iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Come for the food. Stay for the spa! (Shame they poop in the pool.)

Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

The common pigeon (rock dove) is unusual for birds because they're not real wild. Deep down they want to be with us and domestic and taken care of again! They all come from domesticated stock. They're feral. Here's a beautiful recent arrival I'm trying to win over.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

In terms of pigeon and bird well being, clean water is probably the best thing you can offer! (And who wants a dirty pigeon in their hand.) But of course water won't entice them to your hand. Some pigeons never come to my hand. Even after years! Maybe today is a trap! But once they do they come back

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

I use shelled sunflower seeds, so there's no "waste." I buy 25 or 50lb bags so it's not expensive. But any birdseed will do. (But I've found they don't like change.) They do like peanuts (raw, unsalted) and watching them eat them is amusing because it's just about the largest thing they can swallow!

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Food. It took some trust building. But it didn't take long.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Bird wings are so fucking cool. This bird is very young.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

I don't know what else to use Bluesky for. This is Penelope. My favorite pigeon since 2020.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

From my blog post: "In 2015 the NCVS surveyed but a *total* of 260 black male crime victims." Nationwide! That's a pretty important group to under-sample. And then were one to break it down one step further to city or age or type of crime, it's statistically worthless. And yet people do just that!

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Not to mention homeless people, the undocumented, and other groups with high rates of victimization and/or criminality. They're won't be sampled. And if they are, they are unlikely to remain part of any longitudinal study.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Non random missing data is a problem. And we don't know what we don't know, especially as NCVS is supposed to be the answer to the problem. But you start calling and knocking on door in high crime minority neighborhoods and say "Hi! I'm from the gov't and have a few questions" and see what happens.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

One year was so obviously flawed (I forget which, it might have been 2013) that later they simply "revised" (made up) their updated results to reflect what we all knew to be more true. (I believe NCVS did increase their sample size after 2013, but my point stands.)

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

I think the NCVS survey is useful for one and only one thing: "Did you report it to police?" Other than that there are so many different compounding sources of error, from memory, vouching for others, and a limited sample size that makes any deep dive flawed. qualitypolicing.com/crime-is-up-...

qualitypolicing.com

Crime is up no wait down: NCVS – Quality Policing

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Yes. But I wouldn't trust it for anything more detailed than white/black/asian. Hispanic reporting is terrible. PDs consider it a race and FBI considers it ethnicity overlaid on race. Chaos ensues. And then I don't really trust any crime stat generally, for any comparative use, except homicide.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

This is (or becomes) UCR / NIBRS data. It's the input the NYPD sends to the FBI. NCVS doesn't talk to dead people. It's also just must more dodgy overall. Because most at risk of being victims don't take part. But in terms of basic demographics, it says much the same thing.

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Reposted by Peter Moskos

Mohamad Bazzi @mbazzi.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

Israel is carrying out a systematic campaign to demolish and erase Bint Jbeil, my hometown in southern Lebanon — an interview with @tcambanis.bsky.social for his “Order from Ashes” podcast | thecenturyfoundation.podbean.com/e/erasing-bi...

Aerial view of large scale destruction inflicted on the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil, with an Israeli tank parked in the center of the photo.

Text of podcast promotional poster:

ORDER FROM ASHES

Erasing Bint Jbail:
What War Is Like Now
Mohamad Bazzi

Listen wherever you find podcasts

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

No. It's pretty typical. At least in Chicago, Baltimore and Philly. NYC is about 45% white or Asian, FWIW. So it's less so in more white cities like Portland or Seattle, but the disparity is similar.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

The % of shooting victims in NYC who are Black or Hispanic is 96%, and it has varied very little—even as total numbers have changed. This racial disparity exists year after year after year. It’s amazing how few are aware. (Or purposefully ignored it in related public policy and police discussions).

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

And I could be AI. Like the not the concept. But the actual photo. It's what phones do now.

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Reposted by Peter Moskos

Andrew Burton @burtonad.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

Pete Hegseth: God, I wish I was a hitman in Pulp Fiction. Barack Obama and Zohran Mamdani: Boy, it would be fun to be Mr Rogers.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

I was out shoveling show for the city of New York during the blizzards. You're welcome. It was both miserable and very satisfying work from 8pm to 4am.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

Is there any research on if police "legitimacy" in NY increased after all the changes promising that benefit? Starting with the end of excessive SQF, to drug legalization, bail reform & limitations on use of force. (I suspect not, because I think the concept is flawed. But IDK.)

