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Did you notice that the internal security forces in Nashville had never heard what is arguably one of the more famous pop songs of a previous generation? Did you notice the police did not seem to understand or mention one possible reason for the song, which is at least plausibly as a motivational aid (think "Ride of the Valkyries").

And go down town.
Things will be great when you're
Down town.
No finer place for sure,
Down town.
Everything's waiting for you.

We have further information that Warner was a seeker of truth about the Lizard Conspiracy to control civilization.  This makes more sense now.

Signs in Santa Barbara December 21 2020

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Signs from my neighborhood in Santa Barbara Dec 21 2020.

... and in context ...

Abominations of the Week December 20 2020

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Too much bullshit in this world, we have to aggregate.  Wired magazine runs an article that says that an attack on the US by Russia is not an attack because ... wait for it ... espionage.  Stupid.  Republicans are attacking Jill Biden because she has a Dr prefix for her name but isnt an M.D.  Wow, are all republicans stupid.  Yes, republicans are stupid.  Facebook blocked me again but for good reason, I say Republicans should be shot, and they should be.  

 

I plan to leave this country, I am not interested in being here anymore.

 

 

How we Finance Education and the American Dream

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Dear [REDACTED]

You were the kind person to explain the reality of what an educational loan is when I was confused and the information finally got through the layers of self-deception and for that matter, the layers of belief that I was programmed to have. And the core of that belief was: if you want to go to school, there will be a way to pay for it. This of course is not true. What I want to talk about here is what this policy, this system of educational finance, implies about our country and its fundamental mythology.

There is a school of public policy that believes that we can build better systems for our people by understanding how the world works, how we serve justice, how we decide to tax or not tax, how we elect representatives, how we decide to subsidize certain industries, how we feed our people and look to see empirically and theoretically what impact those policies have. It is implicit to this philosophy that ultimately we can distinguish between better or worse policies even though we may not be wise enough to predict the implications up front. The law of unintended consequences continues to screw up our best laid plans. Its complicated out there in the real world. When things go bad sometimes it is because people are being evil, but usually they are just wrong. Or the context changed. Or maybe people were not thinking it through. I have a favorite example and it involves the fairness of our elections. Every Southerner is familiar with various schemes to disenfranchise people of color and people who are poor. We have been doing it for a long time and we are good at it. One way we do this is to finance the election infrastructure by county, not by state. Well its not a surprise to learn that some counties are richer than others and that furthermore wealth is correlated with race. Furthermore, it turns out that some of the election systems are not as robust and have a higher percentage of either a misfire when a voter accidentally does not vote for their chosen candidate or when a ballot must be thrown out for technical reasons. And so it turns out that in a close election, this may be all you need to rig the game. That is the implication of the hanging chad, those chads did not hang at random. Those chads were associated with the cheaper and older voting systems in those predominantly black and poorer counties.

But my point is not about who won that election, or how that system came to be, my point is that we can not be blind to the implications of our system of financing election infrastructure, not after 2000. As a Southerner I was really annoyed. Fix the goddamn voting machines, I thought to myself. I am tired of hearing about it. Yes it will cost a little money, deal with it. How we chose to finance that part of our system of government turns out to have implications that are important. We may not be able to end racism or feed the hungry but at least in this case we can make our elections just a little more fair. We should do it.

How we pay for education in this country is a non trivial part of who has access to education and also to who has access to elite education. Because, in case you had not noticed, America is incredibly elitist. Its not that there arent a few exceptions who through merit or luck can transcend their origins, it can and does happen. But the odds are not great. I laugh when I hear that a justice is an "originalist" because I am from Virginia and in Virginia elections were always for the several hundred families, all intermarried, who were the equivalent of landed gentry, plus a few merchants and bankers and craftsmen if they were well liked. I am very fond of Virginia on a number of different levels and I am proud to be from there. The first rule of an elite who has power is to see to it that they maintain power for their class and set. Not everyone realizes that one reason the military is so important to a Southerner is because it is a recognized way to improve your lot in life, to pay for an education, to have a career if you were not born with one. In 21st century America things are different than they were in 18th century Chesapeake. Now you may need a Doctor of Philosophy just to have a good middle class life. And you may need to be a member of certain clubs to run for office even though there is nothing on paper that says you have to belong.

If the American dream is contingent on who can get an advanced degree, then how we pay for it is crucial. The only people who can get loans are people who dont need one is a fundamental philosophy of every loan officer. This is not a level playing field. I am disappointed, one more time, in the harsh reality of America so different from its promise.

Thank you again for your patience and your good will.

State of American Politics December 5, 2020

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I presume I dont have to tell you that the political situation is very bad, although I suppose it is somewhat better than before the election. The Democrats have to win the senate to avoid being destroyed by the Republicans, but they wont. Its possible, but its very unlikely. That means the Senate can block anything Biden tries to do that doesnt fit the executive order format and I dont think he has Trumps sheer willingness to fuck anything to get what he wants attitude. Since the American public is, to a large degree, pretty stupid, the Republicans will see to it that the economy sucks and frankly they have fucked things up so hard they dont have to do much. So, that means the midterms will be lost to the democrats and probably the presidential election as well. The post census redistricting in red states will be business as usual which means it is nearly impossible to regain the statehouses in those states and besides even if the democrats did it would not matter until the next census. McConnell will hold up any approvals for the judiciary, the supreme court will not be fixable, etc. Biden will absolutely pass on minimum justice for right wing criminals because he is one of those limp musnt annoy the nice Republican types. None of the problems will be fixed even if Democrats wanted to, which is not clear.

Other than AOC and a few people like Al Frankin I think the Democrats are in over their heads.

America's decline was always inevitable, Trump sped it up, maybe it will slow down a little bit because we wont have an obvious nut waving his little dick around.

When Biden fails to prosecute the rich and powerful for their crimes I will change my party affiliation from Democrat to Independent.

The only other good thing I can think of (other than Kamala Harris who is a character) is that we now know what we are dealing with in terms of racism and stupidity in the American people. That is not good news, but it is necessary to know these things, I think.

I am very disappointed!

Should Trump Be Prosecuted for his Crimes?

