Morning

Sunday funday

Every Week Is Health Insurance Week

I'm rarely an accelerationist, as the costs of burning it all down are quite high and the likelihood of what emerges from the ashes not being an eldritch horror is low, but it's hard not to root, a little bit, for Trump to just go ahead and destroy our health care system.

I know, I know, it probably wouldn't be good, as I said, but...

We Must Hurry If We Are To Dance

RIP Tom Stoppard

Did We Find A Good Republican

This is good, at least.

The state senator said he declined the invitation and believes it violates the Hatch Act, which restricts certain political activities by federal employees.

Walker said he would have reported the alleged violation to federal authorities “if I thought that there was anyone of integrity in Washington that would follow through on my accusation and actually cause someone to lose their job over it.”

“I refused (the invitation), but the underling who reached out to me is trying to influence the election on my dime,” Walker told The Republic. “That individual works for me. He works for you. He’s on my payroll, he’s on your payroll, and he’s campaigning on company time. That’s a violation of the Hatch Act. He’s a federal employee. He works in the White House. But does anyone care about the rules anymore? Not that I can tell.”

I Suppose He Could Still Have Him Murdered At Sea

I'm starting to suspect that Trump's stated reasons for things are not always the actual ones? Big, if true. Hopefully I read about this kind of thing in the newspaper more!

Joke, but I don't want to read a piece about that in the newspaper, I want all coverage to start from the position that these people lie about everything all the time. Because they do!

20 stories taking them at faith, followed by one "hmm.. perhaps things aren't as they say? Much to consider, though we will forget this tomorrow," is not the appropriate way to cover them!

Morning

Slacker Saturday.

Happy Hour

 Get happy

Kill'Em All

Pete's a real man, unlike you.  He's willing to push the big red "kill innocent people" button.  Everybody respects Pete now, and that empty hole inside of him is filling up with warmth.

The longer the U.S. surveillance aircraft followed the boat, the more confident intelligence analysts watching from command centers became that the 11 people on board were ferrying drugs.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a spoken directive, according to two people with direct knowledge of the operation. “The order was to kill everybody,” one of them said.

A missile screamed off the Trinidad coast, striking the vessel and igniting a blaze from bow to stern. For minutes, commanders watched the boat burning on a live drone feed. As the smoke cleared, they got a jolt: Two survivors were clinging to the smoldering wreck.

Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble

But spicy chatbot is so useful.

On November 20th American statisticians released the results of a survey. Buried in the data is a trend with implications for trillions of dollars of spending. Researchers at the Census Bureau ask firms if they have used artificial intelligence “in producing goods and services” in the past two weeks. Recently, we estimate, the employment-weighted share of Americans using AI at work has fallen by a percentage point, and now sits at 11% (see chart 1). Adoption has fallen sharply at the largest businesses, those employing over 250 people. Three years into the generative-AI wave, demand for the technology looks surprisingly flimsy.

Whether AI adoption is fast or slow has profound consequences. For the world to reap productivity gains from AI, normal businesses must incorporate the tech into their day-to-day operations. It is also the most important question in determining whether or not the world is in an AI bubble. From today until 2030 big tech firms will spend $5trn on infrastructure to supply AI services. To make those investments worthwhile, they will need on the order of $650bn a year in AI revenues, according to JPMorgan Chase, a bank, up from about $50bn a year today. People paying for AI in their personal lives will probably buy only a fraction of what is ultimately required. Businesses must do the rest.

They are not designed to do the things their boosters have pretended they are good for.  We went from curing cancer to handling scheduling to 'horny computer friend.'

(yes I know the Shakespeare is 'double' not 'bubble')

Lunch

Shop while you eat! (Ad, I get a commission).

I am sure there are many fine Black Friday deals.

If The President Says It, Then It Is News

I would accept that more if news outlets published his more obviously batshit stuff without qualification or attempt to explain, along with the more plausible-sounding stuff.

PALM BEACH, Florida, Nov 27 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday his administration may slash income tax completely over the next couple of years because of government revenue generated from tariffs.

"Over the next couple of years, I think we'll substantially be cutting and maybe cutting out completely, but we'll be cutting income tax. Could be almost completely cutting it because the money we're taking in is going to be so large," Trump told U.S. military service members on a video call.

This is batshit too, of course, but it's the kind of thing that sounds plausible if Reuters and others news outlets bless it.

Fundamentals

Denaturalization is something Dems have to come out against. They'll start with someone unsympathetic, someone with a murder conviction, and they'll keep going. A poll will come out with a majority supporting "removing citizenship from people guilty of the worst crimes." Dems will cower. David Shor will tell them it is a winning issue (for Trump).

The line needs to be drawn before that.

Yes there are Dems speaking out on these issues generally, but leadership is wedded to the "talk about health care and affordability and nothing else" strategy.

Denaturalization

I won't post the latest rant from gramps, but the desire by Miller (and him) to engage in mass-denaturalization is, actually, Nazi shit.   

Morning

Smell the Glove Friday!

Holiday weekend posting might be less than normal, or not! We will see!

Dinner

eat

If You're A Star They Let You Do It

It is hardly hidden that certain "journalists" have a bit more license to get away with certain things, but it isn't aways clear just why some are treated like "stars" and some aren't. Sure the person getting paid millions to sit behind the anchor desk is a "star" whether or not they deserve to be there, but there are some people who aren't really "stars" - like Lizza, like Nuzzi - who keep bouncing back from scandals. Neither is a household name. No one is clamoring for them. And yet...

Oh Dear

Time for another blogger ethics panel.

We Are Aware Of All Internet Traditions

 Happy Turkee Day!

Nothing like an impossible-to-explain-you-had-to-be-there joke being your major life's legacy.

Morning

Don't forget to take the turkey out of the freezer.

Happy Hour

Holiday weekend begins.