NPR: Crime in the U.S. fell in 2025. Will the trend continue?
Murders are down 20% from last year, and NPR can’t figure out why. All crimes are down, and it may not be too hard to figure out.
Author: Richard Nestoff (Page 1 of 122)
While I was having my coffee this morning, I noticed these guys screwing around in front of my house.
What are they doing? Don’t know. Probably some X-files bullshit. They may be with the water department.
When towing a trailer that weighs over 3000 lbs, a brake controller is required. My new Tacoma doesn’t have one. My last Tacoma didn’t either, but the RV dealership put one on in about 15 minutes because the wiring harness was already there.
Toyota decided to stop doing that. Now they sell Tacomas with a tow package, but no brake controller or provision to install a brake controller.
A few people have instructions online for the installation, but none of them match up. It’s a research project. I’m going to wait for a couple of weeks until Tech Support at the company is back from vacation.
It was 50o outside when I went to bed last night. This morning, the fire is gone, the box is cold and there are only two sticks of wood in the rack. Going out to get wood was miserable. 25o + 25 mph is much worse than 50o . So, units matter.
Christmas movies can be sappy or overly sentimental. The good ones are not. In It’s a Wonderful LIfe, George Bailey is a man who is knocked flat by life, and kills himself. The dark is necessary for a meaningful journey to the light.
Klaus is a good Christmas movie that gives an explanation for Christmas traditions without a Christmas miracle.
Pluribus is currently the number one TV show streaming on Apple TV and is getting a lot of attention from science fiction fans. Vince Gilligan, the show runner, also created Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. The main character, played by Rhea Seehorn, crushed it in Better Call Saul.
The show sucks. I just watched the season finale, and don’t get why my nerdling friends rave about this series.
WSJ: Classroom Phone Bans Work. So Why Don’t All Schools Do It?
A large urban district in Florida saw an increase in student test scores. A smaller school district in rural California is experiencing a dramatic decline in student behavioral problems. The reason for both: the absence of smartphones in the classroom.
Public schools are administrated by political animals without the ambition or ability to run for office. Some care about education, but no incentive rewards that.
Parents don’t push for phone bans because they don’t care about their children. A flip phone with no data plan solves all these issues. Parents are so eager to be liked, they willingly put their children in danger.
Sparky said he wanted to thank Aunt Joanne for the Duck Recipe Gourmet Sausages she gave him for Christmas.
“Take a picture while I hold up the bag!”
When Sparky made that suggestion, I thought he was being very considerate for an autistic guy.
Healthline: How Long Does It Take for a New Behavior to Become a Habit?
Does anyone really do New Year’s Resolutions?
When we were young adults, we made absurd New Year’s Resolutions to parody the idea. Someone vowed to not shoot any polar bears eating marshmallows in snow storms. I don’t know why we thought that was funny. It was a simpler time.