sadly mistaken. There is a second 12-page thread in the "Beauty and Fashion" forum focused on the fashion of the coronation. That thread was the 8th most active over the weekend. I don't have a lot to say about either of these threads. They are too long to read now and I haven't been interested in reading them beforehand. My only interaction was a result of posts from each thread being reported. The most common reason for reports was due to the threads going off-topic into discussions of royal drama, especially involving Meghan Markle who didn't even attend the coronation. I also managed to avoid most news or discussion about the coronation on TV or social media and, frankly, I'd like to keep it that way. As a result, other than my knowledge that there is nothing that will prevent some people from discussing Meghan Markle, I know very little about the event. I'm sure that any DCUMer with even a passing interest in the British Royal Family has already perused the threads, but if you have such an interest and have not already indulged, we have 46 mostly Meghan-free pages at your disposal.