Mixing black
ghetto Gangsta Rap with white fundamentalist Christian Kentucky
Bluegrass is as likely as pairing off Trump’s ultra conservative, and racist
Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, with mega liberal, far left, Alexandra
Ocasio-Cortez.
But a young
man named Rench has done just that.
I posted about them a couple of years ago, and Yellowdog granny commented she just as soon shove pencils in her ears (she put fuck in there somewhere.)
They also did the theme song for the FX TV series Justified.
My RAV-4 is
thirteen years old. Three years ago, my
headlight lenses were so yellowed that I could barely see my way home through a
snowstorm. That following summer, I
accessed YouTube and searched for headlight restoration kits. I settled on Griot’s Ceramic Headlight Restoration
kit, because it did not require a power drill to buff out the lens – the sanding
was done by hand.
I took out
my lawn chair, spent about ten minutes on each lens, and the results were
remarkable.
Two winters
later, my headlights have some cloudiness, but are still drastically better
than the yellow, opaque lenses of earlier.
I have no connection with Griot’s – just passing
on my experience.
Grahm
Platner is a flawed candidate for the Maine Senate, running against Republican
Susan Collins who voted 98% in favor of Trump's agenda.
Platner has been accused
by three women he dated of being demeaning, one claiming physical intimidation.
Platner did four tours in Iraq. He
admits he was reacting from PTSD when he returned from war.
Platner has
some baggage, but he is popular with working people of Maine and is probably the
only candidate who can take down Collins.
Republicans
would circle the wagons and have no problem with him as a candidate.
Democrats do
this every time; they require a purity test, often tearing down their own candidates,
while republicans, who elected Donald Trump, take over the Senate and Congress.
PTSD is real, affecting people who return from combat in different ways.
There is a feeding frenzy that may cost the Democrats the Senate.
This morning
on a news program, there was a discussion about the Democratic Autopsy of the 2024
election.Someone made the distinction
between “educated voters” and “voters without a college education.”
The connotation comes off as ‘smart
people vs stupid people.’
I cringe
every time I hear this comparison made by a democratic proponent.
I didn’t go
to college until I was forty-two years old.Had I heard a comment like that during my twenty-two years as an
enlisted man in the military, I would have said; Fuck those conceited bastards –
and on that basis alone would have voted Republican.
Why would a blue-collar
voter vote for a party that considers them as the dumber portion of the electorate?
As you enter
old age, you get grumpier. It is because
you have seen it all before, and you know when to call bullshit.
I hate it
when I’m in a restaurant and some woman – it’s always some older woman and her
husband – comes in and sits near me with a small dog wearing an ‘emotional
support’ vest.
The dog is
not for emotional support - it’s for attention.
If it is a
disabled person with a lab or German Shepherd that is actually needed for
assistance, that’s fine; I’ll give up my seat for them. But emotional support – that’s bullshit.
Jim
Jefferies is a shock jock. If you feel
his humor is in poor taste – which it is - fine, don’t watch him. However, people who are disgusted by
Jefferies' humor will watch and defend Ricky Gervais, though he is just as crass. Gervais just comes off as more likable.
ICE recruitment
offered a $50,000 sign-up bonus as the ICE surge began.
I wonder how
many ICE agents were rioters during the January 6 insurrection? How many convicted rioters that Trump pardoned
are now ICE agents? How many former militia members are now ICE
agents?
It is easy
to see the type of person who would line up to join ICE: the same type that
showed up to attack the Nation’s Capital at Donald Trump's bidding on January 6:
young men insecure in their manhood who want to dress up in combat gear and
pretend to be badass.
They are all
macho and aggressive in a group, but they wear masks because they are afraid to
be identified as a individual.
How many ICE
agents does it take to arrest a six-year-old child?
We are
living in dangerous times with nuclear weapons in the hands of aging dictators
who are losing a grip on their authority and may feel unleashed from restraints.
For the
first time, Russia launched the Oreshnik intermediate-range nuclear-capable
ballistic missile – but fitted with a conventional warhead - at Ukraine.
No one in
the West actually knows the health status of Vladimir Putin. Born in 1952, he is 74 years old. Russian authorities have denied rumors of
adverse health conditions.
It is being
reported that Putin is paranoid. Russia
is experiencing massive losses of personnel on the battlefield. Ukraine is now able to strike inside Russia. There is no sign that the war will end soon.
Putin can't lose face, and it seems he can't win the war with conventional weapons; but he could
bring the war to a swift and decisive end with a nuke.The question is: would another nuclear nation
respond in kind?
I have often
written about the human race’s march toward annihilation: overpopulation, climate
change, a meteor storm, an asteroid strike, the danger of sentient GAI; but the
real Damocles' sword is a human race hardwired for violence and war, with
aging, psychotic, religious, geopolitical leaders, launching one or more of the 12,000 nuclear warheads that now exist.
