This is a common assumption. In it's expanded form it is "If it feels good, it must be good for me!"
This is why it never exits in its slightly expanded form. Anyone who is high on a drug will say the same thing. It is part of every advertisement you will see or hear. That wants you to buy, buy, buy!
But in its original form, it is as popular as ever.
Sunday, June 30, 2019
Most Money Exists as Bank Balances
This where my money is: in an account in Wells Fargo bank in the States.
Once a month this account gets credited with more money from Social Security's account. And I can use my credit card, in Costa Rica, to get the cash I need for my rent. There is a small charge for changing Dollars into Colonies.
I am not in the drug business, but if I were, I would be getting a lot of cash, boxes of it. When what I needed was money in a bank balance. The process of moving this cash into a bank balance is known as money laundering.
This is illegal, but banks in Southern Florida are doing a lot of it, and this contributes to the booming economy there.
Facebook's Libra currency would do the same thing, without any banks being involved. Members of Congress are up in arms about this because this would cost them a lot of money, that they get from the banks.
The World as a TV Show
I have often said to myself that I would pay no attention to any more stories about Trump. But this was impossible.
In the Washington Post this morning, in the story about his visit to North Korea, I read "He often thinks of himself as a Director and Producer." It doesn't have to say "of his own TV show." And it doesn't have to say "And he is the most important actor in it!:"
We all know the importance of actors and actresses. We should be noticing the people who run the show. But instead, we notice the actors on the stage, who are just hired hands. Because they are the most visible. We are more interested in Appearances than Reality.
And the dominant Appearance now is the Magic Screen on which you are reading this. It is no longer a Movie screen or anything like it. But we do not notice the difference. It looks real, so it must be real.
And we must be like it. Entirely artificial.
In the Washington Post this morning, in the story about his visit to North Korea, I read "He often thinks of himself as a Director and Producer." It doesn't have to say "of his own TV show." And it doesn't have to say "And he is the most important actor in it!:"
We all know the importance of actors and actresses. We should be noticing the people who run the show. But instead, we notice the actors on the stage, who are just hired hands. Because they are the most visible. We are more interested in Appearances than Reality.
And the dominant Appearance now is the Magic Screen on which you are reading this. It is no longer a Movie screen or anything like it. But we do not notice the difference. It looks real, so it must be real.
And we must be like it. Entirely artificial.
Saturday, June 29, 2019
It's Too Hard for me to Understand
As I continue to play around with Software Design (I am learning Angular and Blockchain) I find myself saying this frequently "I don't understand this!"
I do not worry that Computers will take over the world because they already have! And we have not died.
We are surrounded by smart machines, but they still need us, and always will.
If you are using your Smartphone, you are helping one of them.
I do not worry that Computers will take over the world because they already have! And we have not died.
We are surrounded by smart machines, but they still need us, and always will.
If you are using your Smartphone, you are helping one of them.
She is Telling Us about Herself
Dear Friend, from My Life I Write to You in Your Life
She has a good feel for her life, this is what makes her writing so interesting.
But she does not have a good feel for most of her readers. She thinks they want to understand her when they do not.
If she understood this, she would not have tried to kill herself.
She has a good feel for her life, this is what makes her writing so interesting.
But she does not have a good feel for most of her readers. She thinks they want to understand her when they do not.
If she understood this, she would not have tried to kill herself.
The Importance of the Actor in Politics
To be a successful Politician, one must be a successful Actor.
This something the Democrats (after FDR) have not understood. they do not know what roles they are playing on the Global stage.
The Republicans. by contrast, have their role already made for them. Which is simple: Destroy everything!
This something the Democrats (after FDR) have not understood. they do not know what roles they are playing on the Global stage.
The Republicans. by contrast, have their role already made for them. Which is simple: Destroy everything!
Mothers who want Their Mothers to Take Care of Their Children
I have mixed feelings about this, I have known families where this shared responsibility works fine, and everyone benefits from it, especially the children, who always have someone to take care of them.
In other families, the mother abandons her child to the care of others, and it doesn't matter who that other person, or persons, is. This has a devastating impact on the child.
Having a child is a big responsibility, that is why I do not have any. But many parents (including my own) did not realize this and were bad parents.
In other families, the mother abandons her child to the care of others, and it doesn't matter who that other person, or persons, is. This has a devastating impact on the child.
Having a child is a big responsibility, that is why I do not have any. But many parents (including my own) did not realize this and were bad parents.
Friday, June 28, 2019
Bodies of father and daughter taken home as Trump blamed for border chaos
The Guardian
This article makes me wonder, once again, what is going on in the minds of Americans?
It looks to me like they are living in another reality, where values are reversed. This would explain their actions, that otherwise cannot be explained.
This article makes me wonder, once again, what is going on in the minds of Americans?
It looks to me like they are living in another reality, where values are reversed. This would explain their actions, that otherwise cannot be explained.
The Situation cannot be Fixed
The situation is the world we are living in. And for me, that meant the USA, in the last half of the 20th Century.
We were the richest people in history, and the most destructive. These two characteristics should not have occurred together, but they did.
And the result is a worldwide culture and economy that is destroying the earth.
I moved to Costa Rica, to get away from it, but it is following me down here. And the reason is simple: people cannot be rich and be good at the same time. The two virtues are not compatible, despite our strenuous efforts to make them that way.
"This is true," You may say. : "But knowing this now (from bitter experience) we can start over and make things right."
But most people do not see things this way. And any attempts at changing them, so far, have not been successful.
We were the richest people in history, and the most destructive. These two characteristics should not have occurred together, but they did.
And the result is a worldwide culture and economy that is destroying the earth.
I moved to Costa Rica, to get away from it, but it is following me down here. And the reason is simple: people cannot be rich and be good at the same time. The two virtues are not compatible, despite our strenuous efforts to make them that way.
"This is true," You may say. : "But knowing this now (from bitter experience) we can start over and make things right."
But most people do not see things this way. And any attempts at changing them, so far, have not been successful.
Thursday, June 27, 2019
The Computer Industry vs the Fed
Libra: Forking the Fed
Scroll down and look at the graphic, showing Big Tech, Nation States, and Crypto Space all aiming guns at each other, and you will see the essence of this article.
And you will see why Libra is a Big Deal, a very Big Deal,
It is Capitalism taken to its logical conclusion, with the aid of a logical device: the Computer.
My Miscellaneous Expense are about $20 a day
This amounts to $60 a month, that I can manage easily out of my $1400 a month total income I get from Social Security.
These expenses are charities, such as the ACLU, or progressive organizations, such as the Daily Kos.
This leaves me $1000 a month left over.
This is not enough to buy a new laptop, that could cost $1000, but it could easily buy plenty of food and clothing. And Kindle books.
If it turns out that my expenses are $30 a day ($ 900 a month) I will be squeezed tighter, and have to live a frugal life.
I am being punished for trying to make a better world!
These expenses are charities, such as the ACLU, or progressive organizations, such as the Daily Kos.
This leaves me $1000 a month left over.
This is not enough to buy a new laptop, that could cost $1000, but it could easily buy plenty of food and clothing. And Kindle books.
If it turns out that my expenses are $30 a day ($ 900 a month) I will be squeezed tighter, and have to live a frugal life.
I am being punished for trying to make a better world!
Good looking but Crazy
This was Beth and me in Santa Barbara, California in the Sixties.
Santa Barbara was the perfect place to live back then, cheap and beautiful.
Lots of people retired there. If you were a little crazy, no one noticed, as long as you paid your rent. And some didn't even do that.
Santa Barbara was the perfect place to live back then, cheap and beautiful.
Lots of people retired there. If you were a little crazy, no one noticed, as long as you paid your rent. And some didn't even do that.
Steam (software)
Wikipedia
This is an excellent example of where Software is at now. This should be an easy read if you are into this kind of thing.
I have a nephew that was really into gaming. He went to parties every night, taking his portable disk with him. This got him a job with a company that made gaming software. He did fulfillment for them: taking money from customers, and sending them the app they just purchased. Routine work, that required no thinking.
But he did not take the next step up and learn to program, that would have paid him much more. His mother gets his laptops when he is through with them when they are almost obsolete.
They are both on the edge of the Computer economy, the biggest economy there is.
This is an excellent example of where Software is at now. This should be an easy read if you are into this kind of thing.
I have a nephew that was really into gaming. He went to parties every night, taking his portable disk with him. This got him a job with a company that made gaming software. He did fulfillment for them: taking money from customers, and sending them the app they just purchased. Routine work, that required no thinking.
But he did not take the next step up and learn to program, that would have paid him much more. His mother gets his laptops when he is through with them when they are almost obsolete.
They are both on the edge of the Computer economy, the biggest economy there is.
Christmas in Latin America means Killing a Pig
And making Tamales out of him.
How these Tamales are made varies greatly from region to region, but the main ingredient is Masa or corn flour. North America uses wheat flour, but Latin America uses corn flour.
The additional ingredients will include pork (from the pig) and almost anything else. Including the Salsa (or seasoning) Latin American is famous for.
The flavor is enhanced by the wrapping that is used. In Costa Rica, these are the leaves of the Platino tree, a close relative of the Banano (or Banana, in English).
How these Tamales are made varies greatly from region to region, but the main ingredient is Masa or corn flour. North America uses wheat flour, but Latin America uses corn flour.
The additional ingredients will include pork (from the pig) and almost anything else. Including the Salsa (or seasoning) Latin American is famous for.
The flavor is enhanced by the wrapping that is used. In Costa Rica, these are the leaves of the Platino tree, a close relative of the Banano (or Banana, in English).
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
Helping Dad Bag his Flour
We moved from Ft. Maison, Iowa to Nauvoo, Illinois in 1947. Where our Father set up a Whole Wheat flour milling business.
His mills were of a new design, using carborundum stones set very close together. The result was fine whole wheat flour and a lot of air.
And something he hadn't planned on - inconsistent baking results. We baked a lot of bread, but much of it we have to give away to our neighbors.
Then he read, that an additive was added to flour to stabilize it. He did the same thing. and it worked for him too. Only a tiny bit was required and it is harmless to the people who eat these bakery products.
He advertised his flour as having no additives. I once asked him if the stabilizer was not an additive, but he got upset and said that it was not!
His children sacked his flour for him. He designed a special device that would bounce any sack of flour that was in it. We would shovel a scoop of flour into the bag, cover it with a paddle the size of the bag, and turn the thumper on while we pushed down on the paddle. Thump, thump, thump, the air was squeezed out!
