Ruminations – 8dec23 (updated 18dec23)

George Rebane

Idiots on parade. ‘Court allows New York to ban guns in sensitive places’ (here)  None of these idiots understand that 1) mass shooters don’t care a crock about such prohibitions, 2) such prohibitions have never reduced the frequency of mass shootings, and 3) mass shooters take comfort in knowing where law abiding citizens must go unarmed.  Shouldn’t there be an IQ test or something similar for judges to pass before being allowed to sit on the bench?

New cohorts of ragheads are waiting in the wings for word from Iran to replace Hamas if Israel is ever successful in wiping out those low-life thugs.  We have to remember that it’s the entire Palestinian population that teaches its children to kill Jews and install terrorist organizations for their governance.  So what’s Plan B?

[10dec23 update]  The use of ‘some’.  Out of a cohort of a hundred people, a colleague reports that “some of them were wearing green sweaters.”  What does that communicate to you in terms of the range of the number of people wearing green sweaters – i.e. what is your max and min range for ‘some’?  After you determine your range, take a look at this link to see how the use of 'some' compares to your own sense of its meaning.

[17dec23 update]  A post-Singularity landscape is offered in this video that is sufficiently detailed to evoke interesting discussion.  The link was sent to me by a friend and RR reader who sometimes comments on these pages.  He asked for my thoughts, which I offered, and now I ask those interested for their assessment of the prognostications offered in the video (here).

[18dec23 update]  Donors From The Richest Zip Codes In America Are Throwing Their Support Behind Biden.  More proof that having money doesn’t make you smart, and that corporatism is now an indelible part of the state – companies that pay-to-play could not survive without the backing of the government gun to suppress their competition.

Comments

[fishhole]

Wait....what's this?

Arizona's Democrat Governor Demands $512 Million Reimbursement From Biden For Border Security 'Failure'

I'm just not sure Shotgun Joey has it to spare with all his other overseas commitments.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/arizonas-democrat-governor-demands-512-million-reimbursement-biden-border-security

[fishhole]

Just the sort of nonsense that you'd expect a Crazed Sex Poodle to spout....

Al Gore Warns: People Having Access To Non-Mainstream Information "Threatens Democracy"

In Gore like fashion he fucked things up again.....remember, it's Our Democracy™.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/al-gore-warns-people-having-access-non-mainstream-information-threatens-democracy

[George Rebane]

fish 1106am - Good find. As time goes by, more and more Democrats are demonstrating that fundamentally they are evil totalitarians waiting in the wings for the next opportunity to ratchet us toward a tyrannical form of governance. But first it requires knee-capping the Constitution, especially its first two amendments. Another recent example -
https://dailycaller.com/2023/12/09/newly-proposed-bill-plots-novel-attack-americans-gun-rights/

[fishhole]

California Facing Record $68 Billion Deficit, Potential 'Fiscal Budget Emergency': Legislative Analyst

The campaign materials write themselves.....

"Governor Newsom and Democrat lawmakers turned a $100 billion surplus into a $68 billion deficit in just 2 years..."

"Let Gavin Newsom do for America what he's done for California"

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/california-facing-record-68-billion-deficit-potential-fiscal-budget-emergency-legislative

[Scott O]

fishy 1:44 - It's worse than that. See my post on 12/8 at 2:08 under George's post "Ignorance vs Evil".

[fishhole]

Posted by: Scott O | 10 December 2023 at 04:00 PM

Regrettably I don't have this option!

"I prefer peace. But if trouble must come, let it come in my time, so that my children can live in peace."

May we live in "interesting" times!

[Scott O]

George 12:13 - from one of the co-sponsors of the gun bill:
"I know all too well the damage a firearm can do in the wrong hands."
So - what does this bill have to do with "the wrong hands"?
What does this bill do to restrict "the wrong hands" from a whole host of things that can cause human carnage?
Nothing.
This is just another round of kabuki theater having to do with an elected official trying to put on a show of pretense to impress the uneducated idiots we unfortunately now have as a large (possibly a majority) of voters.
BTW - for anyone out there still wondering how the mass shooter in Maine chose his locals for the murders...
They were "gun free zones"!
He knew there wouldn't be anyone armed to confront him.