Countries in
NATO have had no reason to pursue nuclear armament, as they have felt protected
under the United States nuclear umbrella and the NATO alliance.
Now, with
the threats of withdrawal from NATO and the removal of troops from Germany and
Poland, countries can no longer count on America’s commitments of shared
protection. We are increasing the chances for a new nuclear arms race, and may
see a renewed effort to acquire nuclear weapons by countries across the globe to
ensure their own sovereignty.
Germany,
Poland, Ukraine, Sweden, Finland, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Iran; each feeling vulnerable
without a nuclear weapon.
Look what
happened to Ukraine. They had nuclear weapons,
but disarmed between 1994 and 2001. Had
they maintained their nuclear arsenal, Russia would not have attacked.
Every new nuclear-capable
entity will exponentially increase the danger of a nuclear exchange.
I feel sorry
for my brothers in arms who wear a ball cap proclaiming their Vietnam service,
as if that was the high point of their lives.
No one chose
to be there. No one was killed or wounded
by choice. 58,000 died, and most of those were between the ages of 18 and 25.
And that
58,000 number was probably a low-ball number manipulated by the government; not
an actual count; not accounting for people who later died from war wounds,
injuries, toxic poisoning, and suicide…
I am sure the number would be well over 100,000.
Ask a Vietnam
vet why he was there, and he can’t tell you.
It was politicians moving around pieces on a checker board, and vets
were the expendable pieces.
We weren’t
there to support a democratic government in the south. We were there to establish and support the Tan
Son Nhut Air Base, giving us a nuclear threat presence on the southern border
of China. It was all about China. It was geopolitical politics.
China did
not want an American nuclear presence on its southern border any more than we
wanted a Russian nuclear presence in Cuba, on our southern border.
We could
have, at any time, moved into the north and taken Hanoi, but that would have
brought China into the war.
China did
not want open war with the US any more than we wanted war with China, so we
armed the south, they armed the north, and we fought to a stalemate that, for
fifteen years, maintained a status quo, allowing us to maintain the geographic
nuclear threat on the Chinese southern border.
Finally, the
death toll of American forces became too much to hide, and anti-war activism
threatened the politicians in office; so we retreated with our tails between
our legs – we surrendered the war – we accepted our death toll as having
accomplished nothing, cut our losses, and came home ignobly.
A Vietnam vet
wearing a hat proclaiming his service is equivalent to a rape victim wearing a
hat with a picture of her rapist.
DEI has always been promoted by the Democratic Party and
always rejected by Republicans.
I was raised
in Mississippi during segregation. I
witnessed first-hand the degradation and suffering of the Black community.
The Supreme
Court’s dismantling of the Voting Rights Act is turning back the clock on Civil
Rights; a step back for racial equality.
That said, I
feel that some DEI is past its time.
In college
admissions, minority racial groups have been given preferential
consideration. I believe that
preferential consideration based on race is past its sell-by date
Today, with
the ever-widening divide between the wealthy and the poor, I believe that
preferential entrance consideration for higher education should be determined
by income; this would bring advantage across all races where a need exists.
We can still
debate the need for race-based DEI hiring, housing, and other issues.
Yesterday I
sold a set of snowshoes to a retired State Trooper in northern Maine. It dawned on me that I was seeing a
generational divide that goes further than old people aren’t techno-savvy.
I was seeing
a gap in basic values between the old and the young. I had had those snowshoes advertised for two
years, and no one showed interest. This was
because wooden snowshoes are large and heavy.
You can buy aluminum snowshoes that are small and lightweight.
But it goes
beyond that: My snowshoes were made by a person. Someone shaped the wood, steamed
it until pliable, formed it on a jig, then someone with skill laced them with
leather thongs, varnished them, and put their stamp on them.
I bought the
shoes in 1976 - fifty years ago. I have
revarnished them numerous times. I stored them carefully when not in use. The value of these shoes, to me, was more
than just their use. I cared about them
and took care of them.
Who cares
about a factory-bent oblong piece of aluminum with a plastic sheet
filling?
I have a
Silva compass that is sixty years old, a pocket knife that is ageless…
What does a
young person have today that they value so highly they will still have it fifty
years from now? Their cell phone?
When the daylight
peeks around, and the birds start singing, the cat walks onto my chest and
tells me she’s hungry and that I must get up.
The weather
this morning is 45 degrees and overcast with a wind warning, so I turned the thermostat
to 74.
When my wife
gets up ill make breakfast: grits cooked in the microwave and soft-cooked
hard-boiled eggs in the Instant Pot pressure cooker. Even though my wife is from New England, I
have convinced her that grits are good.
I have a hydrangea
in the back of the car that I need to plant, but the temperature tonight is
dropping below freezing, so I will hold off a couple of days.
The cat has
eaten and gone back to bed with my wife, so here I am on the computer.
Today I will
do my exercises, read, complete a crossword puzzle, play Scrabble with my wife
at lunch time, and watch television; settling into the routine of an old man
retired from an adventurous life.
