Photo by ƒernando

Good morning, D.C. Fairfax County police went ahead and held their “Dangers of Sexting” community meeting last night at the Kingstowne Library in Alexandria, and so far, only WTOP and NewsChannel 8 have filed pieces resurrecting this year-old scare story. Hard to believe FOX5 and NBC4 are silent this go around! Here’s DCist’s hot parenting tip: don’t let terrifying-sounding trends invented by TV news stations rob you of your sanity. If you need the Fairfax County Police to tell you that you should probably be aware of what your teen is doing with her cell phone, maybe you’re better off spending that time with your kid.

Cuts vs. Fare Increases: Would you rather pay 5 cents more to ride Metrobus than have the WMATA board make sweeping service cuts? That’s what the Post’s Lena Sun says we’d all prefer in her wrapup of last week’s public hearings on proposed cuts to balance Metro’s budget. We tend to agree, and would go one step further and say we’d be willing to give up the 10 cent discount we get for using SmarTrip on Metrobuses if it meant we didn’t lose any of our mobility. Trouble is, it ain’t never gonna happen: “…it’s doubtful that the board will have the votes to consider a fare increase this year. Even if District members, who blocked consideration of a 5-cent increase last month, changed their position, it’s unlikely there would be enough time for another round of required public hearings on such a proposal before the board adopts a budget in June, members said.”

Who is Traveling Where, and at What Cost? Nice story from Michael Neibauer in the Examiner digging through D.C. government travel expenses. One of the most fun examples comes from everyone’s favorite D.C. Taxicab Commission Chairman, Leon Swain, who “charged $1,034 to his card for a multiple-day stint at the Venetian Resort Hotel & Casino, one of the ritziest stays on the Las Vegas Strip. He was attending the ‘national limo trade fair,’ he said Monday, ‘and that’s where I was.'” Must have been pretty sweet, Leon! Also, check this: The Office of Property Management apparently spent $1,750 to charter a bus to transport D.C. Council members from city hall to Capitol Hill on Inauguration Day. Guess they couldn’t have walked?

Briefly noted: Peaceaholics mentor charged with sexually assaulting teen … Tractor trailer explodes on I-81, killing three … Md. does a bad job disciplining doctors.

This Day in DCist: In 2008, we spoke with legendary blues guitarist Robert Cray, and in 2006, word came down that Chinatown would have to wait a while longer to get their own grocery store.