Thursday's Most Active Threads

For one of the few times since October 7, the Gaza war thread was not the most active, falling to 4th. But, since the ceasefire has apparently ended and fighting has resumed, it may be back on top tomorrow. The most active thread yesterday was another one that I've previously discussed. That was the thread about "The Golden Bachelor" which, if I understand correctly, had its finale. After that was a thread titled, "What did you do as a child that would be called dangerous today?" and posted in the "Off-Topic" forum. The original poster says she played with lawn darts and rode her bicycle without a helmet. In addition to riding bikes without helmets, another common activity many posters listed was riding in a car without using seatbelts, often not even in a seat but in the back of a station wagon. Several posters also described wondering around outside without supervision, frequently being gone for long periods without adults knowing their whereabouts. A number of posters expressed skepticism of the safety measures and concerns that we observe today. Some questioned whether children were actually hurt frequently enough to justify requirements such as wearing bike helmets. Others contended that the measures are justified and that while others might not remember children being harmed, statistics show that they were. The dispute extended beyond safety concerns and eventually encompassed various parenting styles. As one poster wrote, the type of childhoods posters are describing are "viscerally HATED by all the helicopter, lawnmower, anxious, nervous mommies on this board". One poster essentially challenged our entire way of life, accusing everyone of being "drones" and comparing helmets to masks used to prevent the spread of covid. He complained that, "It’s sad how clamped down life is today and the psychosis of the population." By the end of the thread it had mostly morphed into the thread I discussed yesterday about raising children free from structured activities and allowing them freedom. I think it is worth trying to make some distinctions. Seatbelts and carseats are undoubtedly a good thing. The recent accident in Fairfax in which five teenagers who were not using seatbelts were jettisoned from an SUV when it hit a tree should be evidence of that. Bike helmets are probably also good. But, maybe kids do need a bit more freedom to explore the world on their own without constantly being under someone's watchful eye. A lot of posters in this thread express nostalgia for their own unsupervised adventures, but I wonder if they are allowing their own kids the same?

The next most active thread was posted in the "Metropolitan DC Local Politics" forum. Titled, "DC criminals stealing your coat at gunpoint", the original poster linked to a news article reporting that three individuals had their expensive winter coats stolen. The original poster, who is completely normal and not at all hyperbolic, calls for sending in the Marines and declaring martial law in order to "take out all the criminals". Yesterday a thread was started in the "Website Feedback" forum by a poster complaining that the Metro politics forum has turned into a "garbage pit" and specifically noting the proliferation of crime-related threads like this one. Crime threads are taking over the forum. Eighteen of the twenty-five threads on the first page right now are crime-related. As I said in response to the website feedback poster, it's not just that there are a huge number of these posts, but that posters almost never have anything new to say. Posters contend that crime is serious, but then post responses that are anything but serious. For instance, the very first response in this thread said, "These poor Jean Valjeans are just trying to clothe their families". I don't claim to have an answer to the crime problem, but I am fairly certain that it will not be solved by snark and trolling. This poster probably believes he is satirizing the progressive attitude toward crime, but he is not. Nobody, progressive or otherwise, believes such a thing. It is no surprise that many news websites and even community websites such as Popeville limit or completely prohibit comments on articles about crime. On Reddit, the washingtondc subreddit completely banned threads about crime. Such topics seem to attract little more than trolls and racists and are a moderator's nightmare. Moreover, anyone who has lived in DC for any length of time should know that the theft of expensive coats is nothing new. While there is undoubtedly an increase in crime, the theft of three coats is not really evidence of it. That is simply something that, unfortunately, happens when the weather turns cold. There are no easy answers to crime. If there were, our officials would happily implement them rather than deal with the trouble that increased crime produces. But, posters in these threads clearly don't have the appetite for a serious discussion. The result is thread after thread consisting of little more than the same flippant responses.

The next two threads, one being the Gaza war thread, were ones that I've already discussed. So, the next thread was actually the sixth most active yesterday. Titled, "The Coolest First Name you ever heard", the thread was originally posted in the "General Parenting Discussion" forum. But, the topic has nothing to do with parenting so I just moved it to the "Off-Topic" forum. As the subject says, the original poster is interested in hearing suggestions for the coolest first name that others have heard. Props to the very first poster to respond who suggested "Larla". I am not sure how serious any of the replies really were and in many cases it is impossible to tell if the poster was joking or being serious. I am not going to summarize seven pages of posts that mostly just list names. But, if this is your sort of thing, enjoy.

The final thread at which I'll look today was posted in the "College and University Discussion" forum. Titled, "Have you broken an early decision contract?", the original poster asks about the circumstances and penalty, if any, that posters experienced if they broke an early decision agreement. As a reminder, "early decision" is a type of college application in which applicants agree to attend the university if they are admitted. There are presumed advantages to ED applications, but the commitment that goes along with them means that students should only apply ED to schools they really want to attend and can afford. But, teenagers being such that what they thought was a great idea one day may not seem particularly brilliant a few months later, I imagine that applicants changing their mind is not unusual. Those who respond report a variety of experiences. In some cases, high school counselors have agreed not to send transcripts to colleges other than the ED school. In such cases, if a student backs out of an ED commitment, they will have a difficult time enrolling anywhere else. One poster knew of a student who ended up attending community college as a result. A number of posters knew of cases in which the rebuffed school notified other universities which then refused admission. But, in cases where finances were the issue, schools seemed to be more flexible. Posters emphasized that withdrawing before notification is acceptable. Even after notification, if the financial aid package was not sufficient, there is a rejection period. One poster said that her son withdrew from an ED commitment due to finances and suffered no penalty. Apparently, some schools are quite organized in how they share lists of ED applicants who have backed out. A poster linked to an article discussing how the US Department of Justice even investigated such a case involving several top colleges. Many posters consider this to be an anti-trust violation and illegal collusion. But, apparently the DOJ investigation was closed and colleges are still sharing information so, it seems, the practice is legal. Nevertheless, some posters are skeptical that ED violations are being punished with any regularity and, hence, don't think there is much to fear from breaking an ED commitment.