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An amazing new study shows that youth violent crime is down 78 percent since 1994

The kids are alright.

An amazing new study shows that youth violent crime is down 78 percent since 1994
Photo by Melissa Askew on Unsplash
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Here’s another positive trend in America that you probably won’t hear on your local TV news, where if it bleeds, it leads. A new report based on FBI data found that violent crime among those ages 17 and under dropped 78% from 1994 to 2020.

The study found a big drop in youth violent crime in 2020 and although some of that can be attributed to the pandemic, violent crime rates were already trending in that direction.

“In 2020, there were an estimated 424,300 arrests involving persons younger than 18—38% fewer than the number of arrests in 2019, and half the number of arrests 5 years earlier,” according to the study. “Less than 1 in 10 (8%) of these arrests were for a violent crime.”

The report may come as a surprise to a lot of Americans, who are inundated with news stories about crime every night on the news. A study by HuffPost and YouGov found that the average American is woefully uninformed about the state of crime in America.

The 2020 poll found that only 10% of Americans correctly believed that crime had fallen over the past decade, while 57% incorrectly believed it had risen.

“If you report crime increasingly, then people will often think it's increasing,” Vincent Schiraldi, a senior fellow at the Columbia University Justice Lab, told NPR. “But there's been about a two-thirds decline in the number of kids locked up. At the same time, we're actually treating the kids when they screw up, rather than just throwing them in these facilities that often exacerbate the crime.”

News of the positive trend should encourage politicians and judges to push for rehabilitation programs instead of long prison sentences for young people.

“These data reflect an encouraging trend—one that has in fact been developing over the last three decades—and offer a welcome counter-narrative to claims that youth crime is on the rise,” OJJDP Administrator Liz Ryan said in a press release. “They also give us reason to be optimistic about the course of juvenile justice reform, particularly efforts in many jurisdictions to replace harsh punishments with personal development opportunities and to design programs that build support into accountability.”

The data also gives researchers more information to make smarter decisions on policies affecting young people.

“The continuing decline in youth arrests overall, and for violent offenses in particular, gives us important information about the volume and nature of arrests that should be considered when developing strategies to support youth and reduce their justice involvement,” NIJ Director Nancy La Vigne said in a press release.

The drop in youth violent crime mirrors the trend in violent crime in America over the past 30 years. In 1991, 758.2 out of 100,000 people were the victims of violent crime. This number dropped by almost half by 2019 (380.8). There has been a slight uptick in violent crime during the pandemic.

The recent increase in violent crime in America has been characterized by many on the right as the result of criminal justice reform in liberal-leaning cities. However, red states have seen some of the highest murder rates of all.

A positive trend with America’s youth bodes well for the country's future. When young people are less violent that means the adults of the future will probably commit fewer crimes as well.

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School responded to a parent's book complaint by reading it aloud to the entire student body

What possible issue could a parent have had with this book?

Jess Piper/Twitter

Schools often have to walk a fine line when it comes to parental complaints. Diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and preferences for what kids see and hear will always mean that schools can't please everyone all the time, so educators have to discern what's best for the whole, broad spectrum of kids in their care.

Sometimes, what's best is hard to discern. Sometimes it's absolutely not.

Such was the case when a parent at a St. Louis elementary school complained in a Facebook group about a book that was read to her 7-year-old. The parent wrote:

"Anyone else check out the read a loud book on Canvas for 2nd grade today? Ron's Big Mission was the book that was read out loud to my 7 year old. I caught this after she watched it bc I was working with my 3rd grader. I have called my daughters school. Parents, we have to preview what we are letting the kids see on there."

The book in question, "Ron's Big Mission," highlights a true story from the childhood of Challenger astronaut Ron McNair, who had experienced discrimination as a child in South Carolina because he was Black. In 1959, when he was nine years old, McNair wanted to check out books at the library, but the librarian told him the library didn't loan books to "coloreds." McNair refused to leave the library until he was allowed to check out books. Rather than give him a library card, the librarian called the police, who ultimately convinced her to just let him check out books.

Seriously, what issue could this parent possibly take with such an inspiring story of a kid standing up to injustice and fighting for the right to educate himself? This was a child who single-handedly changed a library's racial segregation policy and grew up to be an astronaut—a genuine, real-life hero. What is there to take issue with? The parent didn't specify, so we're left to conjecture, but if there's any other possible reason than racism, I can't think of one.

