Crime in suburbia

From The Landmark (subscription required):
[Editor's note: There were 20 suspicious items this week]

Holden

Monday -- September 12

1:50 p.m. Jar of quarters stolen from vehicle during night, Lovell Rd.
3:59 p.m. Caller reports something was broken off in the key lock to his apartment, Main St.
5:20 p.m. Fight in business parking lot, Wachusett/Manning Sts.
10:19 p.m. Suspicious male riding bike down center of Main/Shrewsbury Sts.

Tuesday -- September 13

7:05 a.m. Suspicious male in area, Parker Ave./Stoneleigh Rd.
9:00 a.m. Assist person involved in computer issue, Main St.
12:00 p.m. Two young children in parked vehicle, Main St.

Wednesday -- September 14

12:44 a.m. Police remove obstacles from Quinapoxet St.
12:32 p.m. Problem with vendor, Main St.

Thursday -- September 15

9:09 a.m. Cement stolen from rear of business, Main St.
1:02 p.m. Suspicious male knocked on door, looked in windows, then fled, River St.

Friday -- September 16

1:09 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Manning St.
1:34 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main St.
3:15 a.m. Deceased raccoon in travel lane, Main St.
8:44 a.m. Several calls about two German shepherds in Reservoir St.
9:03 a.m. Vehicle almost went through crosswalk while children were crossing, Highland St.
11:19 a.m. Suspicious vehicle in front of home for several hours, Wachusett St.
12:18 p.m. Male in street yelling at himself, Vicksburg Cir.
6:58 p.m. Person heard loud yelling and moaning from home, Briarcliff Ln.

Saturday -- September 17

2:07 a.m. Complaint about noise, Princeton St.
2:43 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Industrial Dr.
2:48 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, windows open, Industrial Dr.
7:57 a.m. Person at station to drop off three pistols, Main St.
11:15 p.m. Report of gunshots, Holden St.

Sunday -- September 18

12:35 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Salisbury St./Newell Rd.
1:09 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main St. Person taken into protective custody
8:46 a.m. Barking dog complaint, Fairchild Dr.
2:57 p.m. Suspicious males in area, Boyden Rd.

Paxton

Monday -- September 12

8:07 a.m. Raccoon walking slowly by kids at bus stop, Birch St.
8:10 a.m. Shepherd mix dog in market parking lot, then to Rte. 122
8:32 a.m. Loose pit bull, Marshall St.
8:53 a.m. Caller requests assistance with vehicle lockout, Pleasant St.
9:10 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer about previous incident, Pleasant St.
1:48 p.m. Male in parked vehicle frequently seen in same area, Brooks Rd.
8:40 p.m. Female wants to speak with animal control officer regarding cat with broken leg dropped off at her doorstep, Pleasant St.

Tuesday -- September 13

2:10 p.m. Child in back seat of car, not buckled in, Pleasant St.

Wednesday -- September 14

6:19 a.m. Two donkeys and one mini-horse near Grove St.
6:34 a.m. Bear in yard, Jefferson Dr.
7:03 a.m. Dead raccoon in West St.
4:27 p.m. Report of large bobcat on property, Davis Hill Rd.

Saturday -- September 17

10:38 a.m. Male sitting in brush on Pleasant St. Having a cigarette and didn’t want to cause smoke around tennis players

Sunday -- September 18

12:24 p.m. Bear in yard, Crocker Hill Dr.

Princeton

Monday -- September 12

6:42 a.m. Three coyotes in caller’s yard going after her dog, Mirick Rd.
10:38 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked at end of driveway, Gates Rd.
2:40 p.m. Cat with no tail hanging around home for a week, Rocky Pond Rd.

Tuesday -- September 13

1:20 p.m. Three horses on side of Ball Hill Rd.

Wednesday -- September 14

6:29 a.m. Dog hit, in road, Worcester Rd.
7:31 a.m. Caller reports that her vehicle’s lug nuts are loose again, ongoing problem, Sterling Rd.
3:56 p.m. Caller reports carrier pigeon on her roof for a week, Rhodes Rd.

