This movie probably doesn’t deserve the whole five stars but I have a real affinity for characters like Emily (played by Aubrey Plaza), who, like the Mark Baum and Vinny characters in The Big Short, are people with a code of honor, a sense of awareness, not looking for trouble, but not willing to put up with insolence or nonsense. To give you a sense of what I mean — and this may need a very minor spoiler alert — a group of criminals has stolen a significant amount from Emily’s boyfriend (also a criminal but less physical than the other criminals) and she’s making a case that they should go and get it back because, among other reasons, the boyfriend owes her a cut of what was stolen. The boyfriend is against the idea. “These are very serious people,” he says. Emily replies, “No, no, we’re serious people. Ok?… Read more →
EppsNet Archive: Crime
Has Crime Gone Up or Down? Yes
I can’t believe I’ve lived as long as I have without knowing this, but the United States has two primary ways of measuring the nation’s crime rate: the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) and the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). I’ve always thought that the FBI UCR was the definitive word on crime stats. If you’ve got the UCR data, that’s it. Game over. Not true! The data above are a year old, but you can see that 2022 UCR data shows a drop in the violent crime rate, while NCVS data shows that total violent crime rose in 2022. UCR Data vs. NCVS data The FBI’s UCR statistics reflect crimes reported by the public to police. But most crimes are not reported to the police. To help account for the omissions, the NCVS measures crime in a nationwide household survey of respondents ages 12 and… Read more →
Pharmacy Deserts — The Struggle is Real?
Drugstore closures are leaving millions without easy access to a pharmacy — washingtonpost.com The nation’s largest drugstore chains — Rite Aid (which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week), CVS and Walgreens plan to collectively close more than 1,500 stores. Public health experts have already seen the fallout, noting that the first neighborhoods to lose their pharmacies are often predominantly Black, Latinx and low-income. That sentence is written in a way that makes the world sound worse to the casual reader than it probably is. How have public health experts “already seen the fallout” of something that hasn’t happened yet? Predominantly Black, Latinx and low-income neighborhoods are “often” the first to lose pharmacies. Not always, but often. Ok, that makes sense. But it’s phrased in a way that sounds like the pharmacies are being closed because of the demographics. If pharmacies didn’t want to be in predominantly Black, Latinx… Read more →
Obstructing Congressional Proceedings
If they don’t charge Rep Bowman, with a crime for endangering the lives of those in the capitol & obstructing congressional proceedings then they better let every single J6er that’s rotting in prison for nonviolent offenses out with an apology & compensation right fucking now! pic.twitter.com/Cpc2su2VJP — Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) September 30, 2023 He’s got a fair point there because the statute regarding “obstructing congressional proceedings” is what a lot of J6ers are charged with. It carries a maximum sentence, I believe, of 20 years in prison, which allows lengthy sentences to be doled out to people who entered a building and walked around. Yes, you entered a building and walked around but we were trying to conduct a congressional proceeding and you obstructed it. And in the words of Bob Dylan, To show that all’s equal and that the courts are on the level And that the strings… Read more →
Bring Back Mental Hospitals
Sam Brinton: History-Making Government Official or Mental Case?
This article seems to be nominating the guy for sainthood. “History-making”?! He’s the first male government official to come to work in a dress? I’m not even sure he can claim that title. Maybe Rachel Levine was first. Or maybe it was someone else. But Levine uses female pronouns and Brinton doesn’t, so I guess that’s historic. This, to me, is not a good look for a government nuclear energy official: Yes, we all of us have our kinks or peccadillos, but we don’t have photos of them on the internet. What sort of vetting process is in place in the Biden administration? Mental disorders are obviously not a disqualifier. Are we seeking to make ourselves an international laughingstock? The article is as sympathetic as it’s possible to be, lamenting the fact that Brinton has been “misgendered,” and referring to his thefts as “accusations.” (Yes I know, innocent until proven… Read more →
Messaging vs. Reality
I live in California. Gavin Newsom’s main flaw is that he’s very stupid. Democrats are not getting destroyed on messaging. I don’t even know what the Republican message is. I know the Democratic message is “MAGA Republicans, extreme MAGA Republicans, fascists.” Now that is a losing message, I grant you, because Democrats who aren’t insane, for whom politics does not play a destructive force in their life, have friends, neighbors, co-workers, family members, etc., who are Republicans and understand that while Republicans have different political views, they aren’t trying to put Democrats in gulags. Democrats are getting destroyed by reality. Republicans are running on GDP, inflation, lying about inflation, recession, lying about recession, gas prices, food prices, stock market, crime, border security, fentanyl deaths, energy independence, foreign policy, supply chain, social corruption, silencing, lies, pronouns and fucking with children. Actually, now that I think about it, maybe the Republicans could… Read more →
If I Had a Hammer . . .