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Lawfareblog published an analysis of whether Biden would pick an attorney general that he was confident would not prosecute Trump, his family, or his associates without Biden having to order him or her not to.

I think this article is wrong headed on several points.  First, it neglects to mention how many Americans would conclude that our justice system is a joke and will never do the right thing in regards to the rich and powerful.  Second, it sets no precedent that in any way would restrain the Republicans (or anyone else) from evil deeds since they would know that there is no penalty for the worst of crimes.  Third, it neglects to discuss to what extent it would affect the Democratic party because of people, like myself, who would leave the party if Trump is not investigated at the least and prosecuted if the evidence warrants it.

https://www.lawfareblog.com/who-will-decide-whether-investigate-trump

100 Vectors Should Do It

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Now, with the supreme court (illegitimate) ruling on freedom of religion in a pandemic, for a hostile power to spread a virus in this country it will simply be a matter of sending a certain number of people to visit churches and synagogues, perhaps a different one each week. Then it wont matter how much this nation shuts down, the infection will still spread. If the virus has a long incubation and a higher fatality rate, the results could be spectacular. It will probably require the resources of a nation state to do this. But hey, there are quite a few out there that have that motive and opportunity.

The Short List

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This is a partial list of changes that are required if we wanted to responsibly address the problems that were discovered in our system of government during the Trump administration.  The Trump / Republican disaster was such a nightmare that this list can only be partial.  I am not going to bother to explain most of these.  Each item would require a many page paper, and yet I think that most Americans would know what I am refering to here.  As we all know, just identifying a problem is not the same as finding an appropriate and politically feasible solution.  Some of these problems might be somewhat straightforward to fix but most are not. Besides, I am not qualified as we all know.  I write this list out of my frustration, not because I am in any way the appropriate person to identify the problem or propose a solution.

 

We would be lucky to get one or two of these implemented or fixed. 

The Electoral College or "a disaster waiting to happen", voter suppression (destruction of the Voting Rights Act by Roberts), having a criminal who did not win the popular vote nominate none criminals and right wing nuts to our supreme court and various federal appeals courts, the issue of term limits for the judiciary, the failure of impeachment (there will never be a better case for conviction, there will never be a more egregious obstruction of justice on the part of the Senate), alllowing temporary heads of departments to avoid senate approval, senate approvals, treason, subpoenas, executive privilege, qualified immunity, redirecting money to purposes not approved by congress, getting supreme court to actually enforce the constitution (failure to enforce voting rights act), citizens united, lack of a clear criteria for reholding a presidential election, the weird statute of limitations (5 years is not close to enough), using the attorney general and the DOJ to punish enemies.

And who could forget the attempted destruction of the USPS to manipulate the election.  

Did I mention that we now have a very serious problem of "deliberate lying for cash" that should certainly affect our first amendment. 

The Constitution is hard to change for a reason.  But if its too hard to change, then you have a situation like this. It is not 1787 anymore.

Arms Sales, Donald Trump, and Logical Deduction

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[This is a transcript of a discussion with a friend about whether or not there is a kickback to Trump from the many billion dollar sale of F-35s to the United Arab Emirate]

I apologize for not giving you better info on the kickback thing, I was being deliberately lazy and annoying. I have no hard evidence but my pathetic self-education includes studying the work of Holmes & Doyle (Hounds of the Baskervilles, etc) which means that we can use deduction and in this case the deduction chain is straightforward even if the money path is not. First some obvious comments on the arms business and the vast business of money laundering, then the more interesting things we know about the Trump administration and the various motivations here. This is going to be a little pedantic because it is much more work to keep it concise. Feel free to correct me at any point but keep in mind I read a lot of spy novels so I know something here.

 

1. The "corporate culture" of the arms business, in particular the arms business to 3rd world countries, is rife with corruption of which some form of unofficial transfer of the vast amount of moneys involved is the most common. Its one of the simplest ways to extract money from an official budget for personal use, and it is, to the best of my knowledge, very common. 2. The details of how the money gets transferred are arcane, have many variations, necessarily evolve with evolving law enforcement, and so forth. I have no idea what percentage of the money laundering business is kickbacks for arms deals, probably only a small percentage (10%? Less?) Some countries and institutions depend on this sort of thing although I suspect drugs and tax fraud are a larger part of this business. 3. But we would not expect to see a lump sum up front although we might depending on the level of trust. We might expect to see a series of payments at each step of the deal that go to various anonymous accounts in cooperative banks, where these accounts are for shell companies which transfer the money in relatively small amounts to other accounts at other banks in other countries, etc, until they end up making investments in something that in fact pays down the debt in another account at, for example, Deutsche Bank. 

Now lets move from this to Trump and our foreign policy.  4. There is no evidence that Trump gives a fuck about American foreign policy nor that he understands what he is dealing with here. By supporting Israel illegal settlements and bribing various countries to support Israel, he could easily bring down governments and/or destroy Israel, or cause a war that spins out of control. He may not intend to do this, but there is no evidence he cares. 5. Quid pro quo is the very heart of many, perhaps all, negotiations; its just that with Trump we expect to see it to be a blunt instrument. But it would be perfectly reasonable to expect that if a country wants our most advanced defense technologies that they could not ordinarily get, offering to recognize Israel in return for F-35s is the sort of thing that Trump might easily do, although in a normal administration it might not happen because of risks (see below). 6. In the past, money has always been a part of the deal, and we are talking about Saudi princes, Lockheed executives, American Congressman and Senators, and so forth. Rarely, if ever, is the President *directly* involved although indirectly they probably are. The classic example was Nixon and the Committee to Reelect the President who apparently received excellent cash donations from various organizations like the mafia and others. Or there is Reagan who would break the law right and left and then lie about it. Iran/Contra? No problem. I doubt, however, that the president's net wealth has been directly involved but I am confident that in the past other elected representatives have definitely received money. 7. But its Trump and we know that he has some amount of debt coming due in a few years even if there are many questions about exactly how much, to whom, etc. You regularly see estimates at $400M but I think that it is probably more. This is real estate in the hospitality business and that business is on its ass due to the pandemic. Even if that improves (and it might, it should) financing Trump is going to be a very negative thing for many institutions, not least because Trump is without doubt cavalier about honoring debt. (You know the joke about how you say "fuck you" in Hollywood). So where does he get the money from. 8. If a few percent came off the top of this deal and ended up eventually at Deutsche bank through various intermediaries, that would be I think a very logical thing to do from Trumps point of view. He certainly would not hesitate because of laws, ethics, or the interests of his country. 