Friday -- September 16

8:03 a.m. Vehicle lockout, Coal Kiln Rd.
7:09 p.m. Two dogs barking constantly, Hickory Dr.
7:16 p.m. Dogs barking non-stop, Hickory Dr.
8:52 p.m. Dog in Sterling Rd.
9:34 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Princeton Rd. Sterling PD advised

Saturday -- September 17

10:27 a.m. Person at station regarding barking dogs, Hickory Dr.

Sunday -- September 18

9:14 a.m. Police remove large rock from E. Princeton/Merriam Rds.

Rutland

Monday -- September 12

8:51 p.m. Caller requesting animal control officer to pick up kitten she found that appears to have a broken leg, Pleasant St.

Tuesday -- September 13

1:50 a.m. Police check vehicle parked with doors ajar, Edson Ave.
11:55 a.m. Abandoned dog from home on Stevens Way
3:17 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Wachusett St.
3:46 p.m. Suspicious male behind store, E. County Rd.
3:51 p.m. Erratic driver, E. County Rd.
5:20 p.m. Orange cat limping, Campbell St.

Wednesday -- September 14

1:30 a.m. Two people sitting outside by community center, Main St.
9:13 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Barre Paxton Rd.

Thursday -- September 15

3:20 a.m. Loud music, Charnock Hill Rd.
6:47 a.m. Two very large bears in tree near home, E. County Rd.
11:53 a.m. Caller believes there is a skunk in a Glenwood School classroom, animal control officer removed skunk
8:16 p.m. Police assist person locked out of vehicle, Barre Paxton Rd.

Friday -- September 16

4:08 p.m. People selling merchandise out of white van, Locke Rd.
8:04 p.m. Person at station requesting help, says he walked to town from Worcester, is homeless, Main St.

Saturday -- September 17

5:17 p.m. Report of shots fired, E. County Rd./Wachusett St.
6:40 p.m. Bear in area, Pommogussett Rd.
7:30 p.m. Bear on Main St.
8:20 p.m. Bear in area, Highland Park Rd./Maple Ave.

Sunday -- September 18

7:09 a.m. Caller reports that bear destroyed bird feeder, Highland Park Rd.
12:30 p.m. Elderly female walking toward town center, Maple Ave.
3:43 p.m. Police check out unattended vehicle parked outside gate, Charnock Hill Rd.
3:45 p.m. Out-of-state visitor’s dog “Nova” is loose, owners can’t catch; dog has injured a neighbor’s rooster, Maple Spring Dr.
6:00 p.m. Suspicious male driving silver vehicle left yellow notice written in Spanish on caller’s door, John Robert Dr. Paper is notice from her mortgage company
6:15 p.m. Caller believes man in red truck illegally dumping in apartment complex, Maple Ave. Said male party was “very angry with her” when she confronted him

Sterling

Monday -- September 12

10:23 a.m. Kayak washed up on beach, no paddles, Hall Ave.
4:32 p.m. Five-year-old didn’t get dropped off at bus stop. Child fell asleep on bus, N. Row Rd.
5:44 p.m. Young female near woods appears to be crying, Jewett Rd.
6:55 p.m. Caller wants to speak with ACO regarding loose dog in Clinton, Leominster Rd.

Tuesday -- September 13

3:18 a.m. Small terrier walking on Rte. 140 N
8:48 a.m. Caller wants to speak with animal control officer regarding someone leaving kittens at residence, Princeton Rd.
12:31 p.m. Strange phone calls, Leominster Rd.
7:39 p.m. Loud bulldozer on neighbor’s property, Beaman Rd.

Thursday -- September 15

5:37 p.m. Group of youths in rear of elementary school using foul language, yelling racial epithets at citizens, Boutelle Rd.
6:04 p.m. What appears to be rabid raccoon in roadway, Justice Hill/Justice Hill Cutoff Rds.
6:59 p.m. Suspicious male knocked on door, John Dee Rd.
10:25 p.m. Car alarm going off twice, Redstone Hill Rd.

Friday -- September 16

3:59 p.m. Dog trapped in garage, Matthew Ln.
9:35 p.m. Suspicious activity, Princeton Rd.

Saturday -- September 17

4:40 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked at end of driveway, Elliott Rd.
3:55 p.m. Caller concerned that helicopter is flying too low, Redstone Hill Rd.

Sunday -- September 18

5:15 p.m. Three kittens in woods, Princeton Rd.