Rockwood Education Equity and Diversity Director Brittany Hogan told KMOX News Radio that after hearing of the complaint, other parents responded immediately in the book's defense.

"They were saying this is amazing that they were buying copies of the book," Hogan said. "One of our parents came out and said she was going to purchase a copy for every second-grader at the elementary school that her children attends."

Hogan called McNair a hero and said, "He deserves to be celebrated. His story deserves to be told to our children. It's important that we continue to move in a space that embeds diverse curriculum."

And the school responded in the best possible way—by announcing the book was going to be read aloud to the whole student body via Zoom. That's how you shut down a bigot. Boom.

Here's Pond Elementary Principal Carlos Diaz-Granados reading "Ron's Big Mission" to students via Zoom and sharing why he thinks it's an important book for kids:



- YouTubewww.youtube.com



This article originally appeared on 9.18.23

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6 things women put up with in the gym, and why they shouldn't have to

Harassment in the gym takes many different forms, and it's a serious problem.

John Arano/Unsplash

Finding the motivation to go to the gym isn't easy for anyone. But it can be much harder for women, for reasons that have nothing to do with actually working out.

Knowing they're likely walking into a hornet's nest of people (men) who will bother, critique, stare at, or otherwise harass and annoy them is an unfortunate reality for many female gym-goers.

woman standing surrounded by exercise equipment Photo by Danielle Cerullo on Unsplash


About 14% of women say they're intimidated by the possibility of men leering or judging them while they work out, according to research done by Cosmopolitan Body in 2014.

The problem gets even worse in the weights section, which is typically overrun with men. The survey discovered almost half of all women found the area intimidating because of "the people who use it."

Anecdotal evidence backs that up. Reddit and fitness discussion forums are rife with women asking for advice on dealing with men at the gym who gawk, flirt, interrupt, or even harass them. The common (and quite depressing) responses: develop a "resting bitch face," learn to be super rude, get better at ignoring people, or report these men to gym management.

Instead, we ought to be reminding men they don't own the gym; women shouldn't have to "put up with" rude behavior or "find a way" to not attract attention. Wouldn't it be better for everyone if women didn't have to deal with harassment at all?

So, fellow dudes and fellow gym go-ers, I implore you, think for a second about the gym harassment women have to go through.

And if you catch yourself or your friends doing any of this stuff, please cut it out.

1. Women can tell when you're staring at them, and it's not as flattering as you think.

Making a woman feel "on display" by leering when she's just trying to get a workout in is a surefire way to make her feel uncomfortable or even scared. And no, tight pants and sports bras aren't an invitation.

Think a lingering glance here and there isn't a big deal? Upworthy reader Meredith Cantrell says many of the women she knows actually drive to "gay neighborhoods" to work out so they won't be gawked at.

Totally unnecessary if guys can learn to keep our eyes to ourselves.

2. Women go to the gym to work out (like everyone else) — not speed-date between sets.

It's not that you can't meet that special someone at the gym, but there's a time and a place. Flirting with a woman at the gym when she's in the middle of lifting weights or grinding out miles on the treadmill is neither the time nor place.

Not only is it super rude to interrupt (honestly, you're not going to get a good response doing this anyway), it's also pretty dangerous to distract someone while they're, say, holding the equivalent of their own bodyweight on their back while doing squats. Yet, incredibly, it happens all the time.

A good rule of thumb: When someone's wearing headphones, it usually means they don't want to talk to anyone. Even you, handsome.

3. When women lift heavy weights, guys around them get insecure and lash out.

Reader Emma Johnson writes that one day, while working with her trainer, she hit a pretty impressive 250-kilogram leg press (over 550 pounds — go Emma!). A jealous guy standing nearby couldn't help but chime in, "Yeah, but you're doing it wrong."

Look, guys, women are strong. Sometimes they will be stronger than you. Deal with it like an adult and get back to work on your own fitness goals.

4. Unsolicited advice isn't helpful. It's insulting.

When people want help, they'll ask, or they'll hire a personal trainer. In the meantime, worry about your own "form." OK?