[Don Bessee]

You know its too far gone that you have to bring in cankels -

'Deep, deep trouble': Dems reportedly bringing in Hillary Clinton to help with Biden's re-election

https://www.foxnews.com/media/deep-deep-trouble-dems-reportedly-bringing-hillary-clinton-help-bidens-re-election

;-)

[Don Bessee]

Way tooooo true and they are just recognizing it -

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/biden-s-immigration-policies-pull-resources-from-citizens-send-to-illegals/ar-AA1lhSrd?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=85b8a5eeb063476cabd5f03bf480a968&ei=81

;-)

[Don Bessee]

Ya think that creepy grampa joe and the 0 retreads ass kissing and giving them jillions easing sanctions and not just the latest 6 bil let them finance all the chaos?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/opinion-we-ignore-iran-s-growing-multi-dimensional-threat-at-our-own-peril/ar-AA1lhWwB?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=85b8a5eeb063476cabd5f03bf480a968&ei=220

;-)

[Scott O]

DB 6:56 - "Dems reportedly bringing in Hillary Clinton to help with Biden's re-election"

Uh, "help" with the re-election? Ya mean with Trump's re-election?

[The Estonian Fox]

My minimum for 'some' = 10%, maximum = 30%. Above 30%, it becomes 'many'; above 50% it's 'most', up until around 80%, then it's 'nearly all'. Below 10%, it's 'few'. As in "Few folks are confident Joe Biden can do anything other than eat an ice cream cone."

Paywall on the WSJ link, so couldn't see their take on it.

[Individual Juan]

EFox, that sounds about right.

"Some MAGAs think Trump is full of shit"

[The Estonian Fox]

George,

Nothing's really new - see your Ruminations 09Nov 2014, 10Nov update. Describes the problems with liberals shutting down free speech on campuses.

"...hostility toward unpopular ideas has become so irrational that many students, and some faculty members, now openly oppose freedom of speech."

"For this disorder there is no effective quarantine. A whole generation of students soon will have imbibed the warped notions of justice and entitlement now handed down as dogma in the universities."

One good thing - acceptance of free speech doesn't seem to have gotten any worse; well, unless you substitute "most" for "many" and for "some" in the first sentence above.

[George Rebane]

Efox 512am - Thanks for your complete answer. It so happens that my own thresholds for those descriptors closely match yours. I wonder how many more share those thresholds. At least you and I can use them to communicate ;-)

[The Estonian Fox]

From your 13 April 2010 musings:
Another raising of the dead (words), from 2010. Ahead of his time??

"I see irony in my support for asset (and consumption) based taxes because they are usually considered a conservative innovation, and I am labeled a liberal here. In general a tax structure that taxes assets (a person or family's net worth) or consumption (a person or family's spending) is fair. We would still need to deal with the question of minimum tax threshold."

Posted by: Steven Frisch | 14 April 2010 at 04:59 AM

If this is an idea of fair, what does unfair look like? Total confiscation?

[Scott O]

Zir Frisch is badly confused. Consumption taxes can be conservative depending on how it is structured and what other taxes the citizens face. Taxing some one's net worth or unrealized gains is a proven fools errand. I'm sure the lawyers specializing in tax matters love the idea. Lower middle class folk living in a home for a long time that has appreciated can be totally screwed by asset taxing.
I have never heard anyone but leftists advocating for asset taxation.
Hunter Biden would be a great candidate for asset taxation - receive millions and blow it on hedonistic profligacy. Hey - no assets to tax! Cool!

[Paul Emery]

George, Scott and Gregory

Here's a direct quote from Trump of something he has repeated several times.

“ I said I want to be a dictator for one day. You know why I wanted to be a dictator? Because I want a wall, and I want to drill, drill, drill,” Trump said during the club’s annual gala, according to multiple reports.