If the sky doesn't fall, we'll be busy

When I meet people at conferences, as I did yesterday, people ask me what I do. I have better results trying to explain how neutrinos can travel faster than the speed of light. I usually say, "Anything for a buck," and go from there.
Here's what in the queue:

• Yesterday, I attended ONA11 Law School for Digital Journalists at Harvard. The sessions included a review of copyright, libel, trademarks, advertising and other law topics related to operating a newsroom. We heard a great presentation from the folks from The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press who provide legal guidance and services for journalists.
  I ran into Brittany Durgin of Worcester Magazine.
  During the conference, various people took turns taking notes in a shared Google document. The presentations will be posted on the Online News Association real soon now.
• I ducked out of the last session so I could make it to the other side of Cambridge and attend a forum on Local News in the Digital Age. Hosted by Northeastern journalism professor Dan Kennedy, we heard from WGBH's Callie Crossley, Universal Hub's Adam Gaffin, and the Boston Globe's David Dahl. I'll have more to say on this in a future blog.
• During afternoon, Facebook held the kickoff session for its f8 developer conference. Plenty of changes to delight some, annoy many, and drive more than a few people away. There was lots of discussion in Twitter, Google+, private chats, and, yes, even on Facebook.
  At the end, like it or not, Facebook made changes because it makes strategic sense for them. As Nicholas Carlson of Business Insider said,
  

  The principle hallmark of Facebook's run from a small Harvard-only Web site to a service approaching a billion regular users has been Mark Zuckerberg's willingness to pull the rug out from underneath of those users and change up the site.
  

  via Facebook Users Are About To Riot Over Massive Changes, And This Is Fantastic News For Facebook

• Class 2 of  21st Century Village | A W.I.S.E. course on social networking tomorrow. I get to try to explain the Facebook mishegas. 
• Another story and another blog post  or two for Telegram Towns. 
• As a follow-up to my blog post about Lew Evangelidis, I've received a rich inventory of material from Guy Beales, president of the Massachusetts chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) about the treatment of mental illness in inmates. More to come on this.
• Install an Ultra-Bay adapter and SATA drive on my laptop. 
• Complete a couple of projects for which people will provide the aforementioned buck.

There are also many friends and family members to whom I owe notes, phone calls, and visits. Plenty of explanations,  but no excuses.
Meanwhile, we're wondering what's going to come out of the clouds besides rain. A couple dozen pieces from an old weather satellite are due to come out of orbit and crash into most likely water, somewhat likely land, very unlikely (1 in 3200 chance) a person, or (4.46428571 × 10^-14 ) you.
Good luck.
Wear a hat.

If the sky doesn't fall, we'll be busy

When I meet people at conferences, as I did yesterday, people ask me what I do. I have better results trying to explain how neutrinos can travel faster than the speed of light. I usually say, "Anything for a buck," and go from there.
Here's what in the queue:

• Yesterday, I attended ONA11 Law School for Digital Journalists at Harvard. The sessions included a review of copyright, libel, trademarks, advertising and other law topics related to operating a newsroom. We heard a great presentation from the folks from The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press who provide legal guidance and services for journalists.
  I ran into Brittany Durgin of Worcester Magazine.
  During the conference, various people took turns taking notes in a shared Google document. The presentations will be posted on the Online News Association real soon now.
• I ducked out of the last session so I could make it to the other side of Cambridge and attend a forum on Local News in the Digital Age. Hosted by Northeastern journalism professor Dan Kennedy, we heard from WGBH's Callie Crossley, Universal Hub's Adam Gaffin, and the Boston Globe's David Dahl. I'll have more to say on this in a future blog.
• During afternoon, Facebook held the kickoff session for its f8 developer conference. Plenty of changes to delight some, annoy many, and drive more than a few people away. There was lots of discussion in Twitter, Google+, private chats, and, yes, even on Facebook.
  At the end, like it or not, Facebook made changes because it makes strategic sense for them. As Nicholas Carlson of Business Insider said,
  

  The principle hallmark of Facebook's run from a small Harvard-only Web site to a service approaching a billion regular users has been Mark Zuckerberg's willingness to pull the rug out from underneath of those users and change up the site.
  

  via Facebook Users Are About To Riot Over Massive Changes, And This Is Fantastic News For Facebook

• Class 2 of  21st Century Village | A W.I.S.E. course on social networking tomorrow. I get to try to explain the Facebook mishegas. 
• Another story and another blog post  or two for Telegram Towns. 
• As a follow-up to my blog post about Lew Evangelidis, I've received a rich inventory of material from Guy Beales, president of the Massachusetts chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) about the treatment of mental illness in inmates. More to come on this.
• Install an Ultra-Bay adapter and SATA drive on my laptop. 
• Complete a couple of projects for which people will provide the aforementioned buck.

