“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Who’s the turkey here?
Guns 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.
“History Does Not Repeat Itself, but It Often Rhymes”* 0
At the San Francisco Chronicle, Don Lattin, who covered Jonestown, hears a rhyme. Here’s but a tiny bit from his article:
Follow the link to see why hears such eerie echoes.
________________
*Mark Twain.
Artificial? Yes. Intelligent? Not So Much. 0
Bad for developing brains? Pediatrician Ran D. Anbar argues that, in its current state, it likely is. He makes three main points in his article:
- LLMs do not “understand” anything in the ways humans do, but rather identify statistical patterns.
- Platforms that display “likes” and view counts tap into adolescent desires for social acceptance and status.
- Children who spend too much time on AI-driven apps may fail to adequately develop critical brain pathways.
Follow the link for a detailed exploration of each.
QOTD 0
David Jason, in the voice of D.I. Frost:
The more you know about people, the more you appreciate dogs.
A Tune for the Times 0
From the Youtube page:
It’s been a while since we revisited a sea shanty – you may recall, mother doesn’t approve of these – but we’ve dug deep and repurposed “Drunken Sailor” to talk about the news this week of the BBC cocking up their edit of a speech on a Panorama programme over a year ago (making it appear more vehement than it was). As a consequence of this hitting the headlines in a targeted attack on the UK’s flagship broadcaster, which has been caught up in culture wars, post-truth, and its own self-generated problems, Donald Trump has now issued a threat of legal action. Obviously this is a model he’s used to good effect (for his purposes) in the USA, having taken on ABC, CNN, and CBS and won big settlements there and elsewhere.
The first recorded description of “Drunken Sailor” is from a Pacific Ocean whaling voyage in 1839 that departed from New London, Connecticut. So very appropriate for Trump’s latest giant lumbering trans-oceanic phishing foray. You can find details about this fast-moving story, which will reach some kind of resolution by tomorrow when he’s given a deadline for his Austin Powers Dr. Evil-style threat of “One Billion Dollars” here.
Artificial? Yes. Intelligent? Not So Much. 0
Suitable stocking stuffers? Per El Reg
Stray Thought 0
Methinks the Heritage Foundation has let slip whose legacy they actually yearn to restore.
Hint:
Think first name “Jefferson.”
The Swearing In 0
(Warning: Short commercial at the end.)
Afterthought:
I suspect that I am not the only person to see irony as the Squeaker of the House asks others to swear to uphold the Constitution of the United States, something he seems unable or unwilling to do.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Another case of politeness on the pavement.
Another child sacrificed at the feet of the NRA’s leaden idol.
A Notion of Immigrants 0
The mean for the sake of mean takes one’s breath away–not to mention taking away the lives and livelihoods of persons because they are brown or speak with an accent.
He Didn’t Keep His Eyes on the Road 0
Rather, he gave new meaning to the phrase, “going to the can.”
It’s All about the Algorithm on the Disinformation Superhighway 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, psychology professor Azadeh Aalai takes a deep look at how and why conspiracy theories and frauds–what she refers to as “scam cutlture”–thrives on the internet. A snippet (emphasis added):
Republican Thought Police 0
Honest to Betsy, you couldn’t make this stuff up.
Trumplednomics 0
University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers runs the numbers. Ring of Fire’s Jerrod Zisser reports.
Artificial? Yes. Intelligent? Not So Much. 0
Stealing intellectual property? A German court says, “Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!“
A Notion of Immigrants . . . 0
. . . Meet the privatization scam.
Virtual Public Nutcases 0
The EFF reports that there’s a move in the Wisconsin state legislature to ban VPNs (Virtual Private Networks), using the excuse that this will somehow protect children.
This is the sort of thing that happens when persons with axes to grind start messing with something that they have no clue about. (Think Trump tariffs, for example.) Here’s a tiny bit from the article:
Follow the link detailed information about why this a bad, very bad, extremely stupid idea.