Can any of you comment on the Constitutionality of declaring yourself a Dictator for a day as trump has said he wants to do.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2023/12/11/donald-trump-dictator-one-day-reelected/71880010007/

[Gregory]

It's a meaningless term, Punchy. And a joke.

[Paul Emery]

Gregory, are you serious??? A Presidential candidate stating he WILL be a dictator for any length of time is a dangerous and serious person that should be disqualified him from running for office. Is it not the responsibly of a President to uphold the Constitution?

Once again you are supporting Trump by defending him in this situation. Trump can count on you. You always come through for him.

[Gregory]

It's a joke, Punchy.

[Paul Emery]

You always support Trump no matter what Gregory. Here he passionately says he will become a dictator and you ignore him.

[Gregory]

I don't believe him, Punch, and I don't believe you, either.

Biden has been more of a dictator than Trump ever was.

[Paul Emery]

Can you give me some examples of how Biden is a dictator?

[Gregory]

Can you give examples from Trump's first time where he was?

Biden has exceeded his authority on a number of occasions.

[Paul Emery]

Gregory

He has clearly stated several if re-elected President he will become a dictator for a day. that's stating that he will break the law. What would happen to you or I if we were to state that on a certain day we would rob a bank?

[Gregory]

Exactly what law would be broken if Trump says he's a dictator for the day?

Until I rob a bank there is nothing to do. Sorry.

[Gregory]

When in trouble
When in doubt,
Run in circles
Scream and shout.

That's you, Punch.

[fishhole]

Since opinion writers that Punchy has strongly disapproved of in the recent past are okay again…..

Not ‘Trump the Dictator’ Again

https://amgreatness.com/2023/12/11/not-trump-the-dictator-again/ *

* this is for Punchy’s legion of “our readers” out there lurking in the ether. Remember….just because he won’t read links doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t.

[Individual Juan]

Drugged Fish, VD is not wrong. Executive actions and pardons seem somewhat dictatorial in that they are unilateral and side step Congress - but we allow them.

I blame smartphones

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-backpedals-says-he-was-joking-about-dictator-calls/ar-AA1llZCl

[George Rebane]

Paul, please give it up.

[Paul Emery]

Give up what George?

[Gregory]

Paul, give it up.

[Paul Emery]

Give up what Gregory. Sorry I'm making things difficult for you.

[Gregory]

No, you're not sorry.

The difficulty isn't about the words... it's more about the aggravation akin to mosquitos. A blood sucking insect.

[Paul Emery]

Gregory

Your allegiance to Trump is a profound example as to how an intelligent person can sucked in by as con man, which is what Trump is.

[Paul Emery]

sp-by a con man

[Individual Juan]

Re:Idiots on Parade

I would not want to spend the money, but it would be fun to be a fly on the wall at one of these Young Republican dinners.

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/media-revolt-new-york-young-republican-gala

[Scott O]

Lonely Juanita 3:44 Wow - Vanity Fair. Lots of Jr High tittle-tattle to keep the rubes amused.
I'm sure the Peoples' Young Democrat Cadets are more your speed. Lots of up-talk and endless virtue signaling.

[fishhole]

Give up what George?

The only thing in this world that you truly care about.....the pursuit of your Orange Whale.

[Individual Juan]

scotto, I know it's not bannon's war room podcast😂😂😂

[Individual Juan]

Hunter Biden did a good job this morning taking it to the MAGAt party.

[Individual Juan]

It is sad that the Republican party is controlled by the Russian communist party.

[Scott O]

"I know it's not bannon's war room podcast"

Yawn - Didn't know it existed.
But if you enjoy that sort of thing - go for it.

"It is sad that the Republican party is controlled by the Russian communist party."

And I had thought you claimed it was run by Trumpers - do try to get your story straight. Maybe your hero Hunter can inform you. He's a real loser - just your type.

[Gregory]

"It is sad that the Republican party is controlled by the Russian communist party."
"I. Juan"

The shame is that the extent of the control of the USA by the Chinese Communist Party is currently unknown, but the Russian control of the GOP is bupkis... But "I. Juan" certainly knows this.

