Davka Days

"Those quotations were really quite obscure. Anyone can see that he is a very well-read man." — Barbara Pym One of my hobbies is collecting quotes. Proverbs, aphorisms, book passages, lines in a magazine, unknown statements, and anything else worth quoting. They're profound pieces of wisdom that have shaped me as a person since I started my collection as a teenager. Now, I have over 1,100 quotes, as well as a collection of words, phrases, law, rules, and related references. You can check them out for yourself. Perhaps my favorite thing about collecting quotes, is that whenever I can't think of anything else to read, or if I need inspiration, or when I want to seek solace, or during times of confusion and struggle, I have access to over 3,000 years of the collected knowledge of all humanity already curated for me to rely on. I think if more people felt this way, the world might be a better place.

Let’s be honest: catalytic converter thefts are one of the only areas where crime is actually increasing in San Leandro. There isn’t a day that goes by where we haven’t heard about someone’s vehicle being vandalized. Why? Because the precious metals contained in most catalytic converters — platinum, rhodium, and palladium — are expensive and can sell for hundreds of dollars per piece. Due to the pandemic and rising costs of living, the resulting economic distress has made this a lucrative alternative for many criminals and those driven to desperation. Unfortunately, catching these thieves is extremely difficult. This is because the process of stealing this part from your car is relatively quick and simple. A catalytic converter can typically be removed in just a few minutes by using a saw or a wrench. Slicing through the piping on both sides of the converter before it’s pulled off is the most common method. Notably, SLPD’s clearance rate for property crimes, including catalytic convert...

I keep dropping knowledge bombs // Quick-like on villages of the bigoted and ignorant // From high-above the Ivory Towers and Golden Parachutes and Brick-Mortar Bunkers I fly // But when the firestorm has passed ashes are all I find // Of cognitive dissonance, of double-speak and lies // Spread across cyberspace like so much trash // Can't even find a single corpse to prove that falsehood was hit // Until the next village I see // Always the next // Crops up on my radar shooting flak at my wax wings // And back to bomb I go again, a toy soldier to the toddler What's the point in having all human knowledge // At your fingertips when you can't even comprehend it? // What's the point in having intelligence // If they never use it?