November, 2023 archive
Argle Bargle 0
At Above the Law, Liz Dye looks at the latest I-guess-you-have-to-call-them arguments and tries to make sense out of the senseless. What it boils down to, natch, is attempting to use the law to argue that Donald Trump is exempt from the law.
A sample:
Incongruously Assembled 0
Is this ignorance or stupidity?
Or (more likely, given his record) both?
Inquiring minds want to know.
The Disinformation Superduper Highway 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, The Open Minds Foundation takes a lot at the potential effects of AI-generated dis- and misinformation on the internet. They conclude that internet users need to exercise more critical thinking skills, even as they seem to be exercising less (or is it fewer?).
Here’s a tiny bit from their article; I urge you to read the rest.
The Europol report continues with a stark warning: “On a daily basis, people trust their own perception to guide them and tell them what is real and what is not… Auditory and visual recordings of an event are often treated as a truthful account of an event. But what if these media can be generated artificially, adapted to show events that never took place, to misrepresent events, or to distort the truth?”
Dis Coarse Discourse 0
At the Portland Press-Herald, Doug Zlatin suggests that the Constitutional guarantee of “freedom of speech” should not be interpreted as a freedom to screech.
Industrial Revolution Redux 0
San and his crew talk with Brian Merchant, tech columnist at the Los Angeles Times, about what the who-shot-john about “artificial intelligence” is actually about.
The Climates They Are a-Changing . . . 0
. . . and I’m getting a sinking feeling.
Still Rising Again after All These Years 0
Daniel O. Jamison says that dis coarse discourse is precedented. Here’s how he opens his article:
This attitude apparently traces to Reconstruction, when the organizers of the defunct Confederacy determined to regain the political power of their states, using lawful and peaceful means if they worked, but unlawful and violent means if necessary. With savage violence, they “redeemed” the South, ousting integrated state governments and denying equal rights to Blacks.
A Picture Is Worth 0
Take a look at it and decide whether you agree.
Foxy Shady 0
Farron discusses an ex-Fox News who has filed suit against Fox, alleging he was fired for reporting actual factual news.
In Spite(ful) of the Evidence 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, Richa Bhatia explores why persons will cling to beliefs regardless of the facts. She makes four main points:
- Preformed beliefs formed by years of social, family, and media influences create mental templates.
- People often favor information confirming their beliefs and disregard facts contradicting them.
- Humans are not as objective in making interpretations or reaching conclusions as we’d like to think.
- There are some things people can do to prevent thinking errors, including being aware of their own biases.
In dis coarse discourse, methinks this a worthwhile read.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
And we all know that cleanliness is next to politeness . . . .
Officials said that the man was cleaning a gun when he accidentally fired the shot.
Back in the olden days, when I was a young ‘un, we were taught to make a gun was unloaded before cleaning it, or, for that matter, doing anything–transporting it, storing it, whatever–with it except firing it.