[scenes]

Democratic Comedy.

https://imgur.com/a/Mjr07sB

[fishhole]

Stay tuned for yet another exciting chapter in the ongoing saga of “Coin Operated President”….

James Biden's dealmaking caught on FBI tapes in unrelated bribery probe

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/james-biden-s-dealmaking-caught-on-fbi-tapes-in-18560018.php

[Gregory]

punchy 333p a couple days ago

"Your allegiance to Trump is a profound example as to how an intelligent person can sucked in by as con man, which is what Trump is."

Punch, your hate has blinded you. I'm not a Trump supporter... I am a Punchy debunker.

[Individual Juan]

Re: Post Singularity Landscape

First off, I want to commend the video presenter on his space suit casual outfit.

The Singularity should only apply to all Federal Government entities.

We could have individual AI units replace the Congress and Senate members. The computers could argue with each other.

We could eliminate so much waste it would be incredible.

We might even be able for AI Hal to come up with a budget and stick with it.

[Gregory]

I. Juan previously stated
"It is sad that the Republican party is controlled by the Russian communist party."

and, pointedly to me,
"Are you racist and assume that all Chinese are untrustworthy?"

Why?

[Don Bessee]

How low can he go?

Only one-third of Americans gave President Biden a thumbs up on the job he is doing in the White House, according to a new national public opinion survey.

The president stands at 34% approval in a Monmouth University poll released on Monday, with 61% giving Biden a thumbs down on his job performance.

The president's approval is at an all-time low in Monmouth polling since Biden took over the White House nearly three years ago.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-approval-rating-sinks-all-time-low-new-national-poll

;-)

[George Rebane]

I-Juan 1208pm - what you suggest might be implement in these pre-Singularity years. To refresh your understanding of Singularity, please visit https://rebaneruminations.typepad.com/rebanes_ruminations/2007/12/the-singularity.html

[fishhole]

Bummer dude....there goes Christmas!

Hard Times: San Francisco Runs Out of Money, Eliminates Slave Reparations Office

Time to burn the city.....!

https://mishtalk.com/economics/hard-times-san-francisco-runs-out-of-money-eliminates-slave-reparations-office/

[fishhole]

That’s pretty bad…..imagine if it had been neckties from the Trump line!

Americore Gave James Biden $600k Loan on Promise He’d Deliver Funding from Middle East, Trustee Says

That would have been a hanging offense….

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/americore-gave-james-biden-600k-loan-on-promise-hed-deliver-funding-from-middle-east-trustee-says/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=breaking&utm_campaign=newstrack&utm_term=33738052

[The Estonian Fox]

Re the video about AI saving/destroying the world.

At least we won't have overpriced actors and films to annoy us anymore. AI writers should have at least one person programming the AI to produce worthwhile movies, without more than one sequel or prequel allowed. Something more original than what our studios presently produce. Maybe we'll find out that all themes have already been tried, and found wanting.

And remember, government (i.e. large corporations) will be in ultimate control of all this. Didn't Asimov write a story called "AI, Robot"????

[Don Bessee]

The dems version of success and upward mobility aka fail to the top -

Gavin Newsom's 10-year plan to end San Francisco homelessness marks 20-year anniversary

https://www.yahoo.com/news/gavin-newsoms-10-plan-end-090030920.html?.tsrc=fp_deeplink

;-)

[Don Bessee]

Its always hilarious to see the boutique flavor of the month lefty fan girl things always turn out to be so much worse than what they want to replace. ROFLOL

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/report-biomass-outpaces-emissions-of-other-fossil-fuels/ar-AA1lFgMH?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=5543fccd82cd4e74bf660a492feeb5dc&ei=143

;-)