 

 

9. Finally, lets add that Trump does seem to like to take care of his friends in Russia and thinks he is being VERY smart about it while Russia plays him for a fool, which he is. I doubt he has a clue what is really going on most of the time and he certainly does not believe what our intelligence community tells him. And so, Trump would ignore warnings that our most advanced defense technologies would be at risk if the destination country could not be relied on to keep it secret and that is why we only send that technology (at first) to very few countries such as Israel, Japan, Germany, the UK, etc, and even with them we usually water it down. Trump wouldnt give a hoot.

So in conclusion, Watson, it would be very logical to expect that there is a quid pro quo going on here, that the cards are not on the table which is normal, that our national security is not being protected, and that Trump would benefit financially in a substantial way. Of course, this would have to be proven but this kind of analysis is not going to be unique to me, I am not that smart or that original, sadly.

 

Poor America that Cant Count Votes

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So when they said we might not know for a week, they werent joking and the jokes on me because I thought they were. 

 

And will people stop railing on the Republicans for failing to rein in their moron president? The Republicans are traitors who hate democracy (see for example, impeachment, Kavanaugh and Barrett). They showed their real colors long ago. And the Americans who voted for them did too. Get used to it, you are in a war between those who believe in Democracy and those who dont. Pretty funny.

What Might We Look For in a MS Program?

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These are notes on some of the things one might look for in a less-than-PhD graduate program.  Whether or not a PhD will ever be practical for me is still to-be-determined, but in the short run it doesnt feel as though it is with one or two exceptions still being evaluated.  Ask for details.

 

But there are other paths through the jungle and they can achieve some of the goals that we are trying to achieve, including but not limited to: upgrading my technical skills which are wildly out of date in some areas, too many areas, getting a so-called terminal degree which might be an MFA or an MS or an MPhil depending on the subject,work with interesting professors and other students, possibly get some cachet depending on the reputation of the institution and finally, with luck, the MS is structured to prepare people to do research which is value added.

I am awful at evaluating such things over the internet in spite of it being a bold new paradigm.  Economics tells us that information is expensive so I am interested in what my friends who may know more than I in these areas have to suggest.

 

Obviously, in the old days, I would have gone to the MIT Media Lab (aka Archmac) or MIT, Stanford, CMU.  I am not sure I could get into any of these today, things being how they are.  

The following have been mentioned by friends.  Bob Coyne and Larry Stead have pointed out that Columbia has an excellent Masters of some sort in Computational Biology.  Noah Wardrip-Fruin has pointed me to several Masters programs at UCSC.  He he also pointed out that UCSB has a Media Arts & Technology program I knew nothing about.  Magy is starting something up at UCSC and thinks I should be able to easily get into a Masters program.  Jacki Morie has recommended a very interesting PhD program done mostly remotely that is based in Ireland.  Cambridge University has a wonderful sounding MPhil in computer science (dream on, wahrman) and of course, CalArts has a famous animation program which results in a terminal degree.  Michael Kass has pointed out that Cornell has some sort of joing program going with Technion in Israel.

I see value in the program being in a different country.  An educational visa is one way to get around visa restrictions.  The United Kingdom, Montreal in Canada, Italy and Israel are all value added for a variety of reasons.  I have always wanted to attend the London School of Economics, I have no idea why.  The RAND Corp has a PhD program but I have no idea if I am qualified.

The default here is to do none of this but to (a) take some courses online and (b) work on my previously specified projects (and some that are not specified and some that I dont even know about yet) and then fall over dead like everybody else.

All of this of course is for a year from now, for the most part, because of the pandemic.

Thank you.

Biden May Win but So What?

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Is this glass half empty or half full? What glass, what are they talking about? Well, even with a Biden win, but no senate, what we have here is a clearly failed political system that can not even shut up a moron/criminal like Trump, a right wing news organization spraying propaganda, a Senate ready to block all legislation, and a minority rule right wing nutty boy supreme court. On the bright side, with a Biden DOJ, if he has the guts, which I doubt, we could put a lot of Republican criminals on trial (and presumably in jail). A good executive order or two can stop the crimes against humanity by our little-Gestapo, and we can start rebuilding the cases the Republican DOJ dropped on orders from the Fuhrer. I think its a joke and the world knows it. The only people who dont know it seems to be Americans, or some of them.

 

 

Self Portrait with Zoltar

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On the Santa Monica Pier.

 

 

 

Will the Democrats Betray America Again?

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Will the Democrats win the Senate? If so, the seeds of destruction may have been planted. The mysterious forces of the so-called mainstream Dem party are already agitating against real reform. These are the people behind the Obama absolution of the rich and criminal classes in 2008 Oh no they will say! We can not reform the courts or work against real racism in this country. Lets do one or two symbolic fixes and then go back to our betrayal of social justice and workers rights. Lets not fix the Electoral College, we might want to steal an election ourselves one day. Then, the base, which has respond to the call to save the Republic from Trump, Kavanaugh, McConnell, etc will ... what will they do when the Dems start calling for "bipartisan" ship which is code for racism and surrender to the rich? 

 The Mystery Eight Ball does not say. It says "reply hazy try again later".

 

 

Shinae Tassia -April 22, 2017

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My worst suspicions were confirmed when I heard today that my friend, Shinae Tassia, who had disappeared on me several years ago and known to be in bad health, passed away on April 22nd of 2017. 

Abandoned in Seoul Korea when a few days old, she was adopted by a Sicilian family in this country. She ran away and lived in Central Park when she was informally adopted by a (gay) couple in Brooklyn. I knew her from the American Museum of Natural History where she was on the systems team. A friend there told me that she was probably of Romulan origin. I found the waves of anger that were visible around her to be very appealing. 

Good bye, Shinae.

Excellent Ranting Websites

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Many people think I spend too much time reading web sites that make me upset.  They are right of course.  Here is a list of such web sites for your benefit.