Laurna Robertson says she was talking to a "persistent guy" in the sauna at her gym one day when the subject of running came up. After sharing their respective half-marathon times (Laurna was faster, by the way), the man "generously" offered to coach her. What a guy!

Sophia Bromfield adds, "I have a corner in the gym to hide while I lift," but one day a dude stood next to her until she took her headphones off, then insisted on teaching her proper lunge form.

This is the gym version of mansplaining. It's annoying and insulting. Don't do it.

5. Some guys just don't know when to go away. Others are straight-up bullies.

Being "overly friendly" with questionable motivations is one thing, but some women find men at the gym can be downright nasty, purposefully intimidating them or boxing them out so they'll leave.

The gym is a shared space. Other people pay money to go there, just like you. If you don't want to be around other humans, buy a home gym.

Also, beware of unconscious behaviors like "manspreading," taking up more room than you need, or stealing someone's weights before they're done with them.

6. These behaviors aren't just annoying. They can be extremely intimidating.

At a certain point, these behaviors cross the line from rude and inappropriate to downright scary.

Ashley Loshbough writes that a man once came up to her (asking her to remove her headphones, which, just ugh) and said, "Wow, I wish I had beautiful [pale] skin like yours," stared for a moment, then walked off.

It might sound funny and harmless, but this is the kind of thing that has women looking over their shoulder in the parking lot and wondering if they should ever come back to that gym again.

A little empathy goes a long way, fellas.

Do you want someone gawking at your butt while you're on the treadmill? Interrupting you while you're holding heavy weights? Impatiently waiting inches away from you until you finish up on a machine?

Let's work together to keep this crap out of the gym and make it an environment where we support others to reach whatever their health and fitness goals are.

Even if that means just leaving each other alone.


This article originally appeared on 4.6.17

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Couple in their 30s live permanently on cruise ships for a little over $10K a year

“I’m not a millionaire ... I just live full-time on cruise ships.”

via Matthew Barra/Pexels

A magnificent cruise ship on the ocean.

Giving it all up and retiring to live on a cruise ship at 32 seems like a lifestyle choice only available to the ultra-wealthy. However, two financially savvy retired school teachers from Tennessee have managed to do just that, spending under $10,000 for the first eight months at sea.

Monica Brzoska, 32, and Jorrell Conley, 36, met in 2015 while teaching in Memphis, Tennessee. The following year, they booked a week-long cruise to Mexico, Belize, and Grand Cayman. After that, they were hooked on cruising together.

Eight years later, in March 2023, they booked a week-long Caribbean cruise. When it was over, instead of returning home to Memphis, they had a wild idea: Why not continue to book consecutive cruises? So, they did just that.

Monica was inspired to start living the life she always wanted after her father fell ill and her mother told her: "Don't wait for retirement. Follow your dreams."



The couple crunched the numbers and found that if they chose the cheapest cabins and used the deals they’ve received from Carnival Cruises, they could book the first 8 months for just under $10,000. “It sounds mad, but the numbers made sense. Accommodation, food and entertainment would be included – we’d only need spending money,” Brzoska told The Sun. “And because we’d been on so many Carnival cruises, we’d earned access to some amazing offers.”

Hopping from ship to ship isn’t difficult for the couple because many disembark from the same ports. But they sometimes have to fly when they can’t walk to the next ocean liner.

The couple then quit their jobs, sold their possessions, and started a new life on the high seas. They rent out their 3-bedroom home in Memphis to maintain steady cash flow. The average 3-bedroom home in the area rents somewhere between $1200 to $1900 a month.



Over the first year of their new life, the couple completed 36 consecutive cruises. They have already visited countless destinations across the globe, but they can’t choose a favorite. "For a cultural experience, we loved Japan," Brzoska told a Carnival Cruise director on Instagram. The couple also loved Greece for its “history” and Iceland because it was the "closest to being on Mars."

One of the most incredible benefits of loving on a cruise ship is that so many things are taken care of for you. The couple never has to cook any meals, do any laundry or drive. Every night, there is something to do, whether it’s checking out a comedy show or enjoying drinks and dancing in the nightclub.



Plus, on cruises, just about all the costs are covered, so you rarely have to open your wallet. It’s a stress-free, all-inclusive lifestyle. Brzoska says that when you remove the everyday stresses from life, it’s great for your marriage. “Without the daily stresses of life, we rarely argued, but always told each other if we needed space or more time together,” she said.