[Scott O]

re the David Shapiro vid:
Sorry dude, you have no idea how reality works. If you doubt my opinion of his mess of a video essay, wait til you get to the part where he thinks there's a possibility that AI and robotics will lower prices to the point that a person can live comfortably on $4K a year. And yes - he goes there: He believes there will be a "superabundance" of power or something to that effect and electricity might be free.
Gee, where have we heard this before?
He has no idea of how money needs to be tied to value, he has no idea of human behavior, he completely overestimates the ability of robots to replace human labor.
Is some of what he says true? Yes. He gets why Gates is buying up farmland. As the saying goes - "they're not making any more of it".
Western world or first world or whatever you want to call it has gotten it into their collective skulls that humans shouldn't have to strive and toil. That struggling in life is some kind of offense against some fabricated human right.
Dr Peterson points out that extreme and debilitating poverty is the natural condition of mankind. It is only with the aid of a highly complex and highly evolved industrial system that we lift ourselves out of the mud. That system can be easily destroyed in just a few years with the help of a mass of citizens that are ignorant of how they arrived at the glittering mansions we live in. Yes - glittering mansions. The most impoverished Americans live better than anyone from just 2 centuries ago and better than most of the rest of the world, period. All the while the financially poor and the emotionally poor of this country whinge and carp about how bad they have it.
They have absolutely no idea how bad it can get.

[The Estonian Fox]

Scott @12:58 PM

True, they aren't making more of it. But that is only part of the equation. The whole eqn is $$$ = #folks/#of acres. If you want the cost of (any) land to decrease, you either INCREASE the acreage (can't do it here; Mars not online yet), or DECREASE the folks. The Wuhan virus started along that line, the Russkies/Ukr are starting, the Israelis/Hamas are trying too. If China decides to make sushi of Taiwan, Joey B might go all out on lowering the (living) body count.

If "That system can be easily destroyed in just a few years with the help of a mass of citizens that are ignorant of how they arrived at the glittering mansions we live in" happens, then the rest of us are in deep cow disks. Farmers with guns (hired, or their own) will have the upper hand after the canned goods run out. Higher CO2 will allow larger plant harvests to help out in the recovery.

Assuming the good guys win. I know, that's a stretch. Plans fall apart when the first punch lands.

Joe also wants to decrease using CH4 for heat - it's only fault was to allow us to transition from a dangerous climate, to a safe one, without a lot of coal ash left over.

[Scott O]

E Fox - "then the rest of us are in deep cow disks"

Yep - we live in a world that's highly dependent upon millions of people carrying out a myriad of tasks competently and on time.
If all those folks or even a large percentage of them become more concerned with something like keeping their family physically safe or even keeping the house from freezing, then it all rapidly devolves in a hurry. Just a few days of no electricity in this country could bring about chaos we might not be able to climb out of. Remember the Great Blackout in NYC back in the 70s?
https://time.com/3949986/1977-blackout-new-york-history/

[George Rebane]

Re the post-Singularity video. Since this has elicited some cogent responses, I will post my response on it to my correspondent.

… thanks for that video, I sat through the entire thing. My problem with his entire approach to predicting the (post Singularity?) future is that he completely ignores basic aspects of human nature AND the realities of sustainable social organizations. For example, in the former he ignores behaviors that give rise to the tragedy of the commons (a la Garrett Hardin). In the latter he foresees a global society organized through control that understands and determines what “human needs” and redistribution of resources should and will be. Or more fundamentally, believes that such a society will be centrally controlled by some elite cohort that has cracked the code on the social transfer function. All of his prognostications depend on the establishment of an autocracy cum tyranny that somehow still creates a society where its members will be dancing in the streets. That is not going to happen as far as we can see from this side of the Singularity, and his predicting that it will violates the entire definition of why we call the event of peer and super-peer intelligence achieved by machines as the Singularity – i.e. we have no idea what actually will happen in the post-Singularity epoch. In short, the commentator was more than a bit glib and simplistic in the vision that he offered. Nevertheless, I think it’s an important commentary that can evoke great discussions. gjr

[Scott O]

re George 1:33 - I actually thought the funniest gaffe of the video was the idea proffered that if folks didn't have to work, they would have the time to obtain a bikini body for going to the beach.
Clearly this guy lives inside of some tiny little bubble.
He does bring up a great subject of conversation, but beyond that I would be wary of any sort of thought he might have.