Then another scoop of flour and the process was repeated. We got covered with flour, but that did not bother us. We also used a face mask, so we could breathe while working, I wish we had some photos of us back then.
His flour did not sell. Perhaps it would have if he had sold it to the little grocery stores that were common then, selling to each store individually. But he tried to sell to the larger stores, sitting his bags next to the other bags. But that made them look different, and that turned the buyers off.
His mills were of a new design, using carborundum stones set very close together. The result was fine whole wheat flour and a lot of air.
And something he hadn't planned on - inconsistent baking results. We baked a lot of bread, but much of it we have to give away to our neighbors.
Then he read, that an additive was added to flour to stabilize it. He did the same thing. and it worked for him too. Only a tiny bit was required and it is harmless to the people who eat these bakery products.
He advertised his flour as having no additives. I once asked him if the stabilizer was not an additive, but he got upset and said that it was not!
His children sacked his flour for him. He designed a special device that would bounce any sack of flour that was in it. We would shovel a scoop of flour into the bag, cover it with a paddle the size of the bag, and turn the thumper on while we pushed down on the paddle. Thump, thump, thump, the air was squeezed out!
Then another scoop of flour and the process was repeated. We got covered with flour, but that did not bother us. We also used a face mask, so we could breathe while working, I wish we had some photos of us back then.
His flour did not sell. Perhaps it would have if he had sold it to the little grocery stores that were common then, selling to each store individually. But he tried to sell to the larger stores, sitting his bags next to the other bags. But that made them look different, and that turned the buyers off.
Facebook, Google, Apple, Other Data-Driven Firms, Defy The Global Move To Strong Privacy Regulations
Forbes
F now stands for Forbes, and it is doing well in the highly competitive, high-tech online journalism market.
And it is helping whatsthebigdata.com also. These sites expose so much, so constantly, they are something else, as the saying goes.
F now stands for Forbes, and it is doing well in the highly competitive, high-tech online journalism market.
And it is helping whatsthebigdata.com also. These sites expose so much, so constantly, they are something else, as the saying goes.
People who Know How to Do It, want to show other People How to Do It
Are they crazy? They want more people doing what they are doing? More competition?
The answer is Yes to all these questions, except the first one: they are not crazy.
They are just operating in another environment: the Software environment. Where concepts like competition do not apply.
But where most people will not venture, because it looks too scary to them.
The answer is Yes to all these questions, except the first one: they are not crazy.
They are just operating in another environment: the Software environment. Where concepts like competition do not apply.
But where most people will not venture, because it looks too scary to them.
What's Going On, Under the Hood
What's going on is mostly run by Software, and we should be making a strong effort to understand this. But we are not.
Which means we have no idea how our world works.
This, to our way of thinking, is not a problem. We are happy to let other forces battle it out, and let the strongest force win.
If this force is not interested in us, that's too bad.
Which means we have no idea how our world works.
This, to our way of thinking, is not a problem. We are happy to let other forces battle it out, and let the strongest force win.
If this force is not interested in us, that's too bad.
For Democracy to work, the People have to be Informed
Everyone agrees with this, but they ask "In the present complex situation, how are they to be informed?"
I am reading about the elections in India, that just concluded. It is a very long article, and I will probably not finish it. But it is clear to me that Democracy is not working very well in India.
Probably because most of the people do not want it to work very well.
I can make this statement because I have been emailing back and forth with my family (back in the States) and it has become clear to me that their situation is hopeless. And they want it to stay that way.
It goes without saying that the People's representatives (their Government) must be informed also.
I am reading about the elections in India, that just concluded. It is a very long article, and I will probably not finish it. But it is clear to me that Democracy is not working very well in India.
Probably because most of the people do not want it to work very well.
I can make this statement because I have been emailing back and forth with my family (back in the States) and it has become clear to me that their situation is hopeless. And they want it to stay that way.
It goes without saying that the People's representatives (their Government) must be informed also.
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
The Working Class and the Business Class
These were the American social classes I was aware of as a child, in Ft. Madison, Iowa, in the Forties.
My Father's father was a Union member and an ardent one, and a proud member of the Working class.
My father was a Small businessman, read Business Week completely every week, and believed what it said.
When small businesses went out of business in the Sixties, to be replaced by Big Business, this was a huge change in the economy.
That most Americans refuse to recognize.
My Father's father was a Union member and an ardent one, and a proud member of the Working class.
My father was a Small businessman, read Business Week completely every week, and believed what it said.
When small businesses went out of business in the Sixties, to be replaced by Big Business, this was a huge change in the economy.
That most Americans refuse to recognize.
Monday, June 24, 2019
Its Not how Rich you are, its How Smart you Are
Google leads in the race to dominate artificial intelligence
The competition today is not between humans and machines but among the world’s technology giants, which are investing feverishly to get a lead over each other in AI.
Capitalism has always made money most important, but the Computer (and AI) is making intelligence most important. As this article states:
Most People are Ignorant
This certainly applies to the US and the UK, and also more and more, to the EU.
It applies to any affluent country, of which there are many. It is a social disease of the rich.
These people live in a world they cannot understand and don't want to. For them, ignorance is bliss, and they want to stay that way.
It applies to any affluent country, of which there are many. It is a social disease of the rich.
These people live in a world they cannot understand and don't want to. For them, ignorance is bliss, and they want to stay that way.
Being Aware
This could easily turn into a Buddist sermon. That no one would listen to.
People do not want to be told that they must change.
No, no no! They are just fine the way they are.
Which in a way is true. Most of them are fine, but some important parts are not.
And one of these parts is awareness of their situation, and themselves. This lack of awareness puts them in a difficult position.
Without their being aware of it.
People do not want to be told that they must change.
No, no no! They are just fine the way they are.
Which in a way is true. Most of them are fine, but some important parts are not.
And one of these parts is awareness of their situation, and themselves. This lack of awareness puts them in a difficult position.
Without their being aware of it.
Sunday, June 23, 2019
The 80 percent Will Not listen to the 20 percent
The percentages here are approximate and vary from situation to situation. And depend on our being able to divide the population into two groups.
We have done this for a long time and it often results in us and them groups. Not very useful categories.
Ortega y Gasset discovered a new category: the Masses, in the Thirties. Writing about them in The Revolt of the Masses. This was a breakthrough in Sociology, but there has not been much follow-up work on it.
But the latest trends in Politics, such as the election of Trump, are doing this work for us. People all over the world are feeling stressed, and are blaming some other group for their problems.
The groups doing the pointing are authoritarian - and the groups being pointed at are rights-oriented.
They are saying "We have our rights (to have an abortion)" but the authoritarians are saying "You most certainly do not!".
We have done this for a long time and it often results in us and them groups. Not very useful categories.
Ortega y Gasset discovered a new category: the Masses, in the Thirties. Writing about them in The Revolt of the Masses. This was a breakthrough in Sociology, but there has not been much follow-up work on it.
But the latest trends in Politics, such as the election of Trump, are doing this work for us. People all over the world are feeling stressed, and are blaming some other group for their problems.
The groups doing the pointing are authoritarian - and the groups being pointed at are rights-oriented.
They are saying "We have our rights (to have an abortion)" but the authoritarians are saying "You most certainly do not!".
The Other Animals in the World are Here to Entertain Us
I just read Wildlife Watch in the National Geographic. In an issue devoted to Wildlife Tourism.
It was a long read, and I am sure most people just looked at the photos, that were magnificent.
The main point of the article was that Wildlife Tourism is a big business and that the Wildlife is suffering, as a result.
It was a long read, and I am sure most people just looked at the photos, that were magnificent.
The main point of the article was that Wildlife Tourism is a big business and that the Wildlife is suffering, as a result.
The Drone Iran Shot Down Was a $220M Surveillance Monster
WIRED
Global Hawks are massive surveillance platforms, in operation since 2001, with a wingspan of more than 130 feet and a maximum takeoff weight of more than 16 tons. They have a range of more than 12,000 nautical miles, can fly at strikingly high altitudes of 60,000 feet, and can stay aloft for 34 hours straight.
"Part of the selling point is Global Hawks fly so high and normally they should be secure from being shot down," Franke says. "It’s not incredibly difficult to shoot down a system like that, but it’s comparatively difficult. It shows resolve on the political side."
Analysts say, though, that while it is not shocking that Iran possesses the intercept technology to shoot the drone down, it would have required a radar-guided, surface-to-air missile system—seemingly either an SA-6 or SA-17 SAM given to Iran by Russia.
This article tells all the public facts about this incident,.No doubt they are plenty more we will never know about.
Analysts say, though, that while it is not shocking that Iran possesses the intercept technology to shoot the drone down, it would have required a radar-guided, surface-to-air missile system—seemingly either an SA-6 or SA-17 SAM given to Iran by Russia.
We Live in a World that was not Made for Us
It's a world we have wandered into by accident, a world of machines.
This is not a very accurate description of our world, but it will do for now. The other piece of the puzzle is us: what are we?
We have two unknown entities here, and they do not fit together very well. And the result is the biggest mess the Universe has ever seen.
We have the perfect world for Life to live on, but we are destroying it. It is not surprising that the world wants to get rid of us, anyway, it can.
We have ended up with many problems, that are all part of one big problem: our destructiveness. Our own insignificant species is destroying the world and refuses to acknowledge this.
This is not just a matter of destroying our fossil fuels, it is a matter of attitude - our attitude towards the rest of the world and towards each other.
This is not a very accurate description of our world, but it will do for now. The other piece of the puzzle is us: what are we?
We have two unknown entities here, and they do not fit together very well. And the result is the biggest mess the Universe has ever seen.
We have the perfect world for Life to live on, but we are destroying it. It is not surprising that the world wants to get rid of us, anyway, it can.
We have ended up with many problems, that are all part of one big problem: our destructiveness. Our own insignificant species is destroying the world and refuses to acknowledge this.
This is not just a matter of destroying our fossil fuels, it is a matter of attitude - our attitude towards the rest of the world and towards each other.
Saturday, June 22, 2019
5 principles for cloud-native architecture—what it is and how to master it
Google Cloud Blog
Google wants people to use its software, and to do that they have to understand it.
It has courses on Coursera (which I hate) but has written this itself. As a professional tech writer, I have to say it's pretty good.
Google wants people to use its software, and to do that they have to understand it.
It has courses on Coursera (which I hate) but has written this itself. As a professional tech writer, I have to say it's pretty good.
The Developers and the Users
This separation is basic to today's world.
It began with Television. Where most people (the Users) watched the Boob Tube. And a much smaller group of people designed what they were watching.
This was direct adaption from the Movies. But you could watch it at home, and it was free. People had to have it!