The couple also makes sure to have one date night a week, during which they dress up and have a nice meal together.

Most people may be unable to give it all up and live their lives hopping from ocean liner to ocean liner. But there’s a great lesson in the story of Brzoska and Conley: You never know how much time you have left, so don’t wait for retirement to live the life of your dreams.

Upworthy has reached out to Brzoska for comment and is still awaiting a response.









Culture

Adam Trent played a trivia game with the delivery guy that changed his life in an instant

It was shared more than 600,000 times.

If you're like me and you'd never heard of Adam Trent before seeing this story, you may want to pencil in some time to check out his other videos after this. What makes this video different is that Trent's kind but simple gesture had the unintended consequence of literally changing one man's life for the better.

And it all started with a simple game of trivia and a few envelopes.

As the delivery man is preparing to leave, Trent opens his front door and asks if the man will stick around to play a game, telling him he can keep the contents of various envelopes taped to the wall … if he answers the question on each envelope correctly.


Understandably a little suspicious, the delivery man agrees to the premise. And it turns out he's pretty good at trivia! Some of the questions are deceptively simple, such as "how many points is a touchdown in football?"

And then there are other more challenging ones, like name the capital of Florida. It's a question that if you know it, it's incredibly obvious. And if you don't, well you might feel a bit silly for not memorizing your state capitals. But the delivery guy nails every question, impressing Trent. Until he doesn't.

It's the final question -- another of those "incredibly easy if you know it and impossible if you don't" ones that is entirely out of this guy's demographic: Name two members of the former boy band N'Sync.

Trent lets the doorman off the hook and gives him all the envelopes. It turns out that each one contains different denominations of cash: $20, $5 and $1. At the end, turning emotional, the delivery guy reveals that the small amount of cash made the difference in him being able to pay rent.

Obviously moved, Trent gives him the final N'Sync envelope, which contains the largest cash amount: $100. Speechless, the doorman turns away, kneels and the video cuts out.



It was an incredibly classy move by Trent. Yes, we're all entertained by the fun trivia and it's hard to not be hit by the feels at the end. Of course, we've seen enough seemingly heartwarming stories to realize there are often system problems on full display. In this case, why does a man hustling at his job have to win a random trivia game to pay his rent? It's a little dystopian if you stop to think about it. And that's why we'll give Trent more credit for not making the video about himself. There's no cheesy moment where Trent flips the camera around, no soapbox moment of lecturing us all about economics and no attempt to push out his social media channels, or whatever it is that so-called influencers are up to these days.

It's simply a human to human moment. Honestly, seeing these two men interact is itself special during the middle of a pandemic and a hugely divisive election season. The fact that it ends in a sweet moment that brings real, if temporary, change to one person's life just makes it all the better.


This article originally appeared on 9.3.20

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16 people share the weird 'quirk' their pet does that no one believes

Does your dog or cat ever try to act like a human?

via PixaBay and PixaBay

A cat sitting funny and a happy pug.

When my old dog Murray really wanted to tell me something and his barking or pawing didn’t get the job done, he would start making sounds that I swear mimicked human speech. Now, I’m not entirely sure that he was attempting to get through to me as a member of my own species would, but I don’t know how else to explain this quirky behavior.

It’s pretty amazing when we see our pets cross the imaginary line that separates the species by exhibiting human-like behaviors. But if you were to try to explain them to someone who’s never had a dog or cat (or parrot you will soon see) most of them would probably just shrug it off.

So, I never really talked to anyone about my dog’s strange but funny human impersonation.

Reddit user DMLorance created a safe space for pet owners to share their stories that no one believes on the AskReddit subforum.

“Pet owners of Reddit. What quirk does your pet (past or present) do that nobody believes when you tell them?”

Here are 16 of the best responses.