1. Pure rant

https://www.rawstory.com/

https://www.thedailybeast.com/

2. Often Ranting

https://slate.com/

https://www.salon.com/

3. Rarely Ranting

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/

https://www.vox.com/

This is a good list.  Please check them out!

Jim Houston and Donald Trump's Policies

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At the end of March, Jim Houston died in the hospital after what was apparently several days of severe respiratory distress. We had to break into his house to find him, he lasted a few hours at the hospital. They were not sure if it was respiratory, a stroke, a heart attack, or something else. Jim was in good health, although he was overweight. He was 62 years old. He was a member of various Academy and ASC committees and so would every week be at some social event, such as the ASC clubhouse where there would be perhaps 50-100 people in close quarters.

At the time, COVID-19 tests were not readily available, nor were his doctors particularly sensitive to the fact that COVID-19 mortality was not just respiratory (like the flu) but could indeed show such effects as what Jim died of (ie stroke, heart failure, neurological). So we do not have formal tests that prove that Jim died of COVID-19, but we all think he did. I am told that the state of CA may indeed go back and check to see, how they do that I do not know, but I presume that they have blood samples in the freezer.

Jim was one of my best friends.

There are some things I think are reasonable to conclude from this.

First, that the official numbers are low. I know at least two people who died of the coronavirus who are not on the official death statistics. Jim was not tested and the second person tested negative which makes his friends scratch their heads because if he did not die of the coronavirus we dont know what he died of (heart attack the day before he was going to be hospitalized for severe respiratory symptoms).

Second, Trump was warned by the CIA and others of the danger of a pandemic in January at the very latest, if I understand the situation. Had he warned the American people, and had people known not to congregate in the March time frame, and were told to wear a mask, I am sure that Jim Houston would not have died at that time. Maybe he would have gotten the virus later, maybe we all will, maybe we will die of it eventually, but not at that time.

Therefore, I blame Trump and his policies for my friends death and I do not take kindly to those who push theories that you dont have to wear a mask. I dont know what is going on in Sweden, but I sure as hell know what is going on in the USA and I dont think this is funny or subtle.

Thank you.

 

3D and Learning Things on Spec

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A friend wanted me to learn a variety of technologies involving 3D on spec (i.e. for free) because he thinks it will be good for me and it will help me to make money.  I am sure he is sincere.  I promised to write a blog post which will attempt to explain the situation.

1. I am not sure the exact numbers, but I would guess that I spend at least half my time (as integrated over some period of time) learning new things on spec.  I learn them because they will help me do projects I want to do and because I think they are important to know about.  Examples are machine learning, so-called physically based rendering, Tensorflow, Arnold, Python, Javascript.  Therefore, if there is something new to add to the list of things I learn on spec, then it needs to get in line, there is a lot in the queue ahead of it.

2. I have no particular hope or interest in making money with 3D.  I dont think it is very likely so telling me "learn this and you will make a lot of money" means nothing to me.  I do hope, however, to do good work, possibly but not necessarily with 3D, in some sense of the term "good work".  That may mean research, or an art project, or perhaps a public service project of some sort.  However this is not for you to say, nor is it for you to say what skills I will need to do that.    

 3. I sincerely doubt I will be permitted to make a living going forward, and even if I am permitted, I doubt it will be with computer graphics.  You dont agree with that?  Fine!  Offer me a job.  Be specific.  Put it in writing.

4. I spent a great deal of time in Hollywood.  Every asshole is trying to get work for free.  Just do this and you will make a lot of money.  How do you say "fuck you" in Hollywood?  "Trust me".

5. I have had non-subtle experiences with things that are universal formats, or which are designed for the production flow of a large corporation.  The individual need not apply.  It isnt designed for the individual nor is it useful to him/her outside of the context of the large corporation.

6. Therefore, if you want me to do something for free, I suggest you make your best case and then leave it alone.  If I can, I will.  If I dont think it is worth my while, then I wont, at least not at that time.  Very often, in things like this, it may be that I do get to it, but in my own time.

I have no doubt my friend means well.

Blocked from FB for being Pro Biden

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I guess Facebook is banning people who support Biden.  If you donate to a Democrat and somehow that gets posted on Facebook, then someone on Facebook says such a post is offensive, then you are blocked.

There is no way to protest.

Time to nationalize Facebook.

Still Time to Prepare REDACTED for Revolution

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I realize you are too important to have a conversation with me, but I still think it is a mistake that you are not arming REDACTED for the coming revolution, even if I am uncertain what side you will be on. Better safe than sorry, I always say. A dozen or so anti armor weapons, some RPGs and of course a few SAMs as bought on the ever helpful darkweb. I could see you maintaining a covert communications channel based on the plumbing and infrastructure of underground NY, or maybe laser/microwave line of sight over the park to the East Side or perhaps over the river to NJ. A stockpile of a couple of hundred AR 15s and several 10s of thousands rounds of ammunition, whats the harm? Not to mention a first aid station. Lets not be stupid here, which ever side you are on, the indications of approaching violence are clear and present. I am ready to come by and help out! You only need to call!

 

No Tax Returns? No Constitution

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Even after the NY Times report and another ruling by an appeals court, there are still no released tax returns.  The reason is obvious: we have a completely corrupt justice system in this country that needs to be entirely removed and replaced, probably by violent revolution.  What else would work?   Oh yes, and that Supreme Court nominee who was (is?) a member of an extreme Christian group, nominated by a traitor and criminal, and jammed into the court by the right wing minority party.  Legitimate?  Of course not.  Too bad the US Constitution utterly failed.

 

 

On Courtesy

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I am not a member of their clubs and I will not dine with traitors and murderers. I dont know about Scalia, but I sure know about Trump and McConnell and Kavanaugh and Barr. I may not live in a democracy, I may live in a right wing and corrupt dictatorship but sadly, I will not be silent. Those of us who are disenfranchised are, by definition, not respected or listened to, we are not treated with the least courtesy but with contempt. We may be the despised lower orders but perhaps we can ruin their indigestion for at least one meal. You really dont need to lecture me about courtesy, Seth, because you know me well enough that you know I grew up in Virginia and if there is one thing a Virginian knows it is courtesy. But I was also taught that there are times when you do not throw your pearls before swine. I am not their humble and obedient servant and I know whose family estate they buried all the bodies on. They violated their oath, let them know the people hate them. In this situation, let them show courtesy to the American people by respecting and abiding by their oaths of office. That would be real courtesy.