I lived for a while in an area that had no electricity. The people there had little portable TVs that ran off of car batteries. They would recharge these batteries at an area close by that did have electricity.
Then the whole family would watch this tiny TV. With the pigs and chickens running around them.
Their TV was their world, And they changed themselves to adapt to it.
It began with Television. Where most people (the Users) watched the Boob Tube. And a much smaller group of people designed what they were watching.
This was direct adaption from the Movies. But you could watch it at home, and it was free. People had to have it!
I lived for a while in an area that had no electricity. The people there had little portable TVs that ran off of car batteries. They would recharge these batteries at an area close by that did have electricity.
Then the whole family would watch this tiny TV. With the pigs and chickens running around them.
Their TV was their world, And they changed themselves to adapt to it.
Software is Interesting
For me, at least. But not for most people, who are allergic to the stuff.
Why?
The answer to this question goes into the dark recesses of our contemporary psyche, where few want to venture.
Companies who want to hire Software Developers do not ask this question, they want to know whether you can do the job, or not. If you can. you got a job, even if they have to bring you in from a foreign country.
This results in a divided population, between those who are software savvy, and those who are not.
Those who are software knowledgeable often concentrate on manipulating those who are not. They assume the users are stupid, and often they are.
This situation has gotten worse as Software has gotten better. And has made some people wonder if computers are going to take over the world.
And in a way, they already have. They can do some things much better than humans. I am writing this blog, and you are reading it, perhaps from across the world. A few years ago, this was impossible!
We are not well-adapted to rapid change - but our present world is full of it. And this has driven us crazy.
This, to me, is the worst problem we have. A world that is full of maladapted people.
Why?
The answer to this question goes into the dark recesses of our contemporary psyche, where few want to venture.
Companies who want to hire Software Developers do not ask this question, they want to know whether you can do the job, or not. If you can. you got a job, even if they have to bring you in from a foreign country.
This results in a divided population, between those who are software savvy, and those who are not.
Those who are software knowledgeable often concentrate on manipulating those who are not. They assume the users are stupid, and often they are.
This situation has gotten worse as Software has gotten better. And has made some people wonder if computers are going to take over the world.
And in a way, they already have. They can do some things much better than humans. I am writing this blog, and you are reading it, perhaps from across the world. A few years ago, this was impossible!
We are not well-adapted to rapid change - but our present world is full of it. And this has driven us crazy.
This, to me, is the worst problem we have. A world that is full of maladapted people.
Friday, June 21, 2019
Trump came out of this looking Good, Iran came out of it looking Bad
I don't have to tell you what I am referring to. The downing of an American intelligence drone by a missile fired from Iran.
Trump, at a televised news conference I saw myself. said he was sure the Iranians had made a mistake, and he was willing to overlook the incident.
The Iranians. for internal political reasons said nothing.
Trump, at a televised news conference I saw myself. said he was sure the Iranians had made a mistake, and he was willing to overlook the incident.
The Iranians. for internal political reasons said nothing.
The Sopranos Is the Perfect Show to Help Us Understand the Trump Era
GEN
Which is why, in 2019, the most important character in The Sopranos might be Svetlana Kirilenko, the Russian nurse (and cousin of Tony’s mistress) who looks after Tony’s aging mother and uncle. Hardened by life in the former Soviet Union, she has no time for Americans and their insecure nonsense. She faces the kind of obstacle most characters on the show couldn’t imagine — she walks with a prosthetic leg — but never shows self-pity or existential angst. She’s not wealthy. She’s not powerful. But she is secure.
Most importantly, she knows who she is. And that self-knowledge helps her understand what drives others as well. About halfway through the series, Svetlana sleeps with Tony; he suggests a follow-up liaison, and she turns him down him in cold, matter-of-fact terms. “I don’t think so,” she says. “I don’t want to prop you up.”
For those of us wondering how to tackle Trump, there’s a valuable lesson in that: If you want to take on the mob, there’s no more powerful weapon than a sense of self. Knowing who you are and what really matters doesn’t help you win the game. It transcends the game. It makes the liars and bullies look pathetic for playing. And it makes them powerless as a result.
Which is why, in 2019, the most important character in The Sopranos might be Svetlana Kirilenko, the Russian nurse (and cousin of Tony’s mistress) who looks after Tony’s aging mother and uncle. Hardened by life in the former Soviet Union, she has no time for Americans and their insecure nonsense. She faces the kind of obstacle most characters on the show couldn’t imagine — she walks with a prosthetic leg — but never shows self-pity or existential angst. She’s not wealthy. She’s not powerful. But she is secure.
Most importantly, she knows who she is. And that self-knowledge helps her understand what drives others as well. About halfway through the series, Svetlana sleeps with Tony; he suggests a follow-up liaison, and she turns him down him in cold, matter-of-fact terms. “I don’t think so,” she says. “I don’t want to prop you up.”
Elizabeth Warren Is Completely Serious
NY Times Magazine
She is a complicated person, as this article shows, but most Americans are simple-minded. They will not read this article or much of anything else.
America has complicated problems and she tries to address them all. This, more than anything else, makes her unelectable.
She wants to be someone the people can trust, like Abraham Lincoln. But he would never be elected today.
We now live in a world dominated by Google and Facebook. And she no idea how to cope with them.
She is a complicated person, as this article shows, but most Americans are simple-minded. They will not read this article or much of anything else.
America has complicated problems and she tries to address them all. This, more than anything else, makes her unelectable.
She wants to be someone the people can trust, like Abraham Lincoln. But he would never be elected today.
We now live in a world dominated by Google and Facebook. And she no idea how to cope with them.
Thursday, June 20, 2019
My Thoughts on Libra
Libra is the new Facebook cryptocurrency, that will come out next year.
It has generated tons of comments from nearly everyone - now including me, someone who has practically no money at all. And never will have.
My comment is in the form of a question "Why is Facebook doing this?"
The answer is somewhat surprising "Because it wants to show everyone it can do something no one else has been able to do: make perfect money - or nearly perfect money." This will enhance Facebook's prestige enormously.
It won't just be a social media site anymore, it will be a money site in a brand-new way!
It has generated tons of comments from nearly everyone - now including me, someone who has practically no money at all. And never will have.
My comment is in the form of a question "Why is Facebook doing this?"
The answer is somewhat surprising "Because it wants to show everyone it can do something no one else has been able to do: make perfect money - or nearly perfect money." This will enhance Facebook's prestige enormously.
It won't just be a social media site anymore, it will be a money site in a brand-new way!
Software is Running the World, but I do not want it to Run Me
The first part of this statement is important. Software is running the World. And we need to acknowledge that. This is the world we live in.
What comes after that, once we realize where are, is much more difficult, and may not be possible. How can we coexist with the smart machines we have built?
The first step is to acknowledge that they are smart, this is called Artificial Intelligence. And once we have done that, we can examine how they are intelligent. This is not impossible, we made them smart, and we can reverse-engineer this smartness.
But we are not doing this. We seem to prefer being stupid, relatively speaking. And enjoy being entertained by them.
Being smart has been transformed by a strange social process into being entertained.
What comes after that, once we realize where are, is much more difficult, and may not be possible. How can we coexist with the smart machines we have built?
The first step is to acknowledge that they are smart, this is called Artificial Intelligence. And once we have done that, we can examine how they are intelligent. This is not impossible, we made them smart, and we can reverse-engineer this smartness.
But we are not doing this. We seem to prefer being stupid, relatively speaking. And enjoy being entertained by them.
Being smart has been transformed by a strange social process into being entertained.
An App that would track all My Financial Commitments
These things ate killing me.
Many of them are charities for whom I have agreed to pay $5 a month. This is practically nothing, but having a lot of them does add up.
Some of them are subscriptions to a variety of services, some of them newspapers or newsletters.
My motivation here is simple, I want to make a better world. But most people do not have this motivation. They will say they do, but will not back up their words with hard cash.
In fact, I will make that a blunter accusation: they do not exist and see no reason to support anything else's existence/ If the world goes to hell, that is not their problem.
This is even an economic philosophy,.called neo-liberalization or supply-side economics. This is downright nasty and usually self-righteous. It is also part of Evangelicalism.
Many of them are charities for whom I have agreed to pay $5 a month. This is practically nothing, but having a lot of them does add up.
Some of them are subscriptions to a variety of services, some of them newspapers or newsletters.
My motivation here is simple, I want to make a better world. But most people do not have this motivation. They will say they do, but will not back up their words with hard cash.
In fact, I will make that a blunter accusation: they do not exist and see no reason to support anything else's existence/ If the world goes to hell, that is not their problem.
This is even an economic philosophy,.called neo-liberalization or supply-side economics. This is downright nasty and usually self-righteous. It is also part of Evangelicalism.
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Having a Third-Class Mind when a First-Class Mind is Essential
This was certainly a problem today when I had some tricky financial problems to solve during my weekly shopping trip, My mind does not work well with numbers.
Next month I will have to buy myself a smartphone, to help my feeble mind.
Next month I will have to buy myself a smartphone, to help my feeble mind.
No Learning Here
The Last Unknowns: Deep, Elegant, Profound Unanswered Questions About the Universe, the Mind, the Future of Civilization, and the Meaning of Life
All this for $ 10.99 !
Before you read it, read the Wikipedia entry for Edge Foundation, Inc.
It is only interested in questions, not answers. Which means it is useless.
Tuesday, June 18, 2019
Pollolandia
This is a chicken retail business down here. I just had a chicken hamburger, a Pepsi, and fries for 2.200 Colones (3.76 dollars).
Not bad!
Not bad!
Facebook Announces Libra Cryptocurrency
TechCrunch
Facebook has finally revealed the details of its cryptocurrency, Libra, which will let you buy things or send money to people with nearly zero fees. You’ll pseudonymously buy or cash out your Libra online or at local exchange points like grocery stores, and spend it using interoperable third-party wallet apps or Facebook’s own Calibra wallet that will be built into WhatsApp, Messenger and its own app. Today Facebook released its white paper explaining Libra and its testnet for working out the kinks of its blockchain system before a public launch in the first half of 2020.
There are plenty of cryptocurrencies already. But this one seems to be the best thought out.
Facebook has finally revealed the details of its cryptocurrency, Libra, which will let you buy things or send money to people with nearly zero fees. You’ll pseudonymously buy or cash out your Libra online or at local exchange points like grocery stores, and spend it using interoperable third-party wallet apps or Facebook’s own Calibra wallet that will be built into WhatsApp, Messenger and its own app. Today Facebook released its white paper explaining Libra and its testnet for working out the kinks of its blockchain system before a public launch in the first half of 2020.