My first thought on the Paul Pelosi hammer attack story was that it had to be fake. First, is it possible that the Speaker of the House doesn’t have the minimal level of security needed to prevent her husband from being assaulted in their own home? Second, I’m pretty certain that an 82-year-old man would not survive a battle against me and a hammer. I haven’t had any practice at it but that’s the point. How many hammer blows to the skull can an 82-year-old survive? I’d put the over-under at one. Paul Pelosi was heard to say after the attack, “My goddamn congressperson better do something about the level of crime in this city . . . oh, wait . . .” Third, “Democrats” and “violent crime” are becoming synonymous as midterm elections approach, so maybe there would be a way to find a high-profile story linking Republicans and… Read more →
Abolish the Police
Last night a POC tried to mug me. I said he was more than welcome to my purse or if interested in we could fool around behind the dumpsters over there. He ran away. It hurt my feelings but it’s proof social workers can handle these crimes. #abolishThePolice — Dr. Carol X Lunz PhD She/Him,GED Alumni,commentary (@marinasmigielsk) October 21, 2022 Read more →
The Most Dangerous Movement in History!
Yes or no: is MAGA the most dangerous movement in modern American history? — Jon Cooper (@joncoopertweets) October 6, 2022 Yes! We must continue Biden’s historic progress on GDP, inflation, stock market, crime, border security, energy independence, foreign policy, supply chain, etc. etc. Read more →
And That’s the Truth: White People Gotta Commit More Violent Crimes
[And That’s the Truth is a feature by our guest blogger, Sojourner Truth– PE] I just read that black people commit the majority of violent crimes in America. And there ain’t that many black people! They shouldn’t be committin more violent crimes than every other race put together. And I hates to say it but I can tell just from readin a headline whether or not I click through on the link I’m gonna see a black face on the other side. Man Kills Restaurant Worker Because His French Fries Were Cold — That’s a black guy. Restaurant Worker Kills Man for Complaining That His French Fries Were Cold — That’s a black guy. Man Killed Resisting Arrest — That’s a black guy. Man Kills His Wife Because She Won’t Shut Up — Ok, that could be anybody. Nine People Shot Outside a Club — Black guys. Wake up, white… Read more →
Thomas Jefferson: MAGA Republicans
My fellow Americans – I have to confess I have not figured out the difference between a “MAGA Republican” and a plain old Republican. A “Make America Great Again” Republican. It doesn’t sound so bad. And with that still unresolved, we are now confronted with “extreme MAGA Republicans,” who apparently want to make America extremely great again. .@RepJeffries on midterms: "Extreme MAGA Republicans apparently do not believe in democracy anymore. […] We'll have an opportunity to make our case to the American people […] and the consequences of what might happen if extreme MAGA Republicans are allowed to seize power." pic.twitter.com/T4LAMCxuyx — The Hill (@thehill) September 29, 2022 Midterm elections are not far away and if I were a Democrat, I wouldn’t be looking forward to them with great optimism. Every Democratic policy has failed. They are under water with the economy, we are in a recession based on the… Read more →
We Are Led by Idiots
It’s hard to contemplate American public life in the 21st century and not arrive at the unhappy conclusion that we are led by idiots. The political class has lately produced an impressive string of debacles: the Afghanistan pullout, urban crime waves, easily foreseen inflation, mayhem at the southern border, a self-generated energy crisis, a pandemic response that wrought little good and vast ruin. Then there are the perennial national embarrassments: a mind-bogglingly expensive welfare state that doesn’t work, public schools that make kids dumber, universities that nurture destructive grievances and noxious ideologies, and a news media nobody trusts. — Barton Swaim Read more →
5 Reasons We’re Not Helped by More Gun Laws