 

Your Independent Affiliation Will Not Save You

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My right wing friend told me how frightened he was by "The Squad" and he was concerned that Biden would appoint people to his administration that would be radicals.  "No one knows!" he said.  Then he proudly said that he was not a Republican but planned to reregister as an Independent as soon as he could figure out how to use the California online registration system.

My response is as follows:

1. The so-called squad are just four junior congressmen who were legally elected. There is nothing to fear from them except perhaps as a bellweather that the people of the US have woken up to the gross and unacceptable failures of capitalism and neo-liberalism. They cant do anything if Americans dont elect a majority who agree with them to the house and the senate and then have a president who agrees enough to sign a bill.

2. The fear of Biden is also stupid. Biden has spent 50 years in government as a committed centrist. The people he appoints will in general abide by his beliefs. The problem you have is that American beliefs have changed because of the failures of the right wing policies that have been in place since Bill Clinton. It is those policies that have failed and people demand a change.

3. The corruption of the judiciary, the huge deficit, the children in cages, the destruction of decades of bipartisan foreign policy, the treason of the government, all of these things are going to be laid at the feet of the right wing. It doesnt matter their so-called party affiliation, all of you are guilty for humiliating this country and destroying our government. If I am wrong, tell me about when you contacted your congressman to demand that Trump be impeached for treason, tell me about the donations you made to people running against the republican swine/traitors, tell me that you voted against Trump in 2016 and plan to do so again in 2020. Tell me that you hate Mitch McConnell.

4. The electoral college is over. Justices nominated by a traitor are illegitimate. If our constitution cant be fixed it is time for a new constitution. This right wing abomination has gone on way too long.

Will The Police Murder You if You Protest Peacefully

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My friend, Richard Thompson, esq, suggests that as a white person I am unlikely to be murdered outright if I protest injustice.  Just teargassed and beaten.  Accordingly this suggests that by teaming up with people of color one may be able to prevent them being killed by our right wing police forces.

Moral Improvement and the Redemption of Sin Through Good Works

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I have always believed in the possibility of moral improvement through the process of higher education.  For a large part of my life this did not seem possible due to other responsibilities and a regrettable lack of resources.  

But miraculously some of those resource constraints have been lifted and my need for moral improvement has never been greater.  But people seem to be confused about why I would want an advanced degree so this note is an attempt to quantify some of what I might hope to achieve.

1. First, to be around and work with smart people on a variety of projects.  Whenever I am around smart people I seem to get smarter and I am always inspired and challenged by their work and their ideas.  Sometimes what makes a group interesting is where it is located. Some places are just naturally more interesting than others. Sometimes it is the group that makes a place interesting.

2. Bring my technical skills up to date, presumably by taking courses possibly on a tutorial (Oxford/Cambridge) basis.  

3. Be in an environment where I am exposed to people doing new work, including lectures by interesting people who have come to visit.  

4. Similar to the above, but slightly different, be in an environment where people are interested in doing new work, where that is their raison d'etre, and where they are aware of what the current work in an area is.  

5. Have access to a lab or facility where new things can be tried.  

6. And of course, a credential would be nice.  There are various types of credentials that are possible here and some flexibility because the normal requirements for a career are not present.  In other words, a PhD would be desirable from certain institutions, but since I am not going to have a normal career as a professor at a research university or an art institution, the need for a credential(s) and what type are more ... open ended?  ambiguous? 

7. Of course the ultimate goal is to do new work, work that is better for the exposure to new ideas and new people, possibly get this work published.  This work would speak for who I am and would hopefully lead to new opportunities in a world changing at great speed and going to hell in a handbasket as we watch.

If it is not possible to do all of these, then having some of these would be useful.

To the best of my knowledge the best way to achieve this is to be affiliated with one of the major industrial research labs or one of the graduate programs in the appropriate field.  

This was not so clear to me earlier in my "career", it makes me wonder if things might have changed.  It seems to me that 30 years ago it was a lot easier to hang around a research group or graduate program even though one was not affiliated. It seemed to me that those in "industry" were closer to those in "research".  Maybe that was an artifact of the time and the fields of interest.  Whatever. Not any more.

In a perfect world, one might imagine that I got a PhD in Computer Science and an MFA in Art or Design and be acknowledged and loved in my various fields.  That would be rewarding and demonstrate what I think of as the redemption of sin through good works.

It is not impossible that this could be inspirational to others who have fallen into despair and hopelessness. 

Thank you for listening.

Statute of Limitations to Add To the List

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1. Remove the electoral college, 2. Find a way to invalidate and rehold elections that have been compromised, 3. End voter suppression, 4. End the Supreme Courts ability to throw an election as in 2000, and 5. Increase the Statute of Limitations ot make it possible to bring the criminals to justice.

Republicans Who Are Independents

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Discussions with a former friend convince me it is possible to have extreme right wingers who are "Independent" even though they toe the Republican / Trump line perfectly.  They dont see it that way and nothing on this planet could convince them otherwise.

Receding Media Technology

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Emerging technology media is so boring.  Lets embrace receding technology media.

At the Arlington theatre in Santa Barbara during SBIFF.

Setting Doctor / Patient Expectations

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If we have healthcare by the free market system in this country, which I am told is the case, then it should be possible for one to have a contract with one's doctor in order to set expectations and obligations clearly.  In my experience, this is not done, and all the obligations are on the part of the patient, with the doctor being able to do whatever they damn please.

Although you will hear about such things as a "Patient's Bill of Rights" to the best of my knowledge no such thing exists in any serious form, at least not that it would have protected me in any of the dozens of cases where I might very well wish to be protected.

Having made this mistake many times in the past, here is a short list of things I would like known and agreed to up front.

1. The doctor will not release information about the patient without the patient's written consent.  This happens all the time when a doctor sells his practice to someone else.

2. The doctor understands that he is responsible for delivering proper prescriptions on a schedule and that failure to do so will cause the patient damage.