There are also many friends and family members to whom I owe notes, phone calls, and visits. Plenty of explanations,  but no excuses.
Meanwhile, we're wondering what's going to come out of the clouds besides rain. A couple dozen pieces from an old weather satellite are due to come out of orbit and crash into most likely water, somewhat likely land, very unlikely (1 in 3200 chance) a person, or (4.46428571 × 10^-14 ) you.
Good luck.
Wear a hat.

Protecting the job creators

Speaker of the House John Boehner has, not surprisingly, criticized President Obama's "Millionaire Tax" plan as bad for job creators.
Put another way, ask yourself, how many jobs has Alex Rodriguez (annual salary of $32M) created? Red Sox semi-pitcher John Lackey ($15.9M)? Vernon Wells (hitting a robust .222 for his $18.5M salary)?
How about this? Write a letter to Lebron James ($16M in salary and $48M total, with endorsements). Tell him that you don't support the taxation plan and that you're grateful for all the jobs he's created.
 While you're at it, write to Lady Gaga, Glenn Beck, Oprah, Howard Stern, Dr. Phil, Rush Limbaugh, Charlie Sheen, and others on the Forbes Celebrity 100.  Let 'em know how comforted you are that their taxes won't go up. They'll thank you for it.
Enjoy that new job.

Facebook and class warfare

It's probably been years since you signed up for Facebook. You've forgotten what you had to go through. You've probably also had enough experience with online services to know what to ignore, how to switch between one website and another, and how to ignore ads.

Imagine, then, being in your retirement years and learning about Facebook as well as the web for the first time. I recently spent time a small group of people who were new to Facebook. They'd heard about it and were nervous, but willing to have a look.

We spent 10 minutes discussing why Facebook was requiring a complete birth date - day, month, and year - in order to create a new account.

I explained that the Facebook terms of service required that you created an account with your real and correct information. Part of the reason for requiring a true birth date was to enforce requirements for the minimum age (13). The group met the minimum age five-fold.

The people weren't vain about their ages. They just didn't like having to provide their birth dates. They were concerned about identity theft, even though they weren't quire sure what that meant or how it would happen.

"Can I use my son's birthday?" asked one. They didn't mind providing a date; they just didn't want it to be theirs.

One man signed up using his wife's birth date, knowing that, if he forgot that date, well, ....

Facebook has a minimalist explantion:

Facebook requires all users to provide their real date of birth to encourage authenticity and provide only age-appropriate access to content. You will be able to hide this information from your profile if you wish, and its use is governed by the Facebook Privacy Policy.

It's well known that a large number of children are using Facebook.While Facebook requires a birth date, it doesn't include any overt way of verifying it. (A father in Northern Ireland has brought suit against Facebook because his 12-year-old daughter has created an account. It's a long and somewhat complex story, as you might imagine.)

In sum, Facebook is requiring a piece of personal information, won't really explain why or what it will do with the information, and has a history of tolerating fake answers.

And that's just the beginning of the beginning. More questions.

What's this? Do I have to upload my email address book? No? OK. Skip this step.

I don't want to give this information. OK? Skip this step.

Do I have to put in a picture? Why? How do I do that? OK. Skip this step.

Then you wait for 10 or 15 minutes until the email confirmation shows up before you can confirm that the account is really yours. In the meantime, advertisements for dating services and time-wasting games are showing up on your page.
This is what 700 million people are excited about?
Meanwhile, Facebook is due to announced major new features and user interface changes at this week's developer conference. New features that include more music, news, and videos.
We know that Facebook's corporate DNA is in college or those who still think that they're in college. The unfriendly sign-up process, the nagging demands for more information, and the cacophony of features are making Facebook increasingly irrelevant to digital immigrants, those who come to web technologies later in life. I don't know if that's the plan, but it certainly is the effect.