From out there on the moon, international politics looks so petty, you want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say
"Look at that, you son of a bitch."
Edgar D Mitchell
Apollo 14 astronaut
At a time when
people seem to be getting dumber and dumber, Artificial Intelligence is needed
more and more.
Let me clarify that statement:
We tend to laud
our achievements: that we have
developed technology and modern medicine, and we have sent men into space; but 98% of us have done fuck all. Two percent of our population (the bright 2%)
have envisioned and actually made these
advancements, while the rest of us have been dragged along, often kicking and
screaming.
For the last
two or three years, I have been hearing about AI (artificial intelligence), but
only vaguely understanding what all the hype was about.
I just finished reading The Age of AI, by Kissinger, Schmidt, and Huttenlocher, and still didn’t get my basic questions answered.
I don’t actually
give a fuck about the history, the math, or the philosophy of AI and
humanity. But to sate my curiosity, I
would like some simple answers.
My questions
are basic:
· Does AI think
· How is AI programmed
· How does AI learn
· Can AI teach itself
· Can AI experience
· Can AI become self-aware (alive)
· Will AI lie to us
· When we think of Singularity as
in The Matrix, will AI intelligence expand exponentially – become god-like
· Will AI ever be able to write its on codes –
no need for human input
· Can’t we just unplug AI if it becomes
too controlling
· What about power consumption
· How will it be used in war: make a
decision on its on to kill humans
· What are the positive aspects that might outweigh the danger of a machine that is smarter than its creator
I have found some of these answers on YouTube in the following Star Talk clip that includes input from Jeffrey Hinton, the Nobel Prize recipient in Physics.
Unless you
are interested in the concept, history, and mathematical concepts, I suggest
you fast forward (select to begin) at the thirty-five-minute mark of the
presentation.
Note: the
constant ad interjections are aggravating, but hang in there.
the Ol'Buzzard
What a privilege
it is to be alive.
I am an old
man of nearly nine decades, and the odds against my being here are so astronomically
large as to be uncountable.
Of all the
billions of galaxies with their billions of stars, circled by all the billions of
planets: in this particular solar system of a relative minor star, the third
planet from the sun happens to be in the Goldilocks zone, which allowed the
development of life, that through the chaos of evolution and happenstance
produced a me.
My mother
worked at a defense plant in Memphis, Tennessee. My father was in the military,
stationed in Louisiana. Strictly by
chance, they both attended Mardi Gras in New Orleans in the year before my
birth. They happened to meet and ended
up having sex. She didn’t practice birth
control, he didn’t use a condom, he didn’t pull out, it wasn’t a hand job, or a
blow job, or anal intercourse. She happened to be fertile at that particular
time. He ejaculated up to three hundred million sperm, and the only one of those
three hundred million carrying my particular DNA managed to penetrate and fertilize
that egg.
What are the
odds of that happening?
I have often
wondered why I wasn’t aborted; she was a single woman, and he was a married
man.
The odds of
my existence are uncountable (like pi).
In almost
nine decades, the beauties, sunsets and sunrises I have experienced: the sting
of an Arctic blizzard; the thrill of running a wild river or transiting the
Okefenokee swamps in a canoe; the women I have known, the motorcycles I have
ridden, the pleasures I have had; and most exciting of all, I married the most stunningly
beautiful woman I had ever met, who has shared almost fifty years of adventures
with me and has made my existence on this earth pleasurable beyond description.
And I could
have lost it all!
My second
twenty years of life were spent in the military. I flew as air crew on dangerous patrols over
the North Atlantic, sometimes in blizzard conditions; I survived a crash
landing in Turkey; twice in Vietnam, our aircraft was riddled by ground fire,
and we limped back to the base leaking oil and gas; I have facial scars and a permanent
limp from a military accident…
If you lived
through the Vietnam era, you remember the daily death toll announced on the
radio and television: 28 men died today… fifteen men died today…
I don’t
believe the official total death toll announced by our government: 58,000. It was much higher.
Some vets
died much later from war-related illnesses and injuries, people who committed suicide
or drank themselves to death, or died as a result of mental breakdowns…
In Vietnam,
the men who died accomplished nothing.
They were sent there at the whims of politicians playing partisan
politics, and more interested in keeping their illustrious jobs than caring for
the men and women of the military.
Where am
I going with this?
We have a
President talking about putting boots on the ground, in a war instigated by the
Israeli President, and ultimately about oil and natural resources that can make
the mega-rich more wealthy and powerful.
