2023

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.

The most active thread yesterday was a bit of an odd ball. Posted in the "Entertainment and Pop Culture" forum and titled, "Country Music Songs to Get a Country Hater to Like Country", the original poster lists a few country songs that she plans to play for someone who "refuses to like country". She invites additional suggestions. I haven't replied in this thread, but I should because I am sort of an expert on this topic. I am married to someone who refuses to like country music and I've managed to get her to attend multiple country concerts and she has even learned to like some of the artists. In that regard, I consider this thread to be a total failure because not one person suggested Steve Earle. Admittedly, his catalog is so large that narrowing it down to a song or two is not easy. Despite this glaring flaw, there are a number of good suggestions in the thread though I think that in many cases posters simply resorted to listing their own favorite country acts with no regard to how a country music hater would respond. Many posters rightly suggested avoiding "the twang", but equally important in my opinion is to avoid steel guitars. While I personally enjoy the instrument, I think it can be triggering to those who don't like country music. Some of the suggestions with which I agree are Kacey Musgraves, though I would stick to her first two albums, and Jason Isbell. Of course, Johnny Cash should go without saying. Overall this is a fun thread and I challenge anyone to get through it without being inspired to listen to at least one of the suggestions.

Because I wasn't able to write a blog post yesterday, today I'll cover the most active threads of the last two days. The most active thread of that period was titled, "Memphis Cops Kill Motorist After Traffic Stop" and posted in the "Off-Topic" forum. Obviously this thread is about the death of Tyre Nichols caused by a beating at the hands of Memphis police officers. The thread was actually started back on January 20, but didn't receive a single reply until the 27th when the media began publicizing the imminent release of body worn camera video. In the two days since, the thread has reached 36 pages. I haven't read all of the pages but it looks like much of the thread consists of debates about what exactly the videos show with some posters thinking that the videos document an unprovoked killing and others arguing that Nichols failed to obey police instructions. Just as in the case of much of the media coverage, considerable attention is paid to the possibility of riots with some posters appearing to be nearly salivating at the chance that liberals would burn down cities. Those posters later hyped any incident consisting of more than a raised voice and even invented a few riots about which to complain. One thing I noticed about this thread was how cynical most posters appeared regarding the criminal charges lodged against the police officers who had been involved in the beating. Almost nobody seemed to accept the possibility that the charges reflected the proper application of the law. Most posters suspected an ulterior motive for the charges even if they couldn't agree on what that motive was. Some posters attributed the charges to an effort to head off riots. Some thought the quick filing of charges was due to the officers being black and suggested that white officers would not have been charged so rapidly. As you would expect of a thread of this length, there are numerous disagreements that are keeping the thread going.

The most active topic yesterday was titled "Son pledging there’s definitely hazing" and posted in the "College and University Discussion" forum. The original poster says that she is a nervous wreck because her son has described "pretty bad" hazing during his pledging for a fraternity. I am not completely confident that this post is totally legitimate. The original poster is very sparse with any sort of details and while she asks for advice, doesn't really seem very interested in any that is offered. Several of the posters who responded suggested contacting the university's administration to report the hazing and many warned of the dangers hazing presents. Others advised the original poster to stay out of it because her son is old enough to make his own decisions in such matters. This led to some discussion of the mental development of 18 years olds. A few responses suggested joining ROTC which posters argued offers some of the same camaraderie of frats and any physical stress would be for a good cause. The thread is full of horror stories about fraternities and warnings to steer clear of them. On the other hand, responders argued that the original poster's son should simply try a different frat that might offer a better pledging experience.

