Something In This

"we live in a world where we don't so much own things, in many ways our things own us. Hot rodding is a form of radical ownership where you KNOW the thing, down to every nut, bolt, and wire."

That Jaguar Ad...

Is "copy nothing" except every single woke HR departments inclusion mandate.  

Argument Against Democracy

And especially in terms of bringing it to foreign countries. The number of folks who believe the US government was involved in 9/11. 

20% of people in the US? Do they even require 2nd order thoughts on the matter - like - what does the government stand to gain by being involved in such a thing?

A Generally Safe Prediction

If you elect a progressive DA or hire progressive prosecutors crime will go up. 

Logging

Film: Daddio

I believe we have a subgenre here - the taxi movie. Taxi Driver, Collateral, and Daddio... Features of this genre: primary location: a taxi. The taxi driver is a loner and a little weird. Some type of romance story as a subplot. Urban location, some reflection or perspective upon the nature of the city/environment. 

Feckless

If this is true, Biden will be remembered as one of the worst Presidents of my lifetime.

Time

Is time on Ukraine or Russia's side? 

Some argue any ceasefire or other actions to freeze the conflict benefits Russia because they can simply regroup and invade later.

On the other hand, Russia keeps descending into a lower geopolitical situation year after year vis-a-vis China and the US. Whereas Poland and other Eastern European countries are now hip to the game and will plan accordingly. Not obvious to me Russia will be in a better position in say, 10 years. Also, Putin might die. 

Then again, Ukraine might depopulate. Would you want to live next to a nuclear armed neighbor with designs on your land? Perhaps not. But if you want a free country, you are going to need to be willing to fight and fight for it. Not like the US was created overnight. We had to fight the War of 1812...

ChatGPT

Are we really that close to AGI? 

Checking to see if my students are cheating - "what are the visual symbols used in the sopranos pilot"

The Sopranos pilot, directed by David Chase, uses a variety of visual symbols to establish the world of the show and underscore its themes. These symbols often carry deeper meanings, connecting to the psychological states of the characters, the nature of their world, and the central conflict of the series. 

Here are some of the key visual symbols used in the pilot: 

1. The Squirrel Symbolism: The squirrel that appears early in the pilot, when Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) is sitting outside, is an important visual motif. The squirrel is symbolic of Tony’s life in a state of confusion or tension. Its frantic, erratic behavior mirrors Tony's own inner turmoil and the unpredictable nature of his life in organized crime. The squirrel's ultimate death — being killed by Tony’s shot in the head — reflects the sense of violence that permeates Tony's world. 

Theme: This moment foreshadows the randomness of violence in the criminal underworld and the fragility of life in Tony’s world. It also suggests Tony’s emotional instability, as he is unable to stop the violence or chaos around him.

Hmmm kay.

 

 

The Process

Replace the word sex with gender. 

Define the word gender as something different from sex.

Apply the new word gender to all structures and institutions build upon the reality of sex differences.

Bring down civilization.

America

Matt Gaetz Attorney General

America:

My Wife's Theory 

On the election: median wages dropped significantly during the Biden administration. AKA-

It's the economy, stupid.

Weird

I just noticed today three huge apartment complexes are for sale in town. What is this a signal of?

The Biggest AI Use Case

For now, anyway, the biggest use case seems to be students cheating. 

Another Example Why People Voted For Trump

A psychologist argues you don't need to spend time with family members who voted for Trump because "family is not entitled to your time." 

Just...WOW. 

These people are psychotic - just making their own lives as miserable as possible. Then I read about 35-year old women who are giving up any type of interactions with men because of Trump -- joining the South Korean 4b movement.

Nutty.

I'm tempted to make a joke about the difference between fasting and starving, but I won't.

Wondering Why Trump Won?

Just another small example: CA trying to do something to address maternal health issues, but advocacy groups argue to suspend the suggested implementation because -- you guessed it -- "plan to reduce maternal mortality fails to address systemic racism and puts an undue burden on individuals."