But something
strange is happening on the West Coast in Silicon Valley, and I don't know what it is.
There has
been a time-rip, and an alien entity from the future is launching a
conquest of the earth.
Something is happening, and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr Jones?
We are
living at the advent of artificial intelligence.It started with a machine teaching itself
chess, and is now the reigning champion. Soon followed language models that
have mined the internet and now will answer your questions.
We are
moving toward generative artificial intelligence (GAI); AI is now writing its
own code and communicating with other AI devices in a language that humans have
not been able to understand.
These
machines are learning exponentially, and if the platforms are large enough, AI could
acquire all human knowledge. Then, by extrapolating using logic, deductive
reasoning, and thought experiments, it could expand knowledge beyond the human
capability of understanding.
Would we
be looking at digitally sentient beings?
In our
egotistic human, narcissistic self-conceit, we have created gods in our own
image, have sometimes designated certain humans as gods, and even have created
our view of interstellar aliens in our image.
The movie
character Paul has two arms, two legs, walks bipedally, has two eyes, feet,
hands, and human traits.
But what if
aliens were a digital intelligence, at such an advanced level that they don’t
require bodies?Without bodies, these digital
intelligences could travel at the speed of light, solving the problems of
extreme distance/time paradoxes. They could control fleets of robotic drones and
digital entities we can’t even imagine.
We shouldn't
wonder why these intelligently advanced aliens wouldn’t make contact with us.To them, we would appear as some biological
slugs of no practical interest, an invasive species, or bio-virus desecrating
this planet.A species that needs to be
eradicated.
Aliens might be interested in Earth’s
resources, but certainly not us.
Sometimes at night, I lie in bed conducting
thought experiments - at the level of a slug - of no practical use.
In 2008, I
bought the basic Total Gym for $250.00.I have had that basic gym now for 18 years, and it is still working as
advertised.
It has been
an on-and-off exercise device for me, but more on than off.I may fall away for a few weeks or a month
and then return to regular use.Having
this machine sitting in my spare room prompts me to use it.
I am
approaching my ninth decade, and I honestly feel that this machine has helped
improve my stamina and has been a healthy exercise component; had I not used
the machine on a semi-regular basis, my health would have deteriorated beyond
my present condition.
I have no
connection with Total Gym.I am sure that there are other devices
available that are just as good or perhaps even better for a one-machine total
workout.
I am just
passing on my experience, hoping to benefit someone looking for an exercise
routine that doesn’t include traveling to a gym
My exercise
routine lasts about five minutes.I do
one set of ten: rowing, pulls, body twist for the abs, and curls – then I turn
around and do sweeps, pushups, pullups, crunches, and situps (I don’t know the
proper name for the exercises, but this may explain what I do.)
I end my
workout with two or three minutes of meditation where I control my
breathing.
I was
shocked today when I looked up the Total Gym website and found that their basic
machine now cost $600.
I can’t
advise anyone to buy this machine on my say-so; so do your own research if you
are looking for a one-machine workout. But, do consider a daily exercise as
part of your lifestyle: it is not that hard to spend five minutes exercising as
part of your daily routine.
In this day and age, I am not shocked or concerned that Robert Kennedy Jr would pull over to the side of the road, with his kids in the car, to cut out the penis of a road kill raccoon, to take it home to study.
The thing that I find shocking is that he has kids. Who the hell would want to have sex with a man with a brain worm who has an obsession with animal penis?
At least the raccoon's penis was small enough to take in the car. The whale's penis had to be tied to the top of his car.
This is who Trump picked to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
I am in my late
eighties. I have lived for almost a
century, and at this time of life, I tend to look back rather than
forward.The thing that stands out the
most to me is the stupidity of a human race that considers itself intelligent.
About six million years ago, the great apes and humans had a common ancestor.We
are basically advanced apes.
We have
evolved a brain capable of functional intelligence. A majority of humans are capable
of training to perform a task and functioning in a loose society.We have not invented flight, mass
transit, and electronic technology; a tiny, small percentage of us have the advanced
intelligence of thought experiments, and have dragged the rest of us, kicking
and screaming, into the future we now live in.
Our future
should look exciting; but we are the only animals, except for chimpanzees, our
closest cousin in the animal kingdom, that regularly conduct wars and genocide against
their own kind.That propensity will be
our own destruction.
Our greatest
fear should not be AI or asteroids.The inevitability
of a theology with a nuclear weapon will be more likely to bring about the
sixth extinction.
It wasn’t
enough in Jonestown for true believers to drink the Kool-Aid; they had to bring
along all the others with them.
Religion is
a frightening force, impervious to, and immunized against, mere reasoning.
Thoughts of
an old man in the wee hours of the morning
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
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.
One of the statements that stood out to me was that AI's relationship with humans might become that of a teacher to a kindergarten class.