The most common statistical sleight of hand when it comes to showing charts of gun murder rates per capita by country, with the United States always in the lead, is that these charts, somewhere in the fine print, and sometimes not at all, note that they’re only charting so-called “developed” countries, meaning that the U.S. is being compared to countries like Japan and France, but that Latin American countries and African countries, among others, are left out. So — 50+ people shot to death in a Nigerian church? Doesn’t count because Nigeria is not a “developed” country. And so on. (The other thing you have to pay attention to is whether a chart is showing gun murders or gun deaths. The U.S. has a very high suicide rate compared to most other countries — more than 60 percent of our gun deaths are suicides — so rolling the suicides in… Read more →
Paul Pelosi DUI Charges Dropped
White privilege! Although unlike Ted Kennedy, Paul Pelosi didn't actually kill anyone in his DUI accident. Democrats are getting better at drunk driving. https://t.co/VdCaOAsagD — Paul Epps (@paulepps) June 8, 2022 Read more →
What the Gun Debate Misses
From Kevin D. Williamson: Almost every single substantive gun-control proposal put forward by our progressive friends is oriented toward adding new restrictions and regulatory burdens to federally licensed firearms dealers and the people who do business with them: what they can sell and what they cannot sell, to whom they can sell, under what conditions they may sell, etc. But, as I often remark, gun-store customers are just about the most law-abiding demographic in the United States. The best information we have comes from the Department of Justice, which found in 2019 that less than 2 percent of all prisoners had a firearm obtained from a retail source at the time they committed their crimes. Criminals mostly don’t get their guns at gun stores — because they mostly can’t. The great majority of murders committed in the United States — upwards of 80 percent — are committed by people… Read more →
And That’s the Truth: Nothing Was Delivered
[And That’s the Truth is a feature by our guest blogger, Sojourner Truth — PE] Can you name me one black person who’s life is better because of Colin Kaepernick? He’s made our lives worse. He widened the racial divide in our country, he pushed this Defund the Po-lice notion that has blown up in the face of everyone who’s tried it. Chicago cut $8 million outta the police budget and now the mayor callin the Feds sayin “You gotta help us wid all dis goddam crime!” My lord, who’d of guessed that gettin rid of people whose job is stoppin crime would lead to more crime? And most of the crime is in black neighborhoods. Thank you, Colin Kaepernick. This boy work for Nike, which as you know, is affiliated with slave labor. They pay people in Vietnam a dollar a day to stitch sports apparel while Kaepernick makes… Read more →
Refunding the Police
I’m old enough to remember those thrilling times (last year) when we were told that all crime would end if police stopped policing. For example, Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot proposed cutting the police budget in the city by $80 million. Now in Chicago, murders have hit a 27 year high, nearly back to 1970s levels, and Lightfoot is requesting U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to send additional federal law enforcement officials to her city. “We cannot continue to endure the level of violence that we are now experiencing,” she said in a long speech on crime. Read more →
Woke White Boy on Smash-and-Grab Robberies
2 suspects tied to organized retail theft crew arrested in Redondo Beach as police see more thefts at the Galleria — ktla.com Good! Police gotta crack down on these smash-and-grab robberies. Just one more sign of the wave of white supremacist violence sweeping the country. The suspects’ names are Malik Trevon Oaks and Jamol ClaytonPhillips. Wait — what?! Fuckin racist cops . . . — WWB Read more →
“Get the Vaccine” — Joe Biden
OK grandpa, now go take a nap. That’s the only Biden quote I have. Nothing on the latest jobs report, massive layoffs, high gas and energy prices, high food prices, high crime, empty shelves, open borders or Afghanistan. If you have any good ones, let me know and I’ll post them here. Read more →