What a waste
it is to be young and die in a War; to squander these precious moments we have of
life; to never experience the pleasures of our brief human existence. To end up
as a name printed on some cold marble wall, as pawns of politicians who see the
military as boots, and not individual living men and women.
the Ol’Buzzard
There is a
difference between prejudice, bigotry, and political correctness. All three are personal opinions that shade a
subject according to the perceiver. And
each is intended to limit the freedom of action and expression of others.
Prejudice is
an attitude that prevents the objective consideration of an issue.
Bigotry is
intolerance linked to prejudice.
Political
correctness is an effort to avoid making others uncomfortable through actions
or language, regardless of whether such actions or language are correct. Political correctness also makes
it uncomfortable to express ribaldry - humor that borders on indelicacy - which
I find amusing.
Scientifically,
genetically, there are two genders, male and female, the inseminators and the progenitors;
but the blurring of sexual orientation has existed since the advent of
mankind. It even shows itself in our
closest cousins, the chimpanzees.
LGBTQ+ has
nothing to do with gender science, but identifies how an individual feels.
At a
personal level, I do find all of the gender categories confusing.
Lesbian: I
get it.
Gay men: I get it.
An aside: Gay men I have met are the nicest people. But
kissing some dude and seeing him necked is not on my bucket list. My brother-in-law is gay. He is
the most loving and considerate person I have ever known, and I love him dearly. I would hold him up as an example for any
young boy to emulate.
Bi: Why not?
Trans: Now
there is a perplexity. Attractive
looking, nice skin, nice breasts, all the correct orifices; never have periods,
never have PMS, never suffer menopause – I would think females would be
jealous.
Queer: now
what’s that? You already have LGBT –
What's the difference?
+ : Come on. How many categories do we need? You should watch who you associate with your
group. At some point, you will look
ridiculous.
It is all
about sexuality and our feelings and proclivities. Let’s not exclude heterosexuals. Make that group feel included. LGBTH
But the real
question might be: Why do we need to identify ourselves with any group? Groups divide us.
Like Popeye
says: I am what I am what I am….
I'm the Ol'Buzzard
The people who are sending us to war don’t have any skin in the game. To them, it is a game.
We destroyed their missile sights – we destroyed their navy – we are winning – we are invincible –
we have casualties? It happens.- We’ll force regime change – take their
oil – destroy their drone capability – destroy their nuclear capability
– I’m the greatest President – It’s over when I think it’s over in my bones… they say, Yes Sir Mr. President…
I would be willing to bet that Trump can not remember the name of one of the 13 military personnel who have so far died as a result of his war.
Remember suckers and losers?
Neil deGrasse
Tyson has written two books that further explore war and civilization: Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on
Civilization and Accessory to War.
We are now
at war in the Middle East: at war, not because Iran is a threat to the homeland;
not to protect Israel; not because of weapons of mass destruction; not to force
regime change; not to free the Iranian people.
Those are the excuses. We are at war in the Middle
East because that is who we are. We are
homo sapiens.
Look at the
history of the world. Humans make war because
it is in our DNA (see The Accidental Homo Sapiens by Tattersall and Desalle.)
When Australopithecus
Lucy walked across the African plains, the father of her child was probably
smashed in the head by his best friend, to acquire his food and his female.
The first battles were likely fought over food and females. Since that time, we have expanded our reasons for killing.
Though it is likely World War 4 will be fought over food and females.
This war began as a vanity move by Trump - it seems to have backfired.
the Ol'Buzzard
Trump likes his name on everything
Let's call it:
The Donald J Trump Israeli War
The pandemic
has wiped out most of the human race. Survival is not a problem. Stores
and facilities exist with adequate food and supplies, free for the taking, to
accommodate the remaining population for a hundred years.
IF you are
alone, the most dangerous entity on earth is another human.
So you look
to find and join up with a group of humans who will not rape or kill you, as
protection from other groups or individuals that might rape or kill you.
Then your
group can kill and rape those humans they see as a threat, because that is who
we are.
And it
starts all over again.
HOMO-SAPIENS.
I recently
bought THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT; A book written by various authors
that takes place during the aftermath of the world pandemic in Stephen King’s THE STAND.
After the first couple of short stories, I decided
to go back and reread THE STAND before completing THE END OF THE WORLD…
It has been
years since I first read THE STAND, and I am so much older. The story is still graphic, and grabs you
from the start, but the under story, the story not written, the story that
comes to my mind is how beautiful and natural this world would be without
humans.
In Alaska they kill the wolves to protect the moose so people can kill the moose.
When I
arrived in Maine in 1962 the state was not a major tourist attraction. There was a Maine culture that was
unique. One third of the state was
unpopulated – wilderness. I ran the
Allagash River, and for ten days never saw another human being.
