The Switch 0
Michael in Norfolk offers a theory as to why Donald Trump reversed his position on releasing the Epstein files. Here’s a bit; follow the link for other possibilities he mentions.
QOTD 0
Rex Stout, in the voice of Nero Wolfe:
In a word that operates largely at random, coincidences are to be expected, but any one of them must always be mistrusted.
Stout, Rex, Champagne for One (in a dual volume with Too Many Cooks) (New York, Bantam, 2009) p. 71.
Emoluments, Meet the Crypto Con 0
David follows the money (launderer). (Warning: Short commercial at the end.)
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
And, as we all know, politeness takes practice.
Artificial? Yes. Intelligent? Not So Much. 0
A source of competent medical advice? Via the Houston Chronicle, Dr. Owais Durrani says beware of online AI quacks
Devolution 0
I fear that my old Philly DL friend Noz is quite correct about one aspect of Donald Trump’s legacy.
It’s All about the Algorithm . . . 0
. . . and, as Timothy Cook points out at Psychology Today Blogs, the algorithm does not care about the well-being of children–or of anyone else, for that matter.
QOTD 0
Robert Guillaume, in the voice of Benson DuBois:
Afterthought:
Misty water-colored memories . . . .
This New Gilded Age 0
A private equity firm that just bought Walgreens has decided that lowly wage slaves don’t deserve paid holidays off.
“Fact Are What People Think” 0
But what about the people who don’t think?
“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