3. The doctor understands that he/she is responsible for advocating for patient in any dispute or misunderstanding with the pharmacy and any failure to do so will cause the patient damage.

4. The doctor understands that when he/she goes out of town or is unavailable for any reason, that another doctor is made available to cover and will know enough and be comfortable with prescribing the appropriate medication in his or her absence.

5. In the event that the doctor and patient must discontinue their relationship for any reason, that the doctor will still provide prescriptions and interaction with the pharmacy for at least six months (and this term may have to be more).

6. The doctor will understand that this responsibility is serious and he/she can not just say "oh thats not important".

I am tired of having to deal with these irresponsible scum in order to get the medication I need to live my life.

History of Voter Suppression

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Peace. I think the following are worth mentioning. First, voter suppression has been going on in this country since before I was born. It was a natural result of giving black people (and poor white people and Latinos/Latinas, and orientals and women ...) the right to vote. Therefore, when you hear about voter suppression you should not think that there is anything new about it (although there are interesting minor innovations and mutations) in broad strokes it is more or less the same: poll taxes, gerry mandering, removing polling places, hanging chads. You should think to yourself, "this is really tiresome".

Second, the courts are perfectly capable of stopping this behavior whenever they want.  I slightly exaggerate, but they have broad powers here. Often, they choose not to. Therefore, it is a mistake to put your faith in the courts to "fix things". The Supreme Court coup d'etat in 2000, its support of Citizens United and its destruction of the Voting Rights Act are three good examples. The courts permit the states to set voting procedures based on by-county tax rates, hence worse voting machines in poor/black districts which is a form of voter suppression (see hanging chads). The courts may help or they may not. Their record is inconsistant.

Third, if you read some of the comments and forums and editorials, then you know there are phrases used by racists and Trump supporters to justify their racism. If you use those phrases (e.g. "we must condemn violence on all sides...") then you should expect people to conclude that you subscribe to the full racist agenda. That may not be true, but you should be aware of this.

Finally, local police forces have been using intimidation and violence to keep minority groups in place since at least the War Between the States (Civil War to you Northerners). If by this time, we have not plausibly dealt with this issue, why do you think the so-called minority groups should have any faith in the system self-correcting? Why shouldnt they defend themselves? Its not as if the problem is going to go away and they live here too. As a Jew in Virginia, growing up, how many times was I asked why the Jews of Germany did not defend themselves? (*)

All of these issues have come up in the last few weeks as people criticise me for being opposed to institutional racism, as I understand it, in this country. Everyone here is on the side of righteousness but we come from different backgrounds so maybe it is good to state assumptions. I will probably need to edit this post. I apologize for making this post so short, obviously it could and maybe should be much longer. Peace!

__________________

(*) Of course, the answer to that is that they would have been slaughtered, I think.  
 

This is the Fate of All Traitors

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Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death.

Death to Traders?

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Voice to text keeps translating my "Death to Traitors" to "Death to Traders".

Chinese Manufacturing and Refunds

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I meant to say increased above.  You can figure it out.

Meierding and Oil

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A Professional Blog is Required

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A good friend reviewed my blog which he says is entertaining and interesting but not a presentation of my work.  And of course he is right, my professional (if we can call it that) work is all mixed in with the rest and is maybe 10 percent of the whole.  

So the thing to do is to create a professional blog, possibly one not based on blogspot.  Maintaining two blogs is not something to look forward to but they both would serve a useful and different purpose.

The professional blog may also solve the question of where to "publish" my work.  None of this is new or unique.  Lots of people have these issues.

Many Lessons Have Been Learned

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There are many interesting lessons learned from the ongoing political crisis in America.  Some were not at all a surprise but some were.  Donald Trump has impressed by being a highly effective psychotic with solid insights into how to destroy his country to maintain power.  This was not a complete surprise, what was a surprise was the impotence of the rest of the government which chooses to either violate their oaths of office or to pretend that the system "as normal" will self-correct these abominations.  But they wont, and they cant.  

I did not realize that Congress was completely powerless to stop an insane and traitorous president. There is very little point in contacting your congressperson, they dont care and there is nothing they can do anyway.  I did not realize how easy it was to avoid congressional oversight.  I did not realize that the Supreme Court conservative faction was completely corrupt.  I did not realize that all Republicans at both the national and at the state level were always disingenuous.  

The Constitution as written did not allow for the possibility of a major party that does not believe in democracy and is happy to seize power by any means available.  Either the Constitution has to be rewritten which is impossible, or  the Republicans must be removed from all positions of importance in our state and federal government which is impossible.  

Even so, we should muddle forward and do what we can.  Biden is better than people think he is and I am looking forward to see what he can do.  All I can do about the current situation is to complain a lot and occasionally send a huge donation of $25 or so to a promising candidate.

Its a mess, and our elites made this mess, but I dont think they can fix it.  
 

Its Always Sad to Lose a Friend (or Two)

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Secrets from months ago are revealed and the end result is that I have lost not one but two old friends.  I guess the point is that if people act like that (and yes I am being vague) then maybe they were not friends.  Its still painful though.  I dont think that either of these two people read my blog (at least not regularly) but if they did I would take this opportunity to remind them "to judge not lest they be judged".

Constitutional Amendments? Ha!

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The government of the USA is obviously illegitimate and should just be replaced in its entirety.  Some would say, lets do a constitutional amendment! What a joke that is. Here is a partial and incomplete list of the amendments which would be required and I would be surprised if you could get even one of them through.

1. Remove the electoral college.

2. Prohibit the Supreme Court from changing the results of an election for political purposes (see November 2000).

3. Remove Citizens United.

4. Enforce the voting rights act.

5. Require the POTUS to have some political experience (for example having served one term at least in the House or Senate).

6. Make it illegal for the Senate to not consider a legitimate president's nomination for the supreme court. 

7. Remove the right wing nutty boys from the supreme court and the federal courts. 

8. End gerrymandering.  (I know this is hard, do it anyway).

9. Change the DOJ so that we can get some real justice done even when you have an obvious right wing criminal like Trump.