1. It's time for bed

"Every night at around 10 pm, my childhood dog would tell me it's time to go to bed. I could be in the living room watching TV and she would sit at the doorway and make little 'boofs' until I eventually got up and followed her to bed. This happened every night from my high school years until the day she passed at 15 years old. I miss that old sassy girl." — Shibsmarie

2. The cat that sleeps like a human

"One of my cats legitimately sleeps in my bed. Head on my pillow, under the blanket, held to my chest like an actual baby. He will spend all night like this and get mad if I stop cuddling him at any point. We sleep with our noses almost touching, and I know when he boops my nose with his that he wants me to cuddle him tighter. It's bizarre but adorable." — Dominoodles

3. The picky drinker

"My dog refuses to drink from a bowl. We took him to the vet because he was sick, turns out he was dehydrated. My dog always has water next to his food, but wasn't drinking it. We changed his bowl to a normal dish, the ones we use to eat soup. Now he drinks from it, if u change it back to a normal dog's bowl, he will stop drinking water and get sick. Nobody knows why." — O_Pacaba

4. The handstand bathroom

"My childhood dog had a weak rear right leg, so anytime he wanted to hike his leg on something off to the left he would just do a handstand rather than try to support his weight in the bad leg.

"But wait... there's more. When he started getting older we brought home a puppy who absolutely idolized his big brother. Within about a month he had worked his way up to also doing handstands when he peed, but for this dog it was EVERY SINGLE TIME. I guess he thought that was just how you were supposed to do it.

"Nothing like having two dogs pissing down their own chest several times per day." — LovelyShananigator

5. The cat who plays fetch

"I have a cat that plays fetch with his stuffed animals. He also gets annoyed when I don't throw the stuffed animal far enough, and loves to chase it down the stairs into the basement." — Upaupa212

6. The dog who spoke cat

"I had a toy poodle mix named Yoda who would meow like a cat if I said 'Yoda go meow.' It started as me saying it as a joke to him here and there and one day he actually started doing it. He was a good boy." — T-Rocks

7. The literate hound

"My dog demands I read to him. Whenever I'm sitting reading something he'll come over, put his head on pages, and paw at me until I start reading to him." — rogettheboat

8. Doggie hall monitor

"We have a very unique dog that seems to have internalized a set of rules. He is friendly with our 3 cats however if he observes them doing something that we (the humans) have corrected them for previously he will then take on the responsibility for future occurrences by sitting beside the misbehaving cat and barking at them until they stop." — ealoft

9. The feline plumber

"I have another cat of which in an old house he found out how to turn on the bathroom sink to get water (it was one of those that you push/pull not twist) and so I’d always walk in to find the sink on. If only he had learned to turn it back off." — ashleyracheleee

10. Dog security

"My father's dog designs elaborate alarm systems with his toys. At night before bed he arranges toys that squeak inside of doorways and at the top and bottom of stairs. If you move the toys he politely waits until you aren't looking and then places the toy back. They don't just end up in a spot they are placed there. It also seems that the toys are chosen for each location based on ease of squeak and volume. The loudest toys are inside the door of the bedroom.

"One final note on placement. If the door swings inward the toy is placed outside of the door's arc. If it swings outward it's right in the middle." — [Deleted]

11. The canine binge-watcher

"Our dog likes to watch tv. No matter what’s on or who’s watching it, she actively pays attention to what we’re watching." — crabgal

12. The exercise saboteur

"Whenever I do push-ups, my dog crawls under me and pushes up off the floor against my torso, trying to help me up." — coturnixxx

13. Teach this cat to flush

"A long time ago we had a cat who potty trained himself. The cat was outside most of the time, so no cat litter box. He peed and pooped in my toddler's small toilet. It still had to be cleaned tho. But still, I consider it cool." — Fr3aky_Monded

14. Airborne kitty 

"I had a cat named Ninja (nailed it on the name). She loved playing fetch with a twist. She would bring me her toy mouse and set it in my lap. Then she would climb on to the top of the reclining chair next to me and get in attack position.

"I would say 'Ninja! Are you ready?' she would crouch and get ready and I would have to throw the mouse across the room, but she would spring and catch it mid-air every time. She would do it for hours." — Ashwilliamsboomstick

15. "Let there be light!"

"I have a cat that knows how to turn a lamp on and off. It's one of those twist knob lamps. He grabs it in his teeth and turns it." — Fournote

16. The jazz parrot

"I had a parrot who would only whistle, but sometimes he would straight up compose songs. Nothing amazing, mostly splicing together bits of tunes he liked, but still songs that did not exist." — JavierLoustanuau


This article originally appeared on 12.7.21

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