There are plenty of cryptocurrencies already. But this one seems to be the best thought out.
Solmaz Shahalizadeh
Matt Turk
The person leading this crucial effort has been Solmaz Shahalizadeh, VP of Data Science and Engineering. Growing up in Iran and inspired by her father (university professor) and mother (statistician), Solmaz started her career in the world of bioinformatics, helping inform cancer research using deep learning (before deep learning became cool again!). A few roles later, Solmaz found her way into Shopify through a hackathon—in fact, she never even submitted a resume. Since then, she’s worked her way up through the company (starting as the first financial data analyst) and has grown the data science team from 20 to 200 people.
The person leading this crucial effort has been Solmaz Shahalizadeh, VP of Data Science and Engineering. Growing up in Iran and inspired by her father (university professor) and mother (statistician), Solmaz started her career in the world of bioinformatics, helping inform cancer research using deep learning (before deep learning became cool again!). A few roles later, Solmaz found her way into Shopify through a hackathon—in fact, she never even submitted a resume. Since then, she’s worked her way up through the company (starting as the first financial data analyst) and has grown the data science team from 20 to 200 people.
No one explains how she got from Iran to the US. She was probably bought here by a Computer company desperate for programming talent. And she grew with the company.
Empty Promises made by Empty People
The Empty Promise of Boris Johnson
I continue my efforts to describe today's world. And this article has been a big help. It says we are busy making fun of ourselves.
This is certainly what I have been doing, and I can easily see others doing it.
If I mind my mind, I can see a mass of contradictions. And if I do the same for any of the wonderful things that are going on, I see the same thing.
This is not a social defect, but exactly what we want, so we can laugh at ourselves.
We are fortunate to have this luxury. As Americans (or Brits) we have every good thing, including amazing stupidity.
Monday, June 17, 2019
Firebase
I have been asking myself recently "How can I help other people use their computer better?"
This is a stupid question. because most people do not want to use their computer better.
But if they did, the answer is easy: use the clever apps Google and Microsoft have developed for them. Especially Google.
The Firebase application development platform is a case in point. It will hold your hand as you learn to use it!
You can also use the Chrome browser. From which you can access everything else. Such as Angular, another application development platform from Google.
"But I am not a software developer!" You may say/ This makes no difference to the software, or to Google. They do not care if you have been to college. Software is so simple, they think, anyone can learn it.
And they are right.
This is a stupid question. because most people do not want to use their computer better.
But if they did, the answer is easy: use the clever apps Google and Microsoft have developed for them. Especially Google.
The Firebase application development platform is a case in point. It will hold your hand as you learn to use it!
You can also use the Chrome browser. From which you can access everything else. Such as Angular, another application development platform from Google.
"But I am not a software developer!" You may say/ This makes no difference to the software, or to Google. They do not care if you have been to college. Software is so simple, they think, anyone can learn it.
And they are right.
To be Human or Superhuman or Nothing at All?
The favorite state for most people now is to be nothing at all. Which, to there minds, is the same as being everything! I cannot explain this, only report on it.
This leaves me asking myself "How do I relate to these people?"
The answer seems to be "I tell them where I am. and they will relate to that if they want to." This works, but I cannot predict when it will work.
We seem to live in two worlds, that they can cross over if they want to.
They remain in control.
This leaves me asking myself "How do I relate to these people?"
The answer seems to be "I tell them where I am. and they will relate to that if they want to." This works, but I cannot predict when it will work.
We seem to live in two worlds, that they can cross over if they want to.
They remain in control.
I am an Internet User
I didn't plan on being this, but somewhat to my surprise, I am.
But I access the Internet from my Laptop, and I do some programming with it. So that makes me different from the average crowd, who use their Phone as their primary access device and do no programming at all.
But I access the Internet from my Laptop, and I do some programming with it. So that makes me different from the average crowd, who use their Phone as their primary access device and do no programming at all.
Sunday, June 16, 2019
Too Much
This what most people are saying about almost everything. It's too much for them to get a handle on.
They are saying, there is great stuff out there to help me do anything, but learning how to use it is too much.
This is what most people are saying, but a few people do not feel overwhelmed at all, because they invented the stuff everyone else is complaining about. They only want to make it better.
They do not say too much! they say make it better!
They are saying, there is great stuff out there to help me do anything, but learning how to use it is too much.
This is what most people are saying, but a few people do not feel overwhelmed at all, because they invented the stuff everyone else is complaining about. They only want to make it better.
They do not say too much! they say make it better!
My Father's Rejection of His Father
In a way, this rejection was justified. My grandfather was an itinerant farmer.failing on a farm after farm. They were always poor.
We have few records, but according to a letter we have written by his wife in her old age, he was more interested in trading land than farming it.
When they heard the Santa Fe Railroad had jobs in Ft. Madison, Iowa, they moved there, and Grandfather had a job, for the first time in his life.
He was a Safety Inspector. When a train came into the yard, it had to be inspected before it could move on.
He had a long-handled hammer and would go down each side of the train, tapping each wheel to see if it was cracked. He also checked for hot boxes, The journal bearings of the time could seize up, get hot and catch on fire. His job was to detect they were getting hot before they caught on fire.
He also had to check if the hoses connecting the trains together, that contained compressed air were connected. These formed a safety brake system If air pressure was lost the brakes on the entire train would be energized, bringing the entire train to a halt
Working on the Railroad was dangerous. the Railroad had its own hospital and kept it busy.
Grandfather was well-suited for the job because he did not drink (because of his RLDS religion) and was dependable.
All this ended with the Railroad strike of 1922, The Railroads were not paying much, but they decided to pay even less. The Unions representing the Workers went on strike.
This was a hard time, with Union members sitting on one side of the Church, and scabs on the other side. In some places, trains carrying scabs were stopped and machine-gunned. I was born in the middle of this, in 1936. I was a Depression baby.
My father was in high school, living with his sister, and her husband, at the time, He stayed with them to finish school. The rest of the family moved to a farm in Illinois. While they were there, Grandfather suffered a stroke that paralyzed the left side of his body.
They returned to Ft. Madison, and Grandmother went to work for the Railroad, working as a cook. This was very hard work, and she eventually she also had heart trouble and retired to a Rest Home provided by her church.
Grandfather still had his team of horses and he could do odd jobs with them. such as hauling garbage to the dump. Ar one point he brought his horses over to our house to plow our victory garden. No one thanked him for his work.
He was Working Class (or blue collar) and my parents considered themselves Middle Class (or Professional people). Everyone was class-conscious.
This ended with WWII, with the Railroads (and every other business) making a lot of money. My father had a Photography Studio. and also made lots of money.
Grandfather died, and my father finally realized how much he owed him.
We have few records, but according to a letter we have written by his wife in her old age, he was more interested in trading land than farming it.
When they heard the Santa Fe Railroad had jobs in Ft. Madison, Iowa, they moved there, and Grandfather had a job, for the first time in his life.
He was a Safety Inspector. When a train came into the yard, it had to be inspected before it could move on.
He had a long-handled hammer and would go down each side of the train, tapping each wheel to see if it was cracked. He also checked for hot boxes, The journal bearings of the time could seize up, get hot and catch on fire. His job was to detect they were getting hot before they caught on fire.
He also had to check if the hoses connecting the trains together, that contained compressed air were connected. These formed a safety brake system If air pressure was lost the brakes on the entire train would be energized, bringing the entire train to a halt
Working on the Railroad was dangerous. the Railroad had its own hospital and kept it busy.
Grandfather was well-suited for the job because he did not drink (because of his RLDS religion) and was dependable.
All this ended with the Railroad strike of 1922, The Railroads were not paying much, but they decided to pay even less. The Unions representing the Workers went on strike.
This was a hard time, with Union members sitting on one side of the Church, and scabs on the other side. In some places, trains carrying scabs were stopped and machine-gunned. I was born in the middle of this, in 1936. I was a Depression baby.
My father was in high school, living with his sister, and her husband, at the time, He stayed with them to finish school. The rest of the family moved to a farm in Illinois. While they were there, Grandfather suffered a stroke that paralyzed the left side of his body.
They returned to Ft. Madison, and Grandmother went to work for the Railroad, working as a cook. This was very hard work, and she eventually she also had heart trouble and retired to a Rest Home provided by her church.
Grandfather still had his team of horses and he could do odd jobs with them. such as hauling garbage to the dump. Ar one point he brought his horses over to our house to plow our victory garden. No one thanked him for his work.
He was Working Class (or blue collar) and my parents considered themselves Middle Class (or Professional people). Everyone was class-conscious.
This ended with WWII, with the Railroads (and every other business) making a lot of money. My father had a Photography Studio. and also made lots of money.
Grandfather died, and my father finally realized how much he owed him.
Saturday, June 15, 2019
The Design of Oil Tankers
I know nothing about this subject, but some things are obvious.
They are transporting oil, a cargo that burns easily. They should be designed to minimize this hazard.
There must be well-known methods for doing this, such as compartmentalizing the cargo compartments so the fire will not spread. And water sprays that can be directed at any place on the ship.
The design of the ship must be publically known and readily available. And plans developed for any emergency. Just as in Aircraft design.
In the present emergency, the ship should radio the facts about the emergency to its headquarters, who would send back instructions on how to proceed.
Once it is no longer burning it must proceed, under its own power, to the nearest place to be repaired.
This Industry is not very smart. It has many emergencies, but all it does is insure against them.
They are transporting oil, a cargo that burns easily. They should be designed to minimize this hazard.
There must be well-known methods for doing this, such as compartmentalizing the cargo compartments so the fire will not spread. And water sprays that can be directed at any place on the ship.
The design of the ship must be publically known and readily available. And plans developed for any emergency. Just as in Aircraft design.
In the present emergency, the ship should radio the facts about the emergency to its headquarters, who would send back instructions on how to proceed.
Once it is no longer burning it must proceed, under its own power, to the nearest place to be repaired.
This Industry is not very smart. It has many emergencies, but all it does is insure against them.
Reading the National Geographic is a Job
And also an Education.
The one I am reading now is largely devoted to Leonardo da Vinci (a bigger than life subject). But it also has stories about Mozambique and Alaskan Smoke Jumpers.
This article would be of interest to a nephew of mine, who used to be a smoke jumper himself.
The one I am reading now is largely devoted to Leonardo da Vinci (a bigger than life subject). But it also has stories about Mozambique and Alaskan Smoke Jumpers.
This article would be of interest to a nephew of mine, who used to be a smoke jumper himself.