There is No Going Back

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There is no going back. You cant just "fix it". The dead people are dead and the alliances are damaged and we look like fools to the world because we are. And never again do we get to brag about democracy or the american constitution. It failed utterly, publically and completely. The Electoral College, the failure of the Republicans to do their constitutional duty, the institutional racism, the trillion dollar tax cut money giveaway to the rich, the Russian active measures against democracy with Republican support, the packing of our judiciary with right wing nuts. Its a disgrace, its a train wreck, we may be something different, maybe even better, but this is a transformative clusterf*ck and there is no going back although lots of people will stick their head in the sand and say "hey its all fixed now! See! Joe Biden!"

What Do These Pictures Have in Common?

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What do the following three pictures have in common?

My favorite comment so far has been from Craig Reynolds who points out that all of these pictures have a hammer in there somewhere.  I had to think about it, but yes, he is right.

Return to Your Roots, America!

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Back when America was a great country and not a failed parody of itself, we believed in Science. We believed in it. Turn your back on idolatry and false prophets! America! Return to your roots!

From Our Mr. Sun (1956)

Matter.Js Is Crazy Worthless

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I feel so bad for my fellow americans.  That we have fallen into decay and incompetence.  Matter.js is a cool package for physical simulation in a browser.  The problem is, it acts differently in each different browser.  Which makes it essentially useless.

Ooops.

Graduate School Application Craziness

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UCLA has one set of rules.  Stanford another.  And Cal Arts still another.  I love these people.  No!  Wait!  I dont.  I am one person, will you please get your shit together.  Thank you.

Slaves

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It turns out that all my friends are afraid that if we have a conversation about any of a number of issues in our society, issues involving the 2nd amendment or freedom of speech and so forth, that the Gestapo will come and take them away and kill them. How far down we have come from a free society. Or maybe it was always this way and I was permitted to have such discussions at the RAND Corporation but did not realize that outside that priviledged zone the slaves, I mean the citizens, were not permitted the privilege.

My Friends Are Paranoid

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They are afraid that if I make a joke about surface-to-air missiles on the dark web that they are going to be arrested or shot in their sleep.

Right About Everything

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Dear [REDACTED]

I think that there is no doubt that I have been correct about everything. Failure to remove Trump has demonstrated to the world the failure of our system of government because, frankly, it did fail. The murder of American citizens by the way his administration handled the Coronavirus. The right wing senate protecting Trump proving that impeachment as a useful tool is a joke. The destruction of the judiciary which is ongoing. The institutional racism. And now the genocide of the Uyghurs in which we are complicit. Of course I will vote for Biden, one would have to be a real hitler youth not to, but America's position in the world has been permanently damaged. The Russians (who trump protects) won. The supreme court was able to hide the evidence (see tax returns). 

I wish my friends would take me seriously. I wish I had a life and did not live in such fucking misery, a misery that no doubt I am complicit in creating. Hope you are well. I am very impressed that you are able to maintain your cardiovascular health and trim figure. I have failed at that. I am very impressed your kids seem to be doing well although I have lost track of who has graduated from where. I wish I was taken seriously. 

Have a wonderful day!

Correspondence on China

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Dear [REDACTED]

Sometimes it takes me time to read the various things I get, but I try to, and I appreciate what you send me. And I am very ignorant of the details of China. I know more about the Tarim Basin or prehistoric Italy than I do about China. Some of this is intentional because it is a vast topic.

I do know about the vast amount of money we dumped on China to help them fight in WW 2 (very little of which went to the Communists as far as I know). I do know about Stillwell and the Flying Tigers. I do know about the time when the numbered air force that Curtis Le May was running in China against the Japanese sent three C-47s filled with medical supplies to Mao but I dont recall what the occasion was. I do know about when Doolittle and his flight of B 25s landed in China and the number of Chinese murdered by the Japanese in retribution. We were not always complete enemies, or maybe we were, but not on the surface of things.

Before I care to hear too much about the other side of the story, I need to know that the Chinese cyberattacks have stopped. I need to know what exactly we are doing educating people who are going to fight a war with us to kill as many Americans as possible since I think that is the most likely scenario in the next 20 years. I need to know that the Americans who deliberately lied to steal the money by sending industry to China without doing anything for the Americans whose lives were destroyed receive justice, which is to say civil asset forfeiture and years of important therapy in an institution run by our federal government. You know, the way a black man would if he stole food to feed his family.  And I need to know that whatever is going on with the Uyghurs in China has stopped and people given real help to recover.

I dont think we are blameless in our relationship with China, far from it.  But I also dont much care.  The above issues are happening now, they need to stop now.  After that I am very interested in some of the details.

I Have Grown Weary

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I am growing weary of this collapse of democracy, fear of death from unknown viruses, insane conspiracy theories with souvenir hats, presidents compromised by $400 M loans that we can't find out anything about, sort of thing. I want to return to happier days when political corruption meant breaking into an office, not intentionally murdering 100s of thousands (or more) people. We didnt have smartphones, but we were happy.

No Hope

I tried to put together a list of things that need to be fixed and I could not continue.  It is too awful, it is too stupid. Its a nightmare.  I dont know what will happen but I am sure I hate this country and I have no faith in it.  I cant breathe.

Zoom Comsec

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Zoom announces that they would not encrypt communications because they want to support law enforcement and I said:

Michael Wahrman This is pretty weird. Only unsophisticated criminals or conspirators would use a communications channel that was not encrypted unless they really had to. And then they would use some sort of prearranged code that was seemingly innocent but rich in hidden meaning. "Did you ever get your car fixed ?" which really meant "Execute the informer and run for the border ...", etc. Which means to me, who typically has not read this article before commenting (yes, I know, I know) that it is more about spying on citizens than it is about traditional law enforcement. More about sniffing out those who would disagree with the government's always just and righteous policies so that dissidents who might disrupt new order can be removed before they disturb our harmony or our photo opportunities, etc. I refuse to believe that any of this is an innocent mistake at this point. A company of this size and importance who is in the business of enabling communication between individuals and small groups can not possibly have the excuse of being unaware of the implications of their policies in this matter.

What is Our Moral Imperative Here?

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The obvious question is whether we should be in Washington protesting? One might want to be there to protest the racism that led to the death of Floyd, or one might want to protest the failure of our system of government to protect its people from an obviously deranged madman. 