The
population of Maine is growing. Today,
Maine is a popular tourist attraction and a cheap and safe place for
retirement. The old ‘Maine culture’ is pretty much gone.
There are fifteen-hundred miles of snowmobile trails crisscrossing the most remote and once pristine regions of the state.
The days are gone when you would walk silently through the newly fallen snow on wooden snowshoes, hear the chickadees in the trees, see a porcupine eating tree bark, and surprise deer out of its bed.
Now people, wearing crash helmets, ride snowmobiles at breakneck speed, screaming through the wilderness trails like Hell’s Angels on a cross-country run, seeing nothing on their way to the next lodge with steaks and a hot tub and a bar.
The Allagash River now has guides and trips
and tourists experiencing the wilderness that is no longer there.
Earth's human population is increasing exponentially. Resources are becoming scarce…
Picture a
world without humans. Clean water. Clean air…
the Ol'Buzzard
I just
finished reading Hadacol Boogie, the 25th in the popular Dave
Robicheaux series.
You would have to be my age before that title means anything to you, but for me, it brought back memories of my childhood in the Mississippi Delta.
Hadacol was a patented tonic invented and marketed by the famous Louisiana Cajun Senator, Dudley J. LeBlanc. It was a magic health elixir, 14% alcohol, that was supposed to cure everything from diseases to sexual dysfunction, and build strong bones and bodies.
I was a skinny eight-year-old, and my grandmother decided I needed to put on weight, so she bought a bottle of Hadacol and dosed me every morning before school – I don’t think she was aware of the alcohol content.
To my
memory, Hadacol was the nastiest thing I have ever put in my mouth, and that is
saying something.
The
off-handed way Trump talks about military deaths enrages me. Trump cares more about oil futures than the
death of military members.
This is the
same guy who, in his first term, hid in the safe room of the white house when
demonstrators were outside; the same guy who freaked out when all the lights in
Air Force One were shut down on the approach into Iraq when he visited the
troops; the draft dodger who avoided Vietnam service claiming bone spurs.
This fucking
bellicose coward doesn’t know or give a fuck about the military “suckers and
losers”.
I’m a
Vietnam vet. Fifty-eight thousand men
lost their lives in Vietnam for absolutely nothing.
But war is
not only about death.
I was in the
Portsmouth Naval Hospital when a 19-year-old Marine was brought in. He had taken three rounds across his stomach,
and a large portion of his intestines had been removed. He was told he would have to wear a
colostomy bag for the rest of his life.
He was engaged to a young girl, and they were supposed to be married
after his deployment. I would hear him
crying at night, because what young girl would want to spend her life with a
man with a shit bag hanging from his stomach.
He kept saying he wished he had died.
I rode with
a group in Florida. One of my buddies in
his early twenties, had been in the infantry.
We called him Choo Choo. His patrol had been ambushed and all killed
except him. He was seriously wounded. He survived by playing dead while the VC
looted his body. An army unit came in
and rescued him and collected the dead.
He was placed on the fender of a tank.
At some point on the trip out, he fell off the fender and was left in a
ditch. A patrol came back and found him
and transported him to the field hospital.
Choo Choo
would have seizures, usually after drinking.
During those seizures his
breathing would get short, and he would make that noise: chu chu chu… with each
breath. I told him he sounded like an
old steam train. He said that sometimes
he heard himself, and it scared him, because he always thought of the thump of helicopter
blades.
This is the
cannon-fodder, these are the expendables, these are the “suckers and losers” of
war that Donald Trump doesn’t give a fuck about. These are the “more troops will likely die”
that Trump speaks about with less passion than he does about his new ballroom.
War, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing!
the Ol'Buzzard
Why are we
playing brinksmanship with Iran?
Trump has escalated
the chance of a war with Iran by stationing two major aircraft carriers within
striking distance of Iran.
But it is
not just ‘war as normal’ we are risking.
Let’s consider the ‘worst case scenario’.
Each carrier
is a small city unto itself, manned by a contingent of 5000 sailors and
marines.
These
carriers are not only within striking distance to Iran, but within striking
distance of Iran.
Iran has an
estimated 1,000 ballistic missiles and over 5000 drones.
We are
dealing with a country of sexually repressed religious fanatics that sees martyrdom
as a direct route to heaven, and grows dewy-eyed at the mere mention of
paradise.
These
carrier strike forces have excellent electronic countermeasures, but an all-out
strike of thousands of missiles and drones could penetrate the carriers'
defenses with catastrophic results.
Then it
would be up to a malignant narcissistic President with immediate access to the
nuclear missiles strike code to determine a response.
