From Pine View Farm

May, 2024 archive

A Tune for the Times 0

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Texas Establishmentarians Establish Establishmentarianism for Elementary Education 0

Establishment clause?

They aren’t going to pay attention to any bleepin’ establishment clause.

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Apocalypse Now? 0

A caller argues that we are in the midst of a zombie apocalypse.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

Yet another child . . . .

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Artificial? Yes. Intelligent? Not So Much. 0

Methinks my old Philly DL friend Nox makes some pretty good points. Here’s his opening line:

It seems like there is a big disconnect between what the titans of Silicon Valley think about “generative A.I.”* and what the rest of the world thinks of it.

Follow the link, where he expands on his discusses the disconnect.

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They Have Us Surrounded 0

Title:  Microplastic Globe.  Image:  Seagull in snow globe surrounded by floating microplastics.

Click to view the original image.

They’re here. They’re there. They’re everywhere.

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A New Twist on “DWI” 0

Driving while incriminated.

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QOTD 0

Bertrand Russell:

No nation was ever so virtuous as each believes itself, and none was ever so wicked as each believes the other.

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WATB 0

So far tonight, I’ve gotten three texts on my cellular phone (purporting to be) from Donald Trump whining that he is the victim here.

Yeah.

Right.

Aside:

And, yes, I instructed my cellular provider to block those numbers.

Also, too, their market research seems to be somewhat less than–er–impeccable.

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Recommended Viewing 0

Whale Rider.

If you can find it. watch it.

It is an excellent movie.

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And Now for a Musical Interlude 0

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If One Standard Is Good, Two Must Be Better 0

At the Austin American-Statesman, Brad Pritchett highlights the hypocrisy. Here’s a bit of his article:

The City of Austin recently passed a resolution underscoring its support for transgender residents in their quest to seek healthcare. After a particularly brutal year where the state of Texas continued attacking access to evidence-based, life-saving healthcare with a barrage of legislation that dismisses science, discounts medical experts, and effectively erases the experiences of transgender people, this resolution was a welcome change of pace for LGBTQIA+ Texans.

After the resolution passed, Attorney General Ken Paxton and a cadre of Republican legislators immediately entered chest-pounding mode––a performance typical of firebrand conservatives. Paxton has now threatened to sue the city of Austin. As part of his statement, he insists that, “municipalities do not have the authority to pick and choose which state laws they will or will not abide by.” That’s rich coming from Ken Paxton who, only a week earlier was issuing statements declaring that Texas should defy the updates to Title IX issued by the Federal Department of Education because it includes updated protections for LGBTQIA+ students and faculty.

(Broken link fixed.)

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This New Gilded Age 0

Robert Reich argues that (some of) today’s generation of robber barons are looking to turn back the clock. An excerpt:

Musk, Thiel, Murdoch, and other billionaires now backing the anti-democracy movement don’t want to conserve much of anything — at least not anything that occurred after the 1920s, including Social Security, civil rights, and even women’s right to vote.

Follow the link for his evidence.

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Speaking of an Epidemic of Stupid . . . . 0

Meet today’s Typhoid Mary of stupid:

Man at news stand labeled

Click to view the original image.

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Vaccine Nation 0

David debunks yet another anti-Vaxxer lie. (Warning: Short promo at the end.)

There’s over two centuries of evidence that vaccines work.

Heck, I’m old enough to remember when vaccines made polio go away. When the polio vaccines became available, my parents had me at Doctor Henderson’s office quick like a bunny, because my parents were not stupid.

There’s no evidence that vaccines don’t work, and even less than no evidence that they are somehow inimical. (Yeah, I know that “less than no” seems to be irrational, but irrational numbers are a thing and we seem to have become an irrational society, so I’m going with it.)

Sadly, though, there is no vaccine against stupid, and we seeing an epidemic of stupid.

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Courting Disaster 0

Peter Jensen reflects on the recent news about Alito’s antics and wonders

, , , have we stopped caring about judicial impartiality?

Follow the link for the thoughts that led him to the question.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

Make a show of your politeness.

Musical NotesGuns and stupid, guns and stupid.
They go together like love and Cupid.
Let me tell you brother,
You can’t have one without the other.

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QOTD 0

Dan Rather:

To use tragedy to sow division is the hallmark of a despot.

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A Tune for the Times 0

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Dis Coarse Discourse 0

The Trumpeter.

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