The Self-Destruction of American Power
Foreign Affairs
The greatest error the United States committed during its unipolar moment, was to simply stop paying attention.
The greatest error the United States committed during its unipolar moment, was to simply stop paying attention.
This is certainly a fair statement. But it needs to be expanded: Americans became unable to pay attention to anything. And the same could be said of many countries.
What the hell was going on?
Whatever it was, it was nearly universal. And I think it was because we were hit by powerful new technologies that we could not cope with.
They all go back to the impact of Electricity and Photography in the middle of the 19th Century.
They gave us fantastic new abilities, but also new responsibilities. Most people settled for the new entertainment they offered (the Movies) without thinking of anything else. We also had the Automobile, that rapidly transformed our cities.
We were overwhelmed by all these high-tech changes. And developed two classes of people: those who benefited from these changes, and those that did not. There was considerable overlap between the two.
Another effect was the loss of small businesses, especially the family farm. That was not noticed, even as it changed everything.
Friday, June 14, 2019
Making the World Better
This can be done in two ways: making our technology better, or making ourselves better.
The last option is not likely, so we are left with first. Unfortunately, improving Industrial technologies (Capitalism) did not do much to improve us. It probably made us worse - as has been often noted.
But we are going through a massive shift to new technology: the Computer, which can be made more humane.
This shift, however, was a mixed blessing. Ir began with Television, that did not make us any better.
The move to the Computer, an entirely different technology, was hardly noticed but had a huge effect on us.
One problem people have always had is a lack of awareness of the effect their technologies have had on them. And the Computer is no exception.
The Computer (or more accurately its Software) has been getting better, but also harder to understand.
I am learning Angular, fantastic new software from Google, that has a steep learning curve. It does a lot, but to use it properly the software developer has to learn a lot.
The world is being divided into those that can learn (and teach others) and those that cannot.
The last option is not likely, so we are left with first. Unfortunately, improving Industrial technologies (Capitalism) did not do much to improve us. It probably made us worse - as has been often noted.
But we are going through a massive shift to new technology: the Computer, which can be made more humane.
This shift, however, was a mixed blessing. Ir began with Television, that did not make us any better.
The move to the Computer, an entirely different technology, was hardly noticed but had a huge effect on us.
One problem people have always had is a lack of awareness of the effect their technologies have had on them. And the Computer is no exception.
The Computer (or more accurately its Software) has been getting better, but also harder to understand.
I am learning Angular, fantastic new software from Google, that has a steep learning curve. It does a lot, but to use it properly the software developer has to learn a lot.
The world is being divided into those that can learn (and teach others) and those that cannot.
Do Your Employees Have The Heart To Lay Down For Your Customers?
Forbes
I would like to share something incredibly special with you all. A day we will never forget. Today we took our little boy Ralph to Universal Orlando Resort for the first time. Ralph is awesomely autistic, and we are proud to be a neurodiverse family. As wonderful, loving, intelligent and incredible as Ralph is, sometimes he struggles. (Don't we all?) When he struggles the hardest, he can have something known as an "autistic meltdown." Some people who are not educated about autism might see it as a temper tantrum. But the fact of the matter is that it is not the act of a spoiled and naughty child. It's a cry for help. This is Ralph's way of saying "I don't know how to monitor and regulate my emotions right now. I need help, please! I'm scared! I'm overwhelmed! I want to feel better and I don't know how!"
I would like to share something incredibly special with you all. A day we will never forget. Today we took our little boy Ralph to Universal Orlando Resort for the first time. Ralph is awesomely autistic, and we are proud to be a neurodiverse family. As wonderful, loving, intelligent and incredible as Ralph is, sometimes he struggles. (Don't we all?) When he struggles the hardest, he can have something known as an "autistic meltdown." Some people who are not educated about autism might see it as a temper tantrum. But the fact of the matter is that it is not the act of a spoiled and naughty child. It's a cry for help. This is Ralph's way of saying "I don't know how to monitor and regulate my emotions right now. I need help, please! I'm scared! I'm overwhelmed! I want to feel better and I don't know how!"
This article is an example of how the Computer Industry can help People. I must emphasize the word "can" here. Heaven knows it does not always do this.
Thursday, June 13, 2019
How Open Source Reinvented Investigative Journalism
NY Review
It’s a brief window into a doomed soul. Clinging to his mother’s back, the child looks twice into the camera held by the man about to kill him. The natural curiosity of a child that fear has failed to extinguish. The smartphone captures the casual cruelty with which both mother and child are killed. Nearby, another mother and daughter are executed.
For all the current nostalgia about the Times’s reporting on the Pentagon Papers or The Washington Post’s pursuit of Watergate, it is probably true to say that journalism never had a golden age. Instead, the business of news-gathering finds itself in the middle of an institutional and epistemic crisis—one that can only be solved by an unflinching commitment to truth and accuracy. Open-source journalism is here not to replace traditional journalism but to reinforce it. It does so by never taking its readers’ trust for granted; it earns that trust only by delivering rigor and transparency. In contrast to the competitive ethos of traditional journalism, the OSINT approach is cooperative, a form of socially distributed cognition that draws expertise from any relevant discipline for the best possible results. Journalism badly needs this infusion of vitality and credibility
It’s a brief window into a doomed soul. Clinging to his mother’s back, the child looks twice into the camera held by the man about to kill him. The natural curiosity of a child that fear has failed to extinguish. The smartphone captures the casual cruelty with which both mother and child are killed. Nearby, another mother and daughter are executed.
For all the current nostalgia about the Times’s reporting on the Pentagon Papers or The Washington Post’s pursuit of Watergate, it is probably true to say that journalism never had a golden age. Instead, the business of news-gathering finds itself in the middle of an institutional and epistemic crisis—one that can only be solved by an unflinching commitment to truth and accuracy. Open-source journalism is here not to replace traditional journalism but to reinforce it. It does so by never taking its readers’ trust for granted; it earns that trust only by delivering rigor and transparency. In contrast to the competitive ethos of traditional journalism, the OSINT approach is cooperative, a form of socially distributed cognition that draws expertise from any relevant discipline for the best possible results. Journalism badly needs this infusion of vitality and credibility
Getting better at Working with Computers
Has not made me any better at working with people.
Technical skills are easy but people skills are hard. Even living with yourself can be difficult.
I am reading an issue of the National Geographic devoted to Leonardo da Vinci, and I am faulting him for his poor people skills! He never married, and I know from brutal personal experience that this is hard.
This can be true of any specialty I am reading Life with Picasso, and this painter certainly had his problems with women.
Technical skills are easy but people skills are hard. Even living with yourself can be difficult.
I am reading an issue of the National Geographic devoted to Leonardo da Vinci, and I am faulting him for his poor people skills! He never married, and I know from brutal personal experience that this is hard.
This can be true of any specialty I am reading Life with Picasso, and this painter certainly had his problems with women.
Beer Brats for Breakfast
You gotta try this!
First, make some Pancakes. I recommend Aunt Jemima.
You will also need some Beer Brats, available under the Johnsonville label. That has some other fine sausages also. I cook mine in my microwave.
For sweetening, I recommend Log Cabin syrup, that doesn't have many calories.
You might also drink some beer, any brand will do.
Have a fine American breakfast!
First, make some Pancakes. I recommend Aunt Jemima.
You will also need some Beer Brats, available under the Johnsonville label. That has some other fine sausages also. I cook mine in my microwave.
For sweetening, I recommend Log Cabin syrup, that doesn't have many calories.
You might also drink some beer, any brand will do.
Have a fine American breakfast!
Data
This has now become an obsession. Everything depends on it. Why (and how) has this happened?
Part of the reason has been huge developments in Software. Software now runs the world, whether we want to admit it or not.
And it has discovered the importance of Data. We have morphed from an Information world to a Data world.
Big data is now needed to make Big money. Simple as that!
Part of the reason has been huge developments in Software. Software now runs the world, whether we want to admit it or not.
And it has discovered the importance of Data. We have morphed from an Information world to a Data world.
Big data is now needed to make Big money. Simple as that!
The Depressed World
This was a difficult world for people that had some life left in them. but the only world imaginable for most people, to whom it feels perfectly natural. It is a life make for, and by them. A democracy of idiots.
Back when I was working in Silicon Valley, in the Nineties, I knew something was wrong with me, and I had therapists to help me figure out what was wrong. One of them told me I was depressed, and I would have to take an antidepressant to fix this. He recommended Prozac.
He did not say that the problem was Silicon Valley itself. No one was saying this, but looking back at it, this was certainly true. In the next 20 years, nearly all of the Computer companies in the Valley went out of business. Everyone was noticing this, but could not imagine why it was happening.
The reason this was happening was simple: they did not know what they were doing. And all these companies (hundreds of them) were replaced by Apple, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft.
I left the country and moved to Costa Rica, where people still mattered.
I could have become part of the Revolution in Software Development, and stayed in the States, but I was not smart enough to see what was going on. At one point I had to wear white gloves to protect my hands from the sun.
Work problems had caused medical problems.
Back when I was working in Silicon Valley, in the Nineties, I knew something was wrong with me, and I had therapists to help me figure out what was wrong. One of them told me I was depressed, and I would have to take an antidepressant to fix this. He recommended Prozac.
He did not say that the problem was Silicon Valley itself. No one was saying this, but looking back at it, this was certainly true. In the next 20 years, nearly all of the Computer companies in the Valley went out of business. Everyone was noticing this, but could not imagine why it was happening.
The reason this was happening was simple: they did not know what they were doing. And all these companies (hundreds of them) were replaced by Apple, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft.
I left the country and moved to Costa Rica, where people still mattered.
I could have become part of the Revolution in Software Development, and stayed in the States, but I was not smart enough to see what was going on. At one point I had to wear white gloves to protect my hands from the sun.
Work problems had caused medical problems.
Wednesday, June 12, 2019
What I learned from Working at Adaptec
Adaptec was one of the many companies that did not survive the shakedown that reduced hundreds of Computer companies in the Nineties to just four: Apple, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft.
The reason for this was simple: it didn't know what it was trying to do. And it did not know that it did not know.
They had a guy come in, who claimed he had a foolproof way of helping companies reinvent themselves. They went to a huge amount of work trying to follow his instructions and never noticed when he quietly left the company without changing much.
They never thought to ask him, if he had actually done this before. His promises sounded so good. they just knew they could do it.
They did not define what they wanted to do before they started, or how they would know when they were finished.
In a word, they were stupid.
The reason for this was simple: it didn't know what it was trying to do. And it did not know that it did not know.
