July, 2023 archive
The Whitewash, Reprise 0
Sam and his crew point out that denial is not just a river in Egypt.
Artificial? Yes. Intelligent? Not So Much. 0
Sarah Silverman, among others, is suing the makers of AI bots for copyright infringement. She has the unmitigated gall to think that Tech Bros shouldn’t just vacuum up the work of others so as to line their own pockets.
A snippet:
“AI needs to be fair and ethical for everyone,” Matthew Butterick, one of the suit’s lawyers, said in a statement. “But Meta is leveraging the work of thousands of authors with no consent, no credit, and no compensation.”
Patriot Gamers 0
Robert Reich calls out the con.
Twits Own Twitter 0
Apparently, Elon Musk is upset at the fee hand of the market.
Afterthought:
“Rich” and “smart” are not synonyms, and being smart at one thing does not mean you are smart at other things.
Recommended Viewing 0
I gather that it did not do well at the box office, but we found it an excellent film. Look for it on your movie channels.
A Case pf Projection? 0
Farron offers a theory as to why Trump wanted to use the IRS to investigate those who angered him.
Read the article Farron cites.
Plus Ca Change 0
At the San Francisco Chronicle, Hakeem Jefferson reminds us that what Frederick Douglass said almost two centuries ago is still true today.
By the by, if you haven’t read Frederick Douglass’s autobiography, you can get it a Project Gutenberg.
Dis Coarse Discourse 0
The coarseness is zooming. Here’s a snippet from the San Jose Mercury News reporting on the rise of persons “zoom-bombing” public meetings with hate speech:
Market Farces 0
Steve M. reports on the latest step in Republicans’ anti-LGBTQ crusade appears to be attacking retailers who sell merchandise that said crusaders find offensive. Apparently, in their view, admitting the very existence of LGBTQ persons is now being portrayed as “grooming.” Here’s a bit from his article; follow the link for his reasoning.
And this from the party that claims to celebrate the “free hand of the market.”
Mean for the Sake of Mean 0
Jason330 runs the numbers.
Obsession 0
At The Roanoke Times, Betsy Biesenbach marvels at the recent hysteria over the idea that (gasp!) persons should be accepted for who they are. I commend her entire article to your attention, but this bit in particular caught my eye:
In a related vein, Leonard Hitchcock, writing at the Idaho State Journal, has a wonder:
Both articles are worth your while.