But in either case you can be sure that those who protest will be on lists, and that they will start killing people (you know, he committed suicide in jail, he tried to resist arrest by running away from drugs planted during a no-knock raid, or maybe he/she will just be asked to serve 10 years in prison in Alabama or whatever they come up with. Nevertheless, what is our moral position here? Should we be there even though we will be punished for protesting the actions of the leader?

The Events in Minneapolis and 50 Years

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I think that the protesters in Minneapolis should burn the damn city down.  Its been 50 years since 1968 and lots of promises were made.  Remember.  Its the ballot or the bullet.

The government failed us.

Time to change the government.

1185 Posts

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There have been 1185 posts on this blog.  15 away from 1200.  Yay! 

Purge of Trump Collaborators

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I am starting to read articles about how to treat the civil servants who cooperated with Trump and his criminal agenda when/if Biden comes to power. One article in particular pleaded for a smarmy forgiveness of those who betrayed their country and committed crimes, as clearly anyone who cooperated with Trump did. They must be investigated and a certain number of the worst offenders prosecuted. The rest of them should just be demoted or fired. Cooperating with Trump is like cooperating with Hitler, and war criminals should not be allowed in our government.

The New Interface to Blogger: Why?

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The new interface seems to add nothing new.  It just hides some functions and changes things around.  There is no point to it.  I plan to use the legacy blogger interface as long as they will let me.

Raising My Estimate of the Deaths from COVID-19

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I am raising my highly scientific estimate of American deaths from the coronavirus up from 200K to 288K. The world class logic (dry sarcasm, sorry) that I use for this estimate is as follows.

The WaPo death count for Americans as of this morning is 96,000. But we know the number is low because not all deaths from COVID-19 are officially marked as such for a number of different reasons, some benign, some less so. The estimates for an adjustment factor range from 1.25 to 2.0 although I have seen higher. Lets take a relatively conservative 1.5. That means that we are currently at 144,000 deaths. It seems likely to me, even optimistic, that we can expect an equal number of deaths going forward as we try to manage this thing although of course the future is uncertain. On the one hand we are getting better at testing, and know a lot more about how to treat the disease (although still not doing so great there, we are certainly getting better). On the other hand, it is likely that social distancing really did help (with regional variation) but different areas are opening up now and it would be a miracle if this did not cause local hot spots. A couple of good church meetings and political rallies can infect hundreds of people who will then spread the virus at the very least to their immediate family. The rallies in Michigan of the guys with guns and calling for people to resist the Mark of the Beast came from all over the country, I read, and we know some of them were infected. A vaccine in the next 12 months would be amazing, and I think has a low probability of happening, although it is certainly possible if we get lucky.

So it seems fair to me that if we had some N deaths getting to this point, and since we are nowhere near done, and at best we are at some sort of peak, then it is likely that we would have at least that many taking the curve down assuming that the curve is symmetric, which it may not be. Thus 2 * 144,000 = 288,000. At least.

I have been pretty good at predicting this so far, through my flakey back of the envelope estimates but hopefully I am wrong this time and it will just go away as the Great Leader who Knows All Things predicted.

Corrupt Supreme Court and Separation of Power

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My friend, the Harvard trained attorney, tried to convince me that the Supreme Court denied the Democratic subpoena for the Mueller report because of "separation of powers". He didnt convince me of that, but he did convince me that the system was corrupt.

I said: "If, as you say, the subpoena is denied because of separation of powers, then the Democrats were stupid to expect anything from an independent investigation. The president could just order his corrupt attorney general to suppress whatever was discovered. So either the Supreme Court is suppressing the evidence (it is) or the Democrats and the American people were stupid to trust the process (they were) but in any case the legitimacy of the American system is diminished. "

There are many problems here but the one that amazes me the most is not the actions of the corrupt right wing nuts in Washington.  I think I understand them just fine.  What I find most unbelievable is the large number of people who are willing to accept any amount of corruption and treason as long as they dont have to face the fact that their system failed.

But it did fail.  It obviously failed many times.  Wake up.

How Do You Spell Stoodge?

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What fun it is to see the destruction of the American Republic in real time! A maniac injecting himself with fantasy drugs while Americans die right and left and the inspector generals are fired and Republicans with blood on their hands violate their oath of office in a way that would make a Roman senator turn away in shame. The tax returns are still not released, I guess the right wing supreme court is waiting as long as it can to protect their stoodge in the white house. I went to UCLA and we know all about running out the clock. Golly, they sure moved quickly enough when they blocked Al Gore's presidency and installed their boy! And of course I know, somehow I just know, that McConnell's right wing racist judges will enforce the law and not allow voter suppression, of course, of course. The oath! They will do their sworn duty like all true Republicans, like Rep Nunes and AG Barr if you know what I mean, wink wink. Hey too bad about Mueller, I guess he wasnt compromised enough and constrained by regulations for the True Americans in the White House. Let those Russians go, after all, we all know who guaranteed those loans at Deutsche Bank, now dont we? You DO know who guarnteed those loans this administration is being SO transparent about, right? They have old Trump-y, the quinine king, right where they want him. And lets not worry about arguing that "impeachment" is actually a process that will protect Americans! Never in the history of the American Republic, so-called, has there been a clearer case for removing a miscreant from the White House than the case that the Democrats prepared. It makes me wonder what this world is coming to. Surely, surely, surely someone must worry that all those decades about lying to the third world about how great our system is might affect our credibility. Oh yes, and now the Republicans are saying we must cut even the stupidly inadequate social services this country has because deficit! Oh yes, the deficit-y.

It amazes me that the Republicans would commit treason to keep power but they have. The system failed. It has failed every day of the last 3.5 years and a good case can be made that it failed in November 2000 and this is just the 800 lb chickens coming home to roost.

Implement the voting rights act. Put Merrick Garland on the Supreme Court. Tell McConnell, Nunes, Barr, Kavanaugh, Trump and Pence to go home and stay there until we decide what to do with them and for them not to travel without notifying the FBI.

Picture of my Patron

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This is a picture of my patron, who is on Facebook, but must remain nameless. It has been nearly two years since she picked me up out of the gutter and placed me here at the Monastery in Santa Barbara to study the Esoteric Knowledge.

No one knows where this is going, not really.