They had a guy come in, who claimed he had a foolproof way of helping companies reinvent themselves. They went to a huge amount of work trying to follow his instructions and never noticed when he quietly left the company without changing much.
They never thought to ask him, if he had actually done this before. His promises sounded so good. they just knew they could do it.
They did not define what they wanted to do before they started, or how they would know when they were finished.
In a word, they were stupid.
The Energy Revolution
A lot has changed in the last 500 years. And the most important changes have been in our use of energy. We now get most of our energy from fossil fuels, mostly from oil. And most of this is used by our cars.
This has changed who we are. We are not the people we were before the car.
I could see this easily in my own family. My father's father was a teamster, in the original sense of the word. He owned and operated a team of horses. One of the best in town.
My father looked down on him because he had a car, which was much more advanced. Which, to his mind, meant he was more advanced also.
This is a crucial point: our technologies define who we are. And how we relate to other people.
I followed the technical developments in America during the last half of the 20th Century. I had my own airplanes and flew them a lot. To my mind, this made me better than ordinary people, who were interested in other ordinary people (especially those of the opposite sex).
I didn't need a woman because I had my plane. People who are absorbed by their technology are asexual. My father was this way. When he had his photography studio he was completely absorbed by that. He also had a wife and children, but they were not nearly as important.
When we moved to Nauvoo, he tried to develop other businesses, but could not. This had a huge effect on him personally. It had a huge effect on other men at the time, who were used to being small businessmen, especially the family farmer, with his own plot of land.
The economy was changing from small businesses to large businesses, that demanded a different kind of person.
When I mention this to my siblings, all I get is blank stares. "What on earth am I talking about?"
I am talking about working in an office. A strange way of life that does not suit many people. Who feel they are being killed. They respond by killing the people who had been killing them.
This was the neoliberal (dog eat dog) economy. That Ann Rand espoused.
But that is another story.
This has changed who we are. We are not the people we were before the car.
I could see this easily in my own family. My father's father was a teamster, in the original sense of the word. He owned and operated a team of horses. One of the best in town.
My father looked down on him because he had a car, which was much more advanced. Which, to his mind, meant he was more advanced also.
This is a crucial point: our technologies define who we are. And how we relate to other people.
I followed the technical developments in America during the last half of the 20th Century. I had my own airplanes and flew them a lot. To my mind, this made me better than ordinary people, who were interested in other ordinary people (especially those of the opposite sex).
I didn't need a woman because I had my plane. People who are absorbed by their technology are asexual. My father was this way. When he had his photography studio he was completely absorbed by that. He also had a wife and children, but they were not nearly as important.
When we moved to Nauvoo, he tried to develop other businesses, but could not. This had a huge effect on him personally. It had a huge effect on other men at the time, who were used to being small businessmen, especially the family farmer, with his own plot of land.
The economy was changing from small businesses to large businesses, that demanded a different kind of person.
When I mention this to my siblings, all I get is blank stares. "What on earth am I talking about?"
I am talking about working in an office. A strange way of life that does not suit many people. Who feel they are being killed. They respond by killing the people who had been killing them.
This was the neoliberal (dog eat dog) economy. That Ann Rand espoused.
But that is another story.
Tuesday, June 11, 2019
The Intellectual Implosion
I just watched a presentation on TEDx about the Intelligence Explosion, something this very bright young man is very worried about.
After watching it, I thought to myself that he should be worrying about something else, that has already happened. I have referred to this as the not being of most people. An idea that no one else has taken to.
Then it occurred to me that he had given me the right label for my idea.
We have been hit by an Intellectual Implosion.
After watching it, I thought to myself that he should be worrying about something else, that has already happened. I have referred to this as the not being of most people. An idea that no one else has taken to.
Then it occurred to me that he had given me the right label for my idea.
We have been hit by an Intellectual Implosion.
Reading
Every adult American can read, but few spend much time doing it.
Reading is something they had to do to in school, but now they were out of school, no more reading for them!
Reading is something they associate with learning. And the same motivations apply no more learning for them!
Reading is something they had to do to in school, but now they were out of school, no more reading for them!
Reading is something they associate with learning. And the same motivations apply no more learning for them!
Spanish is Better at Expressing Emotions
I first noticed this when I married into a bilingual family.
They were Americans but had learned Spanish when they ran a medical clinic in Honduras. When I became part of their family, they were back in the States.
I listened to their conversations on the telephone. When they were talking business, they spoke English, but when they became emotional, they switched to Spanish.
Without noticing this in the least.
They were Americans but had learned Spanish when they ran a medical clinic in Honduras. When I became part of their family, they were back in the States.
I listened to their conversations on the telephone. When they were talking business, they spoke English, but when they became emotional, they switched to Spanish.
Without noticing this in the least.
Job Labels
What a mess this is! And with the advent of the Computer, it has gotten worse. Anyone can claim to be anything.
Computers and the Internet have made online courses possible. I am taking one now Learning Data Science. He spends a lot of time, to begin with quoting statistics showing how much money is being made here! And then tackles the tricky business of defining what it is.
"What is it?" You may ask. Well, it's a little of this, and a little of that, and a few other things as well. It all hinges around what Data is.
Clever computer scientists (and believe me, they are clever) have invented Artificial Intelligence (AI) that can turn almost anything into something else, that is worth more.
This course shows you how to do that (after about six hours of intense study). Everyone wants this valuable stuff and is willing to pay for it.
Computers and the Internet have made online courses possible. I am taking one now Learning Data Science. He spends a lot of time, to begin with quoting statistics showing how much money is being made here! And then tackles the tricky business of defining what it is.
"What is it?" You may ask. Well, it's a little of this, and a little of that, and a few other things as well. It all hinges around what Data is.
Clever computer scientists (and believe me, they are clever) have invented Artificial Intelligence (AI) that can turn almost anything into something else, that is worth more.
This course shows you how to do that (after about six hours of intense study). Everyone wants this valuable stuff and is willing to pay for it.
Monday, June 10, 2019
Merging the Technical with the Human
This one of our basic problems, we are humans (some kind of animal) and we are technical (some kind of machine).
The animal part of our nature cannot change very much. But the machine can change rapidly.
In the last four hundred years or so, our machine has changed from the Steam Engine to the Computer. And this has caused huge amounts of emotional distress.
I am struggling with this conflict myself as I am learning to program. This technology is advancing rapidly, and part of me wants to advance rapidly with it. And part of me wants to go at a slower pace, and enjoy my newer self.
I am a curious mix of animal and machine. Especially the kind of machine that understands itself.
This is now called Artificial Intelligence (AI) and we live in dread of it, and the fascination of it - always wanting to make it better!
The animal part of our nature cannot change very much. But the machine can change rapidly.
In the last four hundred years or so, our machine has changed from the Steam Engine to the Computer. And this has caused huge amounts of emotional distress.
I am struggling with this conflict myself as I am learning to program. This technology is advancing rapidly, and part of me wants to advance rapidly with it. And part of me wants to go at a slower pace, and enjoy my newer self.
I am a curious mix of animal and machine. Especially the kind of machine that understands itself.
This is now called Artificial Intelligence (AI) and we live in dread of it, and the fascination of it - always wanting to make it better!
Can You Reshape Your Brain's Response To Pain?
National Public Radio
EAET was developed in 2011 by psychologist Mark Lumley at Wayne State University and his colleague Dr. Howard Schubiner. It combines some techniques from traditional talk therapies (such as probing a patient's life experience for insight and context) with those of cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses more on skills training and changing harmful patterns of behavior.
It's an emotion-focused treatment, Lumley says, aimed at helping people who are in widespread, medically unexplained pain.
EAET was developed in 2011 by psychologist Mark Lumley at Wayne State University and his colleague Dr. Howard Schubiner. It combines some techniques from traditional talk therapies (such as probing a patient's life experience for insight and context) with those of cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses more on skills training and changing harmful patterns of behavior.
It's an emotion-focused treatment, Lumley says, aimed at helping people who are in widespread, medically unexplained pain.
The most Important Thing in the World
The most important thing in the world is other people!
Or perhaps we should say this is the way it should be.
In reality. other things are more important.
This online course is telling us Data Science is more important because this is where the money is!
Or perhaps we should say this is the way it should be.
In reality. other things are more important.
This online course is telling us Data Science is more important because this is where the money is!
The Problem with Being Human
We don't just have one problem, we have many. But the biggest problem of them all is that we do not recognize that we are prone to having them. And they have gotten worse, not better.
Human life has become a disaster. I have been part of that, and continue to be part of that.
My parents were born early in the 20th Century and died in the Seventies when things were really getting bad. My siblings are doing their best to idealize them, a desperate attempt that is succeeding, in their eyes.
They have even succeeded in idealizing themselves. and think they are nearly perfect. And this is their present mass insanity.
It is not complicated, only a determination to not be, the easiest thing in the world!
They are now everything or nothing, depending on your point of view.
Human life has become a disaster. I have been part of that, and continue to be part of that.
My parents were born early in the 20th Century and died in the Seventies when things were really getting bad. My siblings are doing their best to idealize them, a desperate attempt that is succeeding, in their eyes.
They have even succeeded in idealizing themselves. and think they are nearly perfect. And this is their present mass insanity.
It is not complicated, only a determination to not be, the easiest thing in the world!
They are now everything or nothing, depending on your point of view.
Sunday, June 9, 2019
Mean Girl
I have only known one follower of Ann Rand in my life, and she had serious mental problems. The whole town she lived in, Terre Haute, Indiana, had serious mental problems.
"How can you have hope?" She said to me when I said I knew nothing about Ann Rand.
When I looked up Terre Haute on Wikipedia recently, I read about a different town entirely. Any organization (or individual) can write anything it wants to about itself there, and you have to take that into account. If it says wonderful things about itself, be prepared for the worst.
But this is a review of a book review, and what this book says about Ann Rand is hardly flattering. She was a mean person from a mean time - the 20th Century in America.
America had plenty of mean people such as Aaron Burr who killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel and felt no remorse at all.
"How can you have hope?" She said to me when I said I knew nothing about Ann Rand.
When I looked up Terre Haute on Wikipedia recently, I read about a different town entirely. Any organization (or individual) can write anything it wants to about itself there, and you have to take that into account. If it says wonderful things about itself, be prepared for the worst.
But this is a review of a book review, and what this book says about Ann Rand is hardly flattering. She was a mean person from a mean time - the 20th Century in America.
America had plenty of mean people such as Aaron Burr who killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel and felt no remorse at all.
