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One big mistake
Michael Kochin makes an excellent proposal but misses the history entirely and treats all the standard consensus positions as real. Kochin is mostly echoing an earlier book by Paul Feyerabend. He says that in the 1700s western culture decided to separate church from state, but didn’t anticipate the later replacement of church by Science. He…
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Uganda reminds me
Uganda’s monetary defense against our cultural imperialism reminds me of this point. I was exploring this concept in late 2019, just in time to have it in my ‘reserves’ when Deepstate’s 2020 holocaust struck. = = = = = START 2019 REPRINT: Continuing with Del Giudice’s magnificently productive question about mental defensible spaces against pathogens.…
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Uganda joins the cultural defense
The move toward a gold standard is spreading through Africa. Uganda is working toward the same goal, though not yet firming up the decision as Zimbabwe did. = = = = = START QUOTE: The Bank of Uganda said it will directly purchase bullion from artisanal miners in a move that will also support government…
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Not a presidential resonance
Allegedly Biden’s latest “make or break” appearance is a press conference tonight, mysteriously named Big Boy. He will continue to have “make or break” appearances, each more broken and each more reassuring to his Cult Of Personality. Big Boy has two resonances in my mind, neither exactly presidential. First, Frisch’s Big Boy is a drivein…
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Taint funny, Fibber
Pamela Anderson has started writing on Substack. Well, there goes the neighborhood. Substack is now past tense.
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It’s all in the TEST DRIVE.
Listening as usual to the auto dealer training films at night. They always emphasize the crucial importance of the TEST DRIVE. Persuasion and advertising might bring the prospect into the office, but only the TEST DRIVE can sell him the car. Duane Jones made the same point for soap and food products. SAMPLE the product…
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Somebody had the right idea
Our cowhands wore boots and chaps to protect their legs from sagebrush and thistles and cactus. I’ve always wondered why they didn’t give their horses similar protection. Via Vintage.es, some French farmers fitted their donkeys with leftover trousers to guard the legs against flies and mosquitoes and thistles. Since the donkeys were just pulling plows…
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Worst of both systems
Continuing from the Person Of The King. I’ve made this comparison hundreds of times now and it’s still valid. Execs of corporations get painlessly retired with a golden parachute when they’re incompetent or unsuitable for any reason. The only exception is when he’s the founder, like Elon or Henry Ford. Even in small businesses the…
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Scrollwave
Random thought. Scrolling through media on the web is the modern equivalent of tuning across the bands on shortwave. Shortwave broadcasting was killed by the web, much more firmly and directly than other media. With a good receiver and good propagation conditions, you could find every kind of entertainment or news in every language, plus…
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Spies in Jeopardy
OpenAI cleverly interrogates its prompters to determine their weak spots and blackmailable spots. By using the “assistant”, the prompter is helping Sam Altman to build a massive power structure. Old-fashioned spies asked questions and listened to answers in Socratic style. OpenAI gathers info by giving answers and listening to questions in Trebek style.
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RIP Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe, the only legitimate senator in recent decades, has died at age 89. = = = = = START 2010 REPRINT: James Inhofe, the only legitimate Senator, shows yet again why he owns that title. Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe is going down swinging, insisting he’ll still send earmarks to his state even though his…
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I didn’t go far enough
A few days ago I wrote about the return of medieval idiocy. = = = = = START REPRINT: We’re seeing the medieval Personality Cult up close this week. The press and other courtiers are always devoted to the Person of the King. The actions and behavior of the King are utterly irrelevant. It doesn’t…
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First answer is always right.
When LePen started to show signs of success, my first thought was that Macron is not a stupid bettor. He’s Wall Street. He always has a pair of loaded dice in his palm. Last week when LePen mostly won the first round, I got carried away with the usual false optimism. Turns out the first…
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If you wanted…
The Supreme decision on sovereign immunity is being trashed by both “sides” for the same stupid reason. D hates it because it would prevent prosecuting Trump. R hates it because it would prevent prosecuting Biden. Ignore principles. Look at what has actually HAPPENED. Before last week, NO OFFICIAL WAS EVER PROSECUTED FOR CRIMES IN OFFICE.…
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Old idea
Noticed while looking for something else. Back in 2013 I came up with a pretty decent idea, then forgot about it. = = = = = START REPRINT: Was thinking about idiot Repooflican opposition to the Online Sales Tax, when a bigger point struck me. Our entire tax system is designed to discourage local production.…
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