This is a cute slice of life with a side of psychedelics. Do not take it too seriously.
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Quick Monday Links
This is going to be a quick post.
From Forbes (via The Brother) discussing the dangers of spreading false AI images during emergencies. Why is this above the normal Reason links? Because I fell for one of the images and put it up last Thursday. I have edited the post, but leaving it up as a reminder to myself and others.
Now on to a few Reason links.
More fallout from extended school closures – drops in ACT scores. Of course, it looks odd with student grades being at highest levels.
Feds going after a landlord for not showing an apartment to people with emotional support animals.
A look at FEMA and states buying properties that have been repeatedly flooded out. This is a use of eminent domain I don’t have a problem with. Why? Because the .gov backstops flood insurance.
From The Tampa Bay Times, a look at neighborhoods not in flood zones that flooded during Milton. Many of these folks relied on those flood zone maps to decide whether to buy flood insurance. I have told all of the new residents in our neighborhood that they need flood insurance. It’s Florida – you will need flood insurance.
From GQ, a look at the restoration of Notre Dame after that horrible fire.
Iconic Image – Hurricane Helene Edition – Edited: AI Generated Image
Edit: This is a generated image. Here’s a Forbes link talking about it and the dangers of these images in disasters. Big takeaway below
Repeated exposure to fake content can erode public trust in legitimate news and information sources. When people repeatedly encounter false images, they begin to question all media, including accurate and necessary disaster updates.
Further, fake images can be a trojan horse for cyberattacks, often being shared in conjunction with phishing links or scam fundraising campaigns. Unsuspecting individuals are lured into contributing funds or providing personal details to malicious actors under the guise of helping those affected by disasters.
I’m keeping up the original post as a reminder to myself that if something looks too perfect, then maybe I do need to take a more skeptical eye.
We’ve all seen the photos of the devastation in Tennessee and South Carolina. However, there are sometimes an image shows up that captures the terror and heartbreak of an event. I’m posting this here for posterity, and to remind myself (if no one else) about the depths of the tragedy that mere numbers cannot express.
I can’t find attribution and have heard that it was AI created.
If it’s a real photo and I find the photographer, I will edit this and give credit.
If it’s AI, well, it’s a damn impressive piece of art.
Monday Links On Wednesday
Reason links first.
The government subsidizing flood insurance caused worse destruction during Helene.
The IRS wants to collect back taxes while people were being held hostage. Because of course they do.
Arizona’s school choice program under fire.
A review of bullet vending machine. Hoping to see these around my parts soon.
A couple of California stories.
Ground News reports that California is banning legacy admissions at private universities. While I don’t particularly like the idea of legacy admissions, I also dislike the heavy hand of government being used to ban it.
From WSJ, Newsome vetoed their AI safety bill. Stopped clocks and all that.
Some other stories.
From The Verge, the US Patent and Trademark Office cancelled DC’s and Marvel’s joint trademark on the term “super hero”. Which honestly, should have been done a long while. It was kind of like if they gave IBM and Apple a trademark on the term “computer”.
The Intelligencer has an article on a practical flying car. It also may be slightly illegal. Or at least in a legal gray area.
Rounding out with a couple of articles on guns that caught my interest.
From TFB, HK is resurrecting the P7. I hope they come out with a classic line.
From Guns.com, the Henry Arms Supreme, a lever action that feeds from AR magazines.
One Year Ago, The World Pivoted
One year ago, monsters infiltrated across the Israel-Gaza border to rape, slaughter, and kidnap whoever they could. I don’t care what you think of how the Gazans were treated by Israel. Those monsters were not freedom fighters. Freedom fighters do not commit those kinds of atrocities.
I went back and looked at my initial reaction. It was part of a Monday links post, and I predicted a “Republican Pounce” moment. Damn, did I underestimate what would happen across the globe. I’ll address this further in a moment.
Israelis – not just the government, but the people – decided that they could no longer allow Hamas to continue operating in Gaza. If I were living in Israel, I think I would have the same opinion. If the Mexican cartels came across the border and did just the same amount of damage to border towns and farms in a weekend, I don’t doubt for a moment that there would be US troops in Mexico within a week or two. You can’t find peace with people who want you dead. You can have a ceasefire, but peace is not the absence of violence, but the presence of justice.
A good example is Hezbollah, who took the opportunity of Israel’s gaze being turned to Gaza to make northern Israel uninhabitable through rocket barrages. Now, Israel has decapitated Hezbollah and gone after their stockpiles. The chattering class is full of Iran directing all of this, but I’m not so sure. I feel like there are three wars happening simultaneously – Israel-Hamas, Israel-Hezbollah, and Israel-Iran.
Now, back to the public reaction. Sweet FSM, I expected some of the usual suspects to condemn Israel’s reaction. But to actually cheer on Hamas? To close down campus in support of Hamas? To intimidate and assault Jews in support of Hamas? What the hell?
The world has pivoted in ways I never saw coming when I first heard the news a year ago.
Ward Manor Happenings
Hurricane Helene – Yeah, we didn’t get much from the storm. Some rain that came in intense bursts, some nasty wind (which treated us to watching a neighbor’s trash can roll down the street). Overall, not much in our vicinity. Not even a power flicker. So, the good news is that I didn’t have to use my big Ecoflows. Of course, that meant I didn’t get to use my big Ecoflows. As for other folks in my home county? It was the highest storm surge recorded in a lot of areas. Lot of flooding. Lot of damage. The pics coming out of Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina are scary. We were very lucky.
Visiting Relatives – Last weekend, The Wife, The Brother, Mom, and I trekked down to Okeechobee to visit relatives. This entailed me driving Mom’s new car – a Kia Carnival. Mom’s had Chrysler minivans for a long while, so it was a surprise when she announced her new one was a Kia. Still, it’s a smooth driving car, and The Wife even said if we had to get a second car, this one could be in the running. My only issue was how much was touch screen style stuff and less buttons/dials. Anyways, we had a good visit with family and went to visit the family grave site to visit Dad and my grandparents. We also stopped and looked at Okeechobee’s Cattlemen Square, which is a group of bronze statues depicting a cattle drive. If you’re in the town, you should go take a look.
Day Job – This is the last week of the current day job before I go back to my old position. This was definitely a learning experience. I’m not going to say that it was all bad, but I learned a lot of what I don’t want to be doing and what I do want to be doing for the remainder of my career.