Here's a part:

Sherrod said that even when accounting for other factors, “Black women still have worse outcomes.” For instance, one analysis of maternal deaths in California found that Black mothers with the highest incomes had worse rates of pregnancy-related mortality than white mothers with the lowest incomes.

Anyone want to bet black mothers with highest incomes are older than white women with the lowest incomes? Could that be impacting maternal health? Just a thought...

Campaign Spending

A clue. 

Campaign Spending; Trump Raised $381.54 Million

Trump spent $345.42 Million 

Only $10.4 Million was spent on Staff. 

Kamala raised $1.003 Billion 

Kamala Spent $1.37 Billion

Kamala Spent $582.53 Million on Staff.

I've often wondered why Democrats embrace such retarded policy positions. If you followed the 582 million, I bet it would explain some of it.  

The Clinton's invented this political access-->career pyramid scheme, but Obama hijacked it from them. The scam is now out in the open - but it remains to be seen whether Trump will take it down or use it himself. Probably a bit of both.

Why Trans Issues

Why is the trans issue such a big deal. It doesn't directly impact a ton of people in a meaningful way - this is true. But people are not dumb. They know if Democrats are willing to lie and obscure reality in this absurd a manner, it makes them think: what else are they lying about? And they realize - wait a sec - how about everything? Do you know the story about a shop owner who catches an employee stealing a small thing and fires her. Naive son says - why did you fire her? That's the first time she stole something. And he says, "no, it was the first time she got caught." This is the trans issue. It's a canary in the coal mine. It reveals everything about the mindset of progressives and far left liberals. 

Election Explanation #2

Is it possible the Democrats lost because when given the opportunity, they governed poorly? 

Adios

Qatar tells Hamas they are no longer welcome. 

Hmmm.

Logging

Film: Last Man Standing (Bruce Willis movie, not Tim Allen tv show) 

Dull and nonsensical from the moment the film starts. Cannot believe this film cost 60 plus million to make in the late 90s. Felt like almost no point to making the film, like a pure exercise. A lesson in here somewhere. 

Film: Jackie Brown

Odd feature of prime video - during credits of Last Man Standing it just flowed right into Jackie Brown. Music caught me. I ended up watching an hour, then fast forwarding to certain parts. DeNiro's character - Louis Gara struck me this time around. I could not help but associate him with with his Neil McCauley character from Heat. These films were made close together - Heat in 95, Jackie Brown in 97. So DeNiro more or less looks the same. In Jackie Brown, DeNiro spends most of the movie in Bridget Fonda's Hermosa Beach apartment looking at the Pacific Ocean. In Heat, McCauley has a famously post modern, unfurnished Malibu beach house that also looks out upon the Pacific Ocean. They are both ex-cons released from prison for bank robbery. DeNiro in Heat dresses very well, in Jackie Brown, DeNiro is most happy when Sam Jackson buys him some new duds and cleans himself up. On the surface, their characterizations couldn't be more different. Louis is a loser. A pothead. A space cadet. He can't even hang up a phone at one point. In fact, Louis is basically stoned out of his mind most of the movie and not paying much attention to anything at all. Methinks he's fantasizing. And what's he fantasizing about? Being Neil McCauley. Heat is Louis's fantasy version of himself - a version of what he should be, a coping mechanism for what he is. He should have discipline. He should have a code. He should be the best bank robber in Southern California. This is what Louis is thinking about as he watches dumbass TV shows with Bridget Fonda and smokes weed. He's powerless and what do powerless men do? They fantasize. 

The final moment of the Louis's journey suggests it as well. Sam Jackson says to him "you used to be beautiful." Really? There was no suggestion of this side of his character throughout the film. But Sam Jackson doesn't say this to anyone else. He lies only about things to advantage himself. He has no reason to lie in this moment. So what he says is true. Louis was something once. So maybe he could've been Neil McCauley. Because the best fantasies possess at least a possibility of truth. Maybe his fantasy version of himself wasn't so far off the mark. If only he had turned down that weed and that crazy pussy... 

My Theory on the US Election

Donald Trump had policy positions more aligned with American public opinion than Kamala Harris.