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

Want more pigeons? I've decided to turn my (previously never used) instagram account into a pigeonfluencer extravaganza. www.instagram.com/nycpigeonflu...

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

I'll be on Katie Couric's substack live at 5:30PM eastern (1 hour from now) substack.com/@katiecouric

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Reposted by Peter Moskos

David Simon @audacityofdespair.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

As a reporter, I carried the home phone number of Maryland's chief district judge in my wallet. The Hon. Dennis Sweeney would, on an ask, explain to recalcitrant desk sergeants and shift lieutenants that he would hold them in contempt if they denied the public the face sheet of any shooting report.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

I don't support the mission of this adminstration

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

Did I block you on twitter?

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

They really think they're going to covert people to their beliefs by shouting loudly in their faces. It's absurd. And they're hurting a good cause. This shit does real damage to the one party in America that is not Trump's.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

I see other people saying the story isn't a big deal (Nichols points out it was the 5pm CNN lead story) and besides, in classic gaslighting, nobody is even supporting disrupting religious services.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Here's a voice of reason (pointed out to me on twitter, mind you) bsky.app/profile/radi...

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

I searched for "church protest," and the results are pretty scary.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Is there anybody on bluesky saying it's actually bad (both morally and politically) to go into churches -- even ones with people you really really disagree with -- and interrupt and protest? I haven't looked too hard, granted, but I can't find anybody saying, uh, actually, no, _don't_ do this.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Yes. Per 100k, for the respective (white and black) populations

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

Charts I made of the homicide rate for whites and blacks, going back to 1968. (2025 is an estimate)

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

I have a new blog post on murders being down in most cities. It's happening nearly everywhere. It's still not a "trend." qualitypolicing.com/murders-down...

qualitypolicing.com

Murders down in 2025! Celebrate. It’s hard work, not a “trend” – Quality Policing

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Reposted by Peter Moskos

Jeff Asher @jeffasher.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

I've confirmed that San Francisco, Bridgeport, Baltimore, Chicago and Philadelphia hit the lowest levels since before 1970 this year. New Orleans tied 2019 for the lowest since 1970. Still waiting on data from the other cities but likely to check out.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

"Peter Moskos’s Back from the Brink is both oral history and urban epic." 2026 starts strong! "Urban epic" sure has a nice ring to it. From Michael Fortner's review of "Back from the Brink," just out today in the Washington Monthly. Positive _and_ insightful! washingtonmonthly.com/2026/01/01/h...

washingtonmonthly.com

How New York City Got Safe

Back from the Brink is a historical reconstruction of the New York crime decline, told from inside the institutions responsible for safety.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

Perhaps. My flock has grown from 10 to 20 to 30. (But the real problem is someone just dumps a bunch of food at the 30th avenue subway stop. And those pigeons are not "my flock")

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

Why yes, for those who prefer to listen, my book "Back from the Brink" *is* available on audio. And yes, it does make a great Christmas present for yourself and your loved ones. And all for the low low price of $21.49! Or buy a ten pack for just $214.90 and give them out like candy. amzn.to/3MONwfW

amzn.to

Back from the Brink: Inside the NYPD and New York City's Extraordinary 1990s Crime Drop

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

If you like ambient sound or any sound, check this out: mynoise.net It's a great website. (It's so great it's in the acknowledgement of my book "Back from the Brink." I honestly don't think I could have focused enough to write it without "Japanese Garden")

mynoise.net

Background Noises • Ambient Sounds • Relaxing Music | myNoise ®

myNoise sets the standard for online background noise machines and interactive soundscapes.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

I have come to appreciate how generous CUNY is with the sabbatical. After every six years of teaching, it's a full year at 80% pay or a semester sabbatical at full pay.

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Reposted by Peter Moskos

Jacob T. Levy @jacobtlevy.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Almost half of the non-European population of New Zealand is Maori. There's no way to pretend that this kind of racial thinking in that context is anything but exterminationist.

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Peter Moskos @moskos.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Great book review of "Back from the Brink" (my book) by Richard Day in "A City that Works": "A dark, funny and insightful oral history covering the inner workings of the department. It’s also deeply inspiring. It’s hard to recommend highly enough." citythatworks.substack.com/p/book-revie...

citythatworks.substack.com

Book review: Back from the Brink

More lessons from New York

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Reposted by Peter Moskos

Mohamad Bazzi @mbazzi.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

I wrote for @theguardian.com on Trump using the National Guard shooting to demonize Afghans refugees — and how the US has yet to reckon with the blowback caused by its foreign invasions and war on terror | www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

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