đ Crimeâs Down - Surprised?
This week, weâre cutting through the noise with stories that challenge what you think you might know:
đ Long-term crime trends are moving in the right direction
đ The real impact of cashless bail (minus the fear factor)
đ Unpacking viral claims about WHO and global health rules
đ° Do medical bills really vanish with insurance? Not quite.
đ Separating fact from fiction on those so-called cyborg bees
Good News, America: Crimeâs Taking a Coffee Break
Violent crime is downâand not just this year. In 2025, cities across the U.S. are seeing fewer homicides, assaults, and robberies. But this isnât a random dip. Itâs part of a longer trend thatâs been building for decades.
17% drop in homicides in 2025 (so far)
Sexual and physical abuse of children fell by more than 60% from 1990 to 2021 (University of New Hampshire research on maltreatment trends)
Robberies down, property crimes dropping too
Car theft? Still a problem child
Todayâs rates are even lower than in 1967 in most areas
In fact, violent crime in the U.S. has declined sharply since the early 1990sâby nearly 50%, according to FBI Crime Data Explorer. So while scary headlines grab clicks, the bigger picture tells a much more hopeful story.
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Cashless Bail Isnât Wrecking America
Thereâs been a lot of noise that says cashless bail is turning cities into crime-paloozas. But the facts? They politely disagree. Some viral claims suggest that ending cash bail equals âdeath, destruction, and chaos.â Dramatic? Yes. Accurate? Not so much.
According to The Associated Press, there is no evidence that cashless bail reforms are behind any rise in crime. Multiple studies say nope, and even some states that ditched cash bail saw crime decrease. So, while itâs easy to blame a policy with a buzzy name, the truth is way more boring and data-driven.
In short, cashless bail isnât a free pass for chaosâitâs a system tweak meant to stop jailing people just because theyâre broke.
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No, Global Health Powers Didnât Shift
A viral claim says the World Health Organization (WHO) can now override U.S. sovereignty thanks to some new pandemic rules. The truth? Thatâs a myth with no legal bite.
WHO can make recommendations, not laws
The updated health rules are non-bindingâaka, suggestions not commands.
The U.S. retains full sovereignty and decision-making authority
The takeaway: No international health overlords here. Knowing the difference between policy updates and doomsday fan fiction reduces misinformation and increases harmony.
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Do Medical Bills Just... Disappear?
Recent reports floating around claim that thanks to insurance, Americans no longer see medical bills. Wait, what? The 100 million Americans in debt from hospital visits might wanna have a word.
PolitiFact hit the receipts hard andâshockerâfound the claim is not even remotely true. Health insurance doesnât magically erase all costs. People (and businesses) still fork over big bucks for premiums, deductibles, copays, out-of-network roulette, and surprise billing that hits harder than a bad burrito.
Even with insurance, many Americans delay care because they canât afford it. So yes, medical bills are very much alive, thriving, and haunting wallets everywhere.
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No, China Didnât Build a Killer Cyborg Bee (But Nice Try, Internet)
File this one under things that sound like a Marvel villain origin story but arenât real. A viral claim said China built a robotic bee to spy onâor even attackâits enemies. Because obviously, if youâre gonna take over the world, why not start with bees?
Image was actually from Harvardâs RoboBee project (circa 2013).
No ties to the Chinese government or military.
RoboBee was built for scientific research, not espionage.
This is a classic example of sci-fi clickbait dressed up as a newsflash. Itâs fun until people start believing it.
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