Daily Bafflements

• This one goes out to Sady: “When their new $70,000 princess-themed playroom is finished in March, Stella, 4 years old, and Presley, 2½, will have a faux gem-encrusted performance stage, a treehouse loft, and a mini-French cafe. A $20,000 custom carpet with colorful pathways will lead the girls to the various play areas.” The Wall Street Journal helpfully explains that, while princesses have always been a popular theme for little girls, cultural flash points in recent years have fueled demand for increasingly elaborate—and expensive—fantasy rooms.” Ah yes, cultural flash points. Not, like, extreme, obscene, crazy-making wealth.

• Now featured at Burning Man: class warfare! Felix Gillette’s description of the accommodations for the upper-crust Burners is a must-read. (In fact, it’s not that different from the princess bedroom trend story above.)

• Some long-term side effects of the most recent recession: less marriage, fewer babies, and more domestic violence.

• A reader writes in to USA Today with this question: “Q: I’m thinking about joining my car insurance company’s program that tracks my driving habits in exchange for lower premiums. Are there any pitfalls I should know about?” A: Well, unencrypted information about your every move, in real time, would be potentially available to just about anyone, and hackers could take control of your car and kill you, but other than that, sounds like a great way to save a few bucks. Drive safe!