What could
possibly go wrong?
the Ol’Buzzard
The
kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Savanah Guthrie who hosts the Today
Show, is tragic; and the all-out effort to find her is in no way to be criticized
just because of her wealth and public standing.
But there is a two-tier system of social justice.
In 2022, the
National Crime Information Center reported 4,487 cases of missing Native American
women and girls. A large number of the
missing are girls under 17 years of age.
Where is the
National publicity? Where is the massive
joint police and FBI turnout, similar to the effort to find Nancy Guthrie?
It doesn’t
exist.
My wife is Native American. We spent eleven years teaching school in the Athabaskan, Inuit, and Yupik Native villages of Alaska. The villages are a different cultural world from mainstream America. What happens in the villages often stays in the villages, and this seems to be fine with the government and white law enforcement.
the Ol'Buzzard
It sounds like Chicken Little,
But what if the sky is falling?
What we don't know about Artificial Intelligence unleashed is concerning. Real Time asks some of the questions.
the Ol'Buzzard
Donald Trump's private army assaults Minneapolis
in 1926. History will remember.
Who can say it better
the Ol'Buzzard
It was the best of times it was the worst of times
the Ol'Buzzard
I can't help but wonder:
How many ICE agents were actively involved in the January 6 insurrection?
How many ICE agents identify as white supremacists?
How many ICE agents were previously members of a militia group?
How many ICE agents are hardcore MAGA?
Were prospective ICE agents given a psych test and a lie detector test, which is standard in police recruitment?
ICE is operating as a private police force answerable only to the President. Do you see any parallels in history?
It was the worst of times...
the Ol'Buzzard
In 1971, the
Psychology Department of Stanford University conducted a prison experiment.
Twenty-four
students volunteered to participate in the experiment. The students were divided randomly as prisoners
or guards. The experiment was supposed
to last for two weeks, but had to be curtailed after six days, because the student
guards became too aggressive.
Without the
proper training and oversight, this aggressive behavior would occur in both the
police and the military.
This is exactly what we are seeing in ICE.
The hiring
standards for ICE agents were set at a low bar.
The training
was incomplete and inefficient.
The organization's oversight is lax and in the hands of unqualified individuals.
The goal of
the organization is to intimidate into conformity and submission the population
of politically blue states.
ICE is not
about immigration; it is about suppressing the vote in the 2026 midterm
election.
1-25-26
Today, the temperature in the western Maine mountains and foothills is -5 (f) with a 20 mph wind.
No big deal; we have been here before.
But it's damn cold.
The Gestapo was a private police force, operating above the law, and answerable only to the Dear Leader
In order to
stay relevant after his term in office, Donald Trump has organized what he
calls the Board of Peace. This is
not an organization ratified by the U.S. Congress, but strictly a group of third-world
sycophants looking to acquire worldwide power by consolidating.
Supposedly,
the organization is formed to oversee the rebuilding and peace in Gaza, but its
charter is vague and includes conducting oversight of the entire world.
The members
include:
Trump has appointed himself the permanent chairman for life. The term of membership is three years, but for one billion dollars, you can buy yourself a permanent membership.
The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with war.
George Orwell
1984
Is Trump forming his own version of NATO?
Will there be an Army of Peace under Donald Trump’s control?
Are we looking at a World Oligarchy – a consolidation of the rich to run the world?
the Ol’Buzzard
I got
spammed by a commenter named Nancy. Dozens
of the same comment. It seemed that as I deleted the spam, more reappeared. Can you designate a commenter as spam so it doesn’t
show again?
The Ol’Buzzard
At best,
polling is only an educated guess. The
next thing to remember is that any fool can post a poll.
The only polls you should give any credence to are reputable news outlets and polling organizations, and these polls should concur within a small percentage. Even then, the results can present a false impression.
As far as
elections are concerned, this country is pretty much evenly split between Republicans
and Democrats: at least as far as the Electoral College is concerned.
CNN, Gallup,
and The Economist all have Trump at 41%.
You would think an approval
rating of 41% would be a reason for Republicans to abandon Trump. But
polling is an average of the population as a whole, counting Democrats and
Republicans equally. 41% of the general
population equates to 82% of Republicans.
Donald Trump is still a powerful
influencer in the Republican Party, and as a politician, if you want to keep
your job and not be primaried, you must kowtow to Donald Trump.
If you
consider 82% of Republicans' absolute loyalty to Donald Trump, and Trump’s obvious
intention to interfere with the mid-term election, you should not count on Democrats
taking either the House or the Senate.
So read the
polls
the Ol’Buzzard
