• PRO BONO CONSULTING: DCG CONTINUES OUR CUSTOMARY COURTESY CONSULTING SERVICES to business owners, executives, Advisory Boards, and non-profit Organizations during May through summer months. Call Dennis to discuss opportunity for reality-based strategic, financial, operational, and long-term guidance.
  • SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA POTHOLES CONTINUE TO INCREASE AT AN ALARMING RATE. While road crews filled over 28,000 potholes in LA and Orange Counties last year, the number of still unfilled holes dwarfs these numbers, and causes multiple thousands of tire blowouts. Potholes are caused by road deterioration from traffic volume. On roadways, they result primarily from heavy trucks which cause cracks in the pavement allowing rainwater to seep through, then vibration allowing the wet base material to settle or shift to form a cavity that ultimately caves in. Residential streets primarily suffer weakness from tree roots which push through the wet pavement, along with seasonal temperature swings which cause asphalt to expand and contract. Agencies depend on residents to report potholes through the myLA app or website/ WORKS app or 626-675HELP in O.C./ and csr.dot.ca.gov for state-managed roads & freeways. [OC REGISTER] 
  • WHILE LEFTIST POLITICIANS AND MEDIA SPREAD A FALLACIOUS MESSAGE about cuts in Medicare and social security payments, versus simply stopping fraudulent payouts, reality is that both systems are in trouble which Congress has continued to ignore. Future liabilities are grossly understated since Treasury forecasts include barely a fraction of amounts projected payable to current participants, plus ignore future participants – “based on government documents that laws to stop future benefits can be passed at any time.” As federal debt level is reported nearing $37 Trillion, taking these factors into account gooses the liability to over $158 Trillion, according to Truth in Accounting, a nonprofit budget accountability group. [THE CENTER SQUARE]
  • LATEST RESEARCH ON DEMENTIA has found that unmarried people are at least 50% less likely to experience cognitive decline. An 18-year study of some 24,000 adults with average age 72, who were assessed every year with neuropsychological tests and evaluation by clinicians, showed that those married & stayed married were most likely for dementia, with other factors such as age/ sex/ race/ education/ smoking having only minor effects on the results. While no definitive causes are certain, researchers suggest that “single people are better at maintaining social ties with friends and neighbors, more likely to engage in healthier behaviors, with more psychologically rich lives characterized by a variety of interesting & unique experiences.” [PSYCHOLOGY TODAY]

THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK:

  • Dogs can listen in on humans talking and pick out info relevant to them, such as their name or walk or treat, even in the absence of intonation cues (like ‘baby talk’ or higher pitch) we usually use to engage them, according to latest studies from a range of 50 breeds at University of Sussex. [BBC NEWS]
  • In the last two years, over 25,000 requests by ICE authorities to ‘sanctuary cities’ for detention of illegal aliens with committed crimes (other than illegal immigration) including homicide, until agents could pick them up were denied. Instead, criminals were released to flood the streets – some 58% from California cities and 13% in Illinois. [PATRIOT POST]
  • Intense workouts within 4 hours before bedtime can negatively impact falling asleep and quality of sleep. An international team study of nearly 15,000 participants, using multi-sensor biometric devices to measure some four million night’s worth of data, found strenuous workouts caused elevated heart rates and core body temperature along with mental alertness. [NATURE COMMUNICATIONS]