We're getting depressed by all of the gruesome killings so far in the new year. On the 8th, 4-year-old Myls Dobson was found dead, after weeks of starvation and torture. Eleven days later, Deisy Garcia and her two toddlers were found stabbed to death after her husband flew into a drunken jealous rage. And just this morning, Estrella Casteneda and her 24-year-old daughter were found beaten to death by hammer. What the heck is going on? We're more accustomed to intense heat bringing the crazy out of people, but not so much the cold. Either way, we hope this isn't the beginning of a macabre trend.

"Flipped learning" is an interesting teaching idea that warrants more attention. Making videos available for home study will help in situations where the textbook is too dry or doesn't provide the broader context the teacher desires. This can also justify the tablet investment that administrators seem obsessed with making (mentioned recently by the >parents). While we don't think it can replace in-person lessons, we applaud creative experimentation like this.

We're happy and hopeful about the peace accord reached between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Violence has claimed too many lives and wasted too much of our collective potential, and we look forward to a safer, more prosperous future. However, we must not rush to celebrate, as other violent movements remain which need to be addressed.

Drought emergency in California - declared by Governor Brown. This is the driest year on record and we support the conservation efforts proposed by Brown; not only in California but in all areas that face water shortages. Conservation will be easy once we recognize the condition and take responsibility for minimizing waste in our households. Examples include: - Take “navy showers:” get wet, turn off the water, soap up, turn on the water and rinse. - The same method applies for washing your hands: wet your hands, turn off the water, soap up then rinse. - Do not let water run down the drain as you rinse your dishes - rinse over a sink basin then transfer the water to a bucket where it can be used to flush toilets or water plants. - Replace grass lawns with drought tolerant native plants. The single most important thing we can do is to decide to do something about water waste. Once that is done the solutions will follow.

Patient dumping is disgusting. We believe few actions are more despicable than a hospital discharging indigent and/or mentally ill patients by dumping them on city streets; usually skid row. If this is how hospitals treat the helpless what can we expect from Wall Street, banks and other institutions? History shows that corporate corruption goes on for years before the justice system takes action. And what are the penalties? A financial fine, i.e. a slap on the wrist. We want these criminals brought to trial, the way the rest of us are. And the guilty should be imprisoned, the way the rest of us are. Financial fines are no deterrent for the wealthy, perhaps the prospect of ten years hard-time would nudge them towards decency.

We hold that the key to healthy living is *balance*, as illustrated in this piece about the unexpected negative effects of rigid adherence to what is stereotypically considered "healthy".

We support Chiara de Blasio's recovery. The 19-year-old daughter of the mayor elect overcame an alcohol and marijuana dependency she developed last year during her freshman year of college. She's taken a very common issue for college students and become a role model for how to handle it. It's a bit sad that she had to be so public about it, but such is the collateral damage of having a political family. Now that it's off the table, however, we hope her privacy will be respected going forward.

Love Actually blows, actually. Much has been said as of late (see below) of the 2003 film Love Actually, as it assumes the status of "holiday classic." We most certainly dispute that assumption and furthermore do not think it is anything about love as it "actually" exists in the real world. "Love Cinematically" might have been an acceptable title (denigration to the cinema notwithstanding). The premise of Love Actually is no more than "if and only if a woman waits passively and exerts no control over the course of her romantic life, will she be matched with a charming, powerful man who will find, adore, and love her." It's regressive, chauvinistic, and anti-feminist, and saps one of the ownership they have over their destiny.  • http://jezebel.com/i-rewatched-love-actually-an...  • http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archiv...  • http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2013/12/14/2...  • http://moviemezzanine.com/what-the-love-actuall...  • http://thelead.blogs.cnn.com/2013/12/20/is-love...

We're glad the Pussy Riot members were released, despite the political circumstances leading up to the Sochi Olympics. But we continue to remain baffled about why the >russians don't do more to demand greater democratic controls. Is it pride? Fear? Skepticism of democracy? American democracy is admitedly imperfect, but that doesn't mean they should not strive for something better than the stifling, dehumanizing, de facto authoritarianism of Putin.

Ban e-cigarettes in public everywhere! NYC has the right idea. And business owners should also ban their use in offices! More research is needed before permitting their general use. http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/12/19/...