The most active topic yesterday was titled, "anyone else strongly consider leaving due to garbage US healthcare?" and posted in the "Off-Topic" forum. The original poster details her frustrating experience trying to determine whether her health insurance will cover a sleep study that was prescribed by her doctor. After several runarounds and hours on the phone, she has been unable to find an answer. In contrast, she describes an incident involving her sister-in-law who suffered a broken arm while travelling in Thailand. Her sister-in-law received excellent care and was only charged $300 even without insurance. Due to the aggravating situation with healthcare in the United States, the original poster is strongly considering moving abroad and asks whether others have similar thoughts. Many posters reply saying that they have great health insurance and never have problems accessing care, and therefore, would not consider leaving the US. Other posters suggest that the original poster's view of foreign healthcare systems may be overly rosy and predict that she couldn't easy get a sleep study in other countries. However, a smattering of those responding also express disappointment with US healthcare and are considering leaving, though their reasons for doing so generally extend beyond healthcare. For the most part, the responses reflect the stratified access to healthcare that exists in the US. Those with financial means get the care that they desire. The poor probably wouldn't even consider a sleep study and primarily rely on the emergency room for care. In the middle is where the US offers a mixed bag, with patients facing hurdles and frustrations such as the original poster has described.

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "Accused of racial bias at work by someone, and I feel sick over it" and posted in the "Jobs and Careers" forum. The original poster provides a long and detailed description of what appears to be an innocent interaction that resulted in her being accused of racial bias. The original poster feels strongly that the allegation is wrong and is very upset about it. She asks how others would handle the situation. There are a range of responses running from suggestions that the original poster simply ignore it to advice to contact the accuser and try to resolve things. Some posters criticize the original poster for being overly emotional. A few of those who respond agree that the original poster was guilty of racial bias, though the facts that were presented do not support such a conclusion. Much of the the thread is devoted to analyzing the details provided by the original poster and drawing conclusions about where mistakes had been made. Some posters conclude that gender rather than racial bias may have played the greater role.

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "Alec Baldwin now charged with involuntary manslaughter by New Mexico authorities" and posted in the "Entertainment and Pop Culture" forum. A few days ago, someone started a thread in the "Website Feedback" forum asking which topics were the most popular. I checked and found that Hilaria Baldwin topics were the most popular. As this thread — which reached 12 pages in less than a day — demonstrates, her husband is a similarly popular topic for discussion. This thread discusses charges lodged against Hilaria Baldwin's husband arising from an incident on set of "Rust" in which Hilaria's husband fired what he believed to be harmless prop gun and killed Halyna Hutchins, the movie's director of photography. Posters are divided between whether these are delayed but warranted charges or the act of an overzealous prosecutor. Many posters compare the incident to former Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of a hunting companion. Not only was Cheney not charged, the shooting victim actually apologized to him. While the details of this tragic event are of course important, posters were also eager to discuss how Hilaria was dressed and how many times she appeared before the camera. Her unzipped coat came under particular scrutiny. I would guess that we are only a few hours away from a poster suggesting that Hilaria arranged the shooting as an opportunity to get media exposure.

The most active thread yesterday was titled, "Private Schools Wokeness Over the Top" and posted in the "Private/Independent Schools" forum. The topic of "wokeness" in schools in general and private schools in particular has been well-covered but those interested in the topic never seem to tire of it. This thread managed to reach 19 pages in less than a day. As the title suggests, the original poster is concerned about "wokeness" in private schools. The original poster admits that since her children are young, she hasn't experienced any of the things about which she is worried. Nevertheless, she feels lost and not sure where she fits in. The poster, who describes herself as "Muslim" and "Arab" and explicitly attributes her views on imperialism to her ethnicity condemns identity politics while simultaneously engaging in it. Moreover, as early as the first page of the thread, the original poster prefaced one of her posts by saying, "Not OP but...". I am not sure whether the original poster identifies as a sock puppet, but the label would appear to fit. The original poster's primary gripe about "wokeness" is that, in her understanding at least, it ignores class. I am not sure why the original poster is surprised that institutions that charge more per year than most people can afford to spend on a car and for whom a primary selling point is the opportunity to avoid public school riffraff are not focused on class. Then again, I don't know why a poster who proclaims herself a staunch proponent of mass solidarity would be interested in the selective environments of private schools in the first place. The original poster goes on to provide reductive and simplistic interpretations of the writings of progressive authors which she criticizes as being reductive and simplistic. Eventually this thread got hijacked by debates about transgender people and Barri Weiss. So, a discussion that wasn't that interesting to begin with got even worse. I suspect that I'll need to lock this thread before long.