The Rebirth Of Microsoft - How Satya Nadella Saved It (Or Did He?)
YouTube
Microsoft went from being a Bad Guy to being a Good Guy. How did this happen?
An interesting story.
Microsoft went from being a Bad Guy to being a Good Guy. How did this happen?
An interesting story.
Thorium can give humanity clean, pollution free energy
TEDx/YouTube
This guy has a mission: to be a good father for his family, and to develop a Thorium reactor.
You can help by watching this talk.
This guy has a mission: to be a good father for his family, and to develop a Thorium reactor.
You can help by watching this talk.
The Computer Economy
This is the part of the Global economy that is working, and getting stronger all the time. The rest is getting weaker all the time.
The reasons for this are complex but easiest seen by spending some time learning how to program. Something most people will never do.
I must expand on that subject. And explain that most people (80 percent or more of the population) are incapable of understanding much of anything. But in a democracy, they rule.
The reasons for this are complex but easiest seen by spending some time learning how to program. Something most people will never do.
I must expand on that subject. And explain that most people (80 percent or more of the population) are incapable of understanding much of anything. But in a democracy, they rule.
Saturday, June 8, 2019
How AI can save our humanity
YouTube
This guy was saved by the Computer, but only after it nearly killed him.
He is Chinese, and you can see how this made a difference. They are working themselves to death.
Abraham Lincoln and Joseph Smith
These were contemporaries but knew nothing of each other!
Although Nauvoo, Illinois and Springfield, Illinois were not far apart.
Lincoln knew nothing about the Governor of the State taking the Mormon leaders prisoners but failed to protect them. which resulted in their deaths.
An event that was fully covered in the newspapers of the time.
Abraham Lincoln was a politician and could see no advantage in supporting the Mormons.
They were a lost cause, something they realized themselves, and they went on a long journey to get out of the States.
Although Nauvoo, Illinois and Springfield, Illinois were not far apart.
Lincoln knew nothing about the Governor of the State taking the Mormon leaders prisoners but failed to protect them. which resulted in their deaths.
An event that was fully covered in the newspapers of the time.
Abraham Lincoln was a politician and could see no advantage in supporting the Mormons.
They were a lost cause, something they realized themselves, and they went on a long journey to get out of the States.
Learn Data Science - Full Course for Beginners
YouTube
This is another fine course from freecodecamp. That wants to make you smarter and richer.
If you don't want to be smarter, I betcha still want to be richer!
Give it a few minutes of your precious time, to see if it interests you.
This is another fine course from freecodecamp. That wants to make you smarter and richer.
If you don't want to be smarter, I betcha still want to be richer!
Give it a few minutes of your precious time, to see if it interests you.
Coursera Help is Not Much Help
Coursera has added a new Help facility you can access at learner.coursera.help.
This morning I decided to use it to cancel some subscriptions I no longer wanted to pay for. But I could not!
On the cancel subsriptions page https://learner.coursera.help/hc/en-us/articles/216348123-Cancel-a-subscription, I could not perform the first step: Open your "My Purchases" page. This page is not there!
There should be a handy link there, asking "Can you do this?/" but there is not this either. This would have told Coursera that they have a problem.
They now have a problem they are not aware of.
This morning I decided to use it to cancel some subscriptions I no longer wanted to pay for. But I could not!
On the cancel subsriptions page https://learner.coursera.help/hc/en-us/articles/216348123-Cancel-a-subscription, I could not perform the first step: Open your "My Purchases" page. This page is not there!
There should be a handy link there, asking "Can you do this?/" but there is not this either. This would have told Coursera that they have a problem.
They now have a problem they are not aware of.
Being Turned Off
This is a common condition in today's world when turning off can save you a lot of pain.
What kind of pain am I talking about? The pain of living in a world that does not work for you. Where you are not important.
The easiest way to cope with this to not be aware of it. You will not be aware of many other things also, but you will not be in pain, and this will be a big relief.
How does the Computer fit into this? In two ways. depending on the individual. It may make you feel inferior to it (not a good feeling) or it may empower you (a good feeling).
Which way it works depends on the culture you are in.
Once the dominant mode is pain relief (the state most people are now in) it is very difficult to change that.
What kind of pain am I talking about? The pain of living in a world that does not work for you. Where you are not important.
The easiest way to cope with this to not be aware of it. You will not be aware of many other things also, but you will not be in pain, and this will be a big relief.
How does the Computer fit into this? In two ways. depending on the individual. It may make you feel inferior to it (not a good feeling) or it may empower you (a good feeling).
Which way it works depends on the culture you are in.
Once the dominant mode is pain relief (the state most people are now in) it is very difficult to change that.
Friday, June 7, 2019
From Mona Lisa to Madonna
NY Times Magazine
First thing this morning I read about Leonardo da Vinci in the National Geographic. This magazine is an education in itself, where you get educated in a hurry.
The article in the Times took me much longer. It was impressed because Madonna was sixty. Hell, I'm 82 myself!
If you get to choose, look at the Graphic article first.
First thing this morning I read about Leonardo da Vinci in the National Geographic. This magazine is an education in itself, where you get educated in a hurry.
The article in the Times took me much longer. It was impressed because Madonna was sixty. Hell, I'm 82 myself!
If you get to choose, look at the Graphic article first.
Thursday, June 6, 2019
Smart Computers, Stupid People
Does the first cause the second?
I think so, but this causation takes some explaining.
People now find themselves in an Economy controlled by Computers, the Internet and Cellular networks, and Social Apps. Strange forces they do not understand and don't want to understand.
This last part is important: they don't want to understand the world they are in. The first time they have ever been this way, and they have been around for a long time.
They are now stupid. and determined to stay that way.
However, I must clarify that by saying I am referring to most people. Other people are smarter than ever before, and they are active as never before.
We live in interesting times.
I think so, but this causation takes some explaining.
People now find themselves in an Economy controlled by Computers, the Internet and Cellular networks, and Social Apps. Strange forces they do not understand and don't want to understand.
This last part is important: they don't want to understand the world they are in. The first time they have ever been this way, and they have been around for a long time.
They are now stupid. and determined to stay that way.
However, I must clarify that by saying I am referring to most people. Other people are smarter than ever before, and they are active as never before.
We live in interesting times.
Wednesday, June 5, 2019
A Man who Ran an Ice Cream Business in Costa Rica
He was from Peru originally. His father owned a large ranch there and had money.
His father sent him to the U of California to learn more about Agriculture. He learned how to make Ice Ceram instead. He met a woman, also from Peru, and after they graduated they got jobs in the US, liked living in the US, and became American citizens.
But his father told them to come back and establish an Ice Cream business there. Bur Peru had a communist terrorist organization called the Shining Path, and they grabbed any stores they opened.
The father became an honest politician and opposed the Shining Path. The man and wife moved to Costa Rica and opened an Ice Cream business here. But another large Ice Cream business was already here, had plenty of money, and opened many stores.
They could only afford one retail store and a wholesale Ice Cream business. The wholesale business sold to large hotels in the area. He took me with him one day to see how this was done. He knew when each hotel paid its creditors, and he was there to get his check. He took his check to an office of the bank (that had convenient parking) and cashed it. After he had cashed all his checks, he went to his bank and deposited his money there.
In the States, this would all be handled through the mail. But the Post Office in Costa Rica, like most undeveloped countries, does not work that well!
I knew this family because they had advertised in the Tico Times that they a room for rent (for 400 dollars a month, meals included). The wife was visiting her sister in the States, who was taking care of their mother. But the sister no longer wanted to care for the mother, and the room I wanted to rent was no longer available.
His father sent him to the U of California to learn more about Agriculture. He learned how to make Ice Ceram instead. He met a woman, also from Peru, and after they graduated they got jobs in the US, liked living in the US, and became American citizens.
But his father told them to come back and establish an Ice Cream business there. Bur Peru had a communist terrorist organization called the Shining Path, and they grabbed any stores they opened.
The father became an honest politician and opposed the Shining Path. The man and wife moved to Costa Rica and opened an Ice Cream business here. But another large Ice Cream business was already here, had plenty of money, and opened many stores.
They could only afford one retail store and a wholesale Ice Cream business. The wholesale business sold to large hotels in the area. He took me with him one day to see how this was done. He knew when each hotel paid its creditors, and he was there to get his check. He took his check to an office of the bank (that had convenient parking) and cashed it. After he had cashed all his checks, he went to his bank and deposited his money there.
In the States, this would all be handled through the mail. But the Post Office in Costa Rica, like most undeveloped countries, does not work that well!
I knew this family because they had advertised in the Tico Times that they a room for rent (for 400 dollars a month, meals included). The wife was visiting her sister in the States, who was taking care of their mother. But the sister no longer wanted to care for the mother, and the room I wanted to rent was no longer available.
Business BS that won't make you Puke
I got this from the O'Reilly Data Newsletter. I have been force-fed so much about Data, I want to puke every time some mentions it. This guy knows this and approaches this subject carefully.
He writes about Business Models (very well) but to get his insights you have to read what he has written. For most of you, you would rather puke than read anything you don't know about already.
Enough about puke! Let's move on to the next-worst thing: hard study. I cannot help you with this you will have to do it for yourself.
He writes about Business Models (very well) but to get his insights you have to read what he has written. For most of you, you would rather puke than read anything you don't know about already.
Enough about puke! Let's move on to the next-worst thing: hard study. I cannot help you with this you will have to do it for yourself.
Coping with the Computer
We live in a difficult world, but we don't want to admit this.
This is the problem of our time; why are we determined to not face it?
"Because that is the only smart way to be." you will reply. Anyone who understands what is going on (and does hide this) is going to have a hard time.
You have to be stupid, and if you are not, you have to pretend to be.
This situation has been with us for a long time, ever since we became civilized, thousands of years ago.
It was well-known to the Romans, and the response to their injustices was one of the foundations of Christianity.
What has the Computer to do with this?
I'm glad you asked because I have a long answer for you. That begins with the creation of the Modern World, continued with Industrialization, then with the invention of the Computer.
Clever creatures that we are, we have outsmarted ourselves, with this last invention. But explaining this will be difficult.
It began with a British inventor and his mechanical computing machine. He could never make it work, but one of his assistants, Ada Lovelace, invented Software, that did make it work,
Our explanation of the Computer starts right here with the invention of Software, by a female member of the British aristocracy.
What is software? It is a series of instructions to a computer: do this, do this, and so on. These instructions can be repeated, and they can include variables.
They have to be written in a language the computer understands. A binary language consisting of only ones and zeros.
Pay careful attention here, I am saying the Computer is like nothing else in the world. And this is why it is so difficult to really understand.
In the middle of the 20th Century, Software took off. And the Computer now controls us.
There have been many books written about this, explaining it (and its social consequences) in great detail. I can only muddy the waters, by saying more myself.
This is the problem of our time; why are we determined to not face it?
"Because that is the only smart way to be." you will reply. Anyone who understands what is going on (and does hide this) is going to have a hard time.
You have to be stupid, and if you are not, you have to pretend to be.
This situation has been with us for a long time, ever since we became civilized, thousands of years ago.
It was well-known to the Romans, and the response to their injustices was one of the foundations of Christianity.
What has the Computer to do with this?
I'm glad you asked because I have a long answer for you. That begins with the creation of the Modern World, continued with Industrialization, then with the invention of the Computer.
Clever creatures that we are, we have outsmarted ourselves, with this last invention. But explaining this will be difficult.
It began with a British inventor and his mechanical computing machine. He could never make it work, but one of his assistants, Ada Lovelace, invented Software, that did make it work,
Our explanation of the Computer starts right here with the invention of Software, by a female member of the British aristocracy.
What is software? It is a series of instructions to a computer: do this, do this, and so on. These instructions can be repeated, and they can include variables.
They have to be written in a language the computer understands. A binary language consisting of only ones and zeros.
Pay careful attention here, I am saying the Computer is like nothing else in the world. And this is why it is so difficult to really understand.
In the middle of the 20th Century, Software took off. And the Computer now controls us.
There have been many books written about this, explaining it (and its social consequences) in great detail. I can only muddy the waters, by saying more myself.
Tuesday, June 4, 2019
The OOP craze in the Nineties
The Nineties were a crazy period in Silicon Valley.
In fact, the whole period 1980-2010 was crazy. Hundreds of computer companies were reduced to four: Apple, Amazon. Google, and Microsoft.
A single programming paradigm, OOP. was expanded into hundreds.
I missed the boat here, If I had learned the Java Programming language, I would still be back there and raking in the bucks. Instead of living off my Social Security income in Costa Rica. Java kept improving itself until you could do practically anything with it.
And the Common Person was reduced to Idiocy.
What else could he (or she) become, in such an incredibly complex situation?
This question has to be taken seriously. It seems like, as people become more technically advanced, they become more socially retarded.
We need to look at this more closely: what is going on here? Does this have to happen?
This has happened before when Germany, Italy, and Japan all succumbed to Fascism. These were all advanced countries, in a number of ways. including literature.
But something new has been added to today's mix: the Computer. How will people react this time?
We are in the middle of a huge experiment, called Globalization. And the results, so far, are not promising.
We have become something different, but not necessarily better,
In fact, the whole period 1980-2010 was crazy. Hundreds of computer companies were reduced to four: Apple, Amazon. Google, and Microsoft.
A single programming paradigm, OOP. was expanded into hundreds.
I missed the boat here, If I had learned the Java Programming language, I would still be back there and raking in the bucks. Instead of living off my Social Security income in Costa Rica. Java kept improving itself until you could do practically anything with it.
And the Common Person was reduced to Idiocy.
What else could he (or she) become, in such an incredibly complex situation?
This question has to be taken seriously. It seems like, as people become more technically advanced, they become more socially retarded.
We need to look at this more closely: what is going on here? Does this have to happen?
This has happened before when Germany, Italy, and Japan all succumbed to Fascism. These were all advanced countries, in a number of ways. including literature.
But something new has been added to today's mix: the Computer. How will people react this time?
We are in the middle of a huge experiment, called Globalization. And the results, so far, are not promising.
We have become something different, but not necessarily better,
Monday, June 3, 2019
Psychology, meet politics
Open Democracy
I agree with everything this article says, and probably everyone does, in theory.
They will say "Yes, but ..." And then fill in the blanks.
I disagree on one point, however. The talk of the extinction of the human race.
As the oceans rise, we will retreat to higher ground, food will become scarce, and there will no longer be as many of us.
But we will not disappear.
I agree with everything this article says, and probably everyone does, in theory.
They will say "Yes, but ..." And then fill in the blanks.
I disagree on one point, however. The talk of the extinction of the human race.
As the oceans rise, we will retreat to higher ground, food will become scarce, and there will no longer be as many of us.
But we will not disappear.
Espresso
Coffee is a drug, and Espresso is a condensed version (one could even say a perversion) of that drug.
An Espresso machine uses steam, instead of hot water, to make its coffee. And you drink it in a smaller cup. A good coffee shop has special pastries it serves with its coffees.
You can get a respectable high without getting drunk.
An Espresso machine uses steam, instead of hot water, to make its coffee. And you drink it in a smaller cup. A good coffee shop has special pastries it serves with its coffees.
You can get a respectable high without getting drunk.
Sunday, June 2, 2019
Childhood Sexual Perversion
I was a victim of this at an early age, maybe four or so. My mother confused me with her father, who she was still in love with, even though he had died before I was born.
Whenever I tell this to a therapist (and I have had quite a few of them), they are not too surprised. It seems reasonable to them. People get things mixed up all the time, and this one doesn't seem too far-out to them.
But it sure does to me.
Whenever I tell this to a therapist (and I have had quite a few of them), they are not too surprised. It seems reasonable to them. People get things mixed up all the time, and this one doesn't seem too far-out to them.
But it sure does to me.
Massive Incompetence in the Computer Industry
I was employed in the Computer industry from 1980 to 2000, where I observed organizational incompetence on a massive scale. I could write a book about this period in my life, but I might end up in jail if I did.
The Internet and Cellular networks were invented in the Nineties and created a high tech boom, but this was followed by a bust before practical uses for them were found.
In the next 10 years, hundreds of Computer companies would be reduced to just four: Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.
And the Personal Computer measuring two feet high, two feet deep. and a foot across would be replaced by the Laptop and the Smartphone.
Software would include the Windows operating system and the Cloud.
And the people who used all this marvelous stuff would become socially incompetent, and elect Trump as President.
The Internet and Cellular networks were invented in the Nineties and created a high tech boom, but this was followed by a bust before practical uses for them were found.
In the next 10 years, hundreds of Computer companies would be reduced to just four: Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.
And the Personal Computer measuring two feet high, two feet deep. and a foot across would be replaced by the Laptop and the Smartphone.
Software would include the Windows operating system and the Cloud.
And the people who used all this marvelous stuff would become socially incompetent, and elect Trump as President.
Saturday, June 1, 2019
The Dominion of the Dead
This book begins with this introduction::
If I were to try to phrase the principal thesis of this study—a hazardous proposition, to be sure, since a number of diverse theses come together here—I would say that humans bury not simply to achieve closure and effect a separation from the dead but also and above all to humanize the ground on which they build their worlds and found their histories. And since I will be referring to the human rather often in these pages, let me put forward a premise here to the effect that humanity is not a species (Homo sapiens is a species); it is a way of being mortal and relating to the dead. To be human means above all to bury. Vico suggests as much when he reminds us that "humanitas in Latin comes first and properly from humando,burying" (New Science§12). By properly he means essentially and irreducibly. And if I have mentioned Vico more than once already it is because his New Science(1744) is the major inspiration for this study. Certainly it was Vico who first helped me understand how the human is bound up with the humus and why burial figures as the generative institution of human nature, taking the word nature in its full etymological sense (from nasci,"to be born"). As Homo sapiens we are born of our biological parents. As human beings we are born of the dead—of the regional ground they occupy, of the languages they inhabited, of the worlds they brought into being, of the many institutional, legal, cultural, and psychological legacies that, through us, connect them to the unborn.
If I were to try to phrase the principal thesis of this study—a hazardous proposition, to be sure, since a number of diverse theses come together here—I would say that humans bury not simply to achieve closure and effect a separation from the dead but also and above all to humanize the ground on which they build their worlds and found their histories. And since I will be referring to the human rather often in these pages, let me put forward a premise here to the effect that humanity is not a species (Homo sapiens is a species); it is a way of being mortal and relating to the dead. To be human means above all to bury. Vico suggests as much when he reminds us that "humanitas in Latin comes first and properly from humando,burying" (New Science§12). By properly he means essentially and irreducibly. And if I have mentioned Vico more than once already it is because his New Science(1744) is the major inspiration for this study. Certainly it was Vico who first helped me understand how the human is bound up with the humus and why burial figures as the generative institution of human nature, taking the word nature in its full etymological sense (from nasci,"to be born"). As Homo sapiens we are born of our biological parents. As human beings we are born of the dead—of the regional ground they occupy, of the languages they inhabited, of the worlds they brought into being, of the many institutional, legal, cultural, and psychological legacies that, through us, connect them to the unborn.
Addicted to Chocolate
I bought a whole bar of Hershey's chocolate when a bought some other groceries this morning. Then sat down and ate the whole thing!
In the back of my mind, I knew I should stop, but I couldn't.
In the back of my mind, I knew I should stop, but I couldn't.
AI and Ethics
Medium
These two do not fit together easily, as this article readily acknowledges.
The author, Mustafa Suleyman, is clearly a Muslum, whose company was bought by Google, but remains in London.
This shows, to me, that regulation of Google should proceed cautiously. Taxing it, instead of regulating it, might a better policy.
These two do not fit together easily, as this article readily acknowledges.
The author, Mustafa Suleyman, is clearly a Muslum, whose company was bought by Google, but remains in London.
This shows, to me, that regulation of Google should proceed cautiously. Taxing it, instead of regulating it, might a better policy.
I Hate You
I find myself saying this sometimes with great vehemence. Since I am trying to understand myself, I then try to understand what I just said. And the results have surprised me.
Two beings are involved in this statement, an "I" and a "You". And it is not hard for me to understand who they are. The first one, the "I" is God. The second one, the "You" is People. God is condemning his people, in no uncertain terms.
Statements like this are common in the Hebrew part of the Bible, what Christians call the Old Testament. And with the later parts of the New Testament, which predicts the end of mankind at the hands of a wrathful God. The favorite part of the Bible for Evangelicals.
People have always liked playing God, and pronouncing judgment on other people. And I am no exception.
Two beings are involved in this statement, an "I" and a "You". And it is not hard for me to understand who they are. The first one, the "I" is God. The second one, the "You" is People. God is condemning his people, in no uncertain terms.
Statements like this are common in the Hebrew part of the Bible, what Christians call the Old Testament. And with the later parts of the New Testament, which predicts the end of mankind at the hands of a wrathful God. The favorite part of the Bible for Evangelicals.
People have always liked playing God, and pronouncing judgment on other people. And I am no exception.
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