Cyrano
Cyrano's JournalVirtually every human invention or discovery has been weaponized.
When the ancients discovered fire, they had a way to keep warm and cook food. But it probably wasn't too long before they decided to use it against their enemies.
In the bronze age, humans used bronze to replace tools made of stone. Then, someone created the first sword which made killing much simpler.
When the Chinese mixed carbon, sulfur and saltpeter, they found that it exploded which helped simplify construction and enhance celebrations. How long do you suppose it was before someone decided to use it against people?
The discovery of electricity lit homes, and replaced steam as the major source of power for humanity. It also made possible countless new weapons, not to mention its use to execute people.
Einstein's theories led to the creation of nuclear power plants and also, to his ultimate dismay, weaponry of almost unimaginable power.
In 1945, ENIAC, the first general purpose electronic digital computer was developed. At this very moment we can see how software has been weaponized. The system used by over 15,000 car dealerships has been hacked and being held for ransom. Try buying a car today or in the next month or more.
But software can do far more damage than that. Electrical grids, communications systems, medical devices and most of what we take for granted in modern life can be hacked and possibly destroyed.
So here's the question: Will we humans outlive our adolescence before we destroy ourselves?*
(*This is a paraphrase of a Carl Sagan quote.)
They never go away.
I just watched the first thirty minutes of "Saving Private Ryan." It's but a snapshot of the actual horror of June 6th, 1944, the day on which tens of thousands of America's Greatest Generation, along with America's allies, invaded Nazi held Europe. The blood shed by those who perished on the beaches of Normandy are memorialized in annual ceremonies. And rightfully so. They, and those who survived, saved the world from fascism. Yes. Let me say that again. They saved the world from fascism.
Yet, here we are again, under the threat of the fascists. They never go away.
The freedoms we Americans have were secured by those who stormed those beaches to defeat a foreign threat. But now, that threat is homegrown. Who can doubt that Trump is a dictator wannabe, who might just see his fantasies come to be reality? Who can doubt that the billionaire donors who back him want to add to their wealth and power by putting him back in the White House? Who can doubt that the Republican Party consists of those who agree with him, and/or those too afraid to oppose him? Who can doubt that tens of millions of American voters are conned and drawn in by the Republican media propaganda machine? And who can doubt that many are just too ignorant to grasp that they are voting to fuck themselves?
This week, the week that was the beginning of the end for German fascism, was the week in which American fascists hit the gas pedal. Dear Leader was convicted of 34 felonies, so he went online and on TV to whip up his faithful. And perhaps the worst of those "faithful" are elected Republicans who went public, declaring that our system of government is illegitimate, "rigged," corrupt, and needs to be removed.
There it is, folks. The standard fascist playbook. Accusing us of everything they themselves are guilty of. They have declared war on truth and democracy. They are lying their asses off and they intend to turn this country into our worst nightmare when they gain complete power. And, no matter how you want to describe them, they are today's Nazis. They are what our forebears were fighting and dying for on those Normandy beaches.
Right now, our plan to stop them is to vote. And hopefully, we'll win, but even if we do, they are not going away. So here's my question. Do we have the fortitude to stand up to homegrown fascism the way our forebears stood up to European fascism on this day, 80 years ago?
And the death threats are flying.
So this is Trump's America. Go against him at the risk of your life. And tens of millions of Trump voters seem to be saying this is okay. After all, they're planning to vote for him.
Think about that. Judges, jurors, witnesses, and anyone else who says anything negative about Trump is at risk of being murdered if he wins or steals the presidency. Does anyone here think he'll play by any rules?
Are we here on DU safe? After all, who or what is going to stop him from seizing the DU membership info and then sending his elves after each and every one of us? For that matter, what's to stop him from going after any of his voters who don't show sufficient enthusiasm for him? -- And if the American billionaire oligarchs who are backing him think they are safe, they're fools.
And anyone who believes this post is a bit extreme, either doesn't see, or doesn't understand the possible consequences if he comes to power. It's happened before in other places at other times. America doesn't have any magic immunity to the whims of a lunatic who has total power.
(And no. I haven't been drinking or smoking weed.)
A peek behind the curtain. Trump is just the front man.
The Republicans are on the verge of owning America. Billionaires, whose names we don't even know, have spent decades buying their way to this point. And the irony is that Trump is too stupid to know that they lucked out when he came along. He's their flashing, neon, "free candy for everyone" billboard.-- And he's one of the most effective in history.
Tens of millions have bought into his "The drinks are on the house" pitch. After all, doesn't everyone love the guy who has said he'll pick up the tab.
Those who ran Germany's "Third Reich" sold much the same shit. It worked. They ended up owning the country, and then they tried to own the entire world. Britain, Russia and our forebears stopped them. But this time around, the shit peddlers are homegrown. Our founders called them "Domestic Enemies." And they have a good chance of winning or stealing this year's election. If they do, it will be the last.
And here we are. The majority. We're watching it unfold and our leaders seem to be caught like deer in the headlights. Yes, the media is assisting the barbarians. But you'd think that countless millions of sane people could put up a better defense. Actually, "defense" seems like joke. We're barely in this fight. And millions of people who are Democrats are only vaguely aware that the Republicans have declared war on democracy.
So what do we do besides everything possible to get out the vote and beat them at the polls? I wish I had the answer. Yet, we know going into this election that their suppression tactics, their gerrymandering, their "lost votes" claims, and everything else they have in their bag of dirty tricks, is being employed.
The only advice I have to give is VOTE! And if that's not enough, we need a Plan B, which we currently seem to lack. And it's a lack that could cost us our freedoms, our country and our lives.
Is AI as big a threat as climate change and nuclear weapons?
Virtually every new tool/discovery/invention in the history of the world has been weaponized. Rocks, sticks, and fire, were the first, most obvious weapons that homo sapiens used to kill each other. Bows and arrows came along, and then gunpowder tremendously upped the death count.
Now, here we are with the reality of AI, and only a tiny fraction of the world even knows what Artificial Intelligence is, or what it means.
Yet, it's existence has surpassed even that of, what we have for the past 80 years or so, feared most. Nuclear weapons can wipe out cities, and even the entire planet. But they're really hard to be used on specific targets. What specific targets? Well, how about utilities which include our water, power and communications? My guess is that, disrupting those three things for which we pay for monthly, would lead to a world that would be fucked up beyond repair.
Yet, here we are with AI available to corporations, any smart person who owns a desktop or laptop, or, perhaps even just an Apple or Android phone?
Do I really need to continue with the countless ways in which AI is, and is about to, change the entire world? Those who "get it," get it. Those who don't yet understand, will, in the near future become aware of how it affects their personal lives.
Right now, you don't see DU filled with how AI is changing/improving/destroying the world as we know it. But put this post aside, read it a year from now, and then, see if it means more to you than it currently does.
Many may think I'm "full of crap.' But in early 1945, "The Manhattan Project" meant nothing to most of the people in the world.
He's told us who/what he is. Tens of millions can't/won't hear it.
They can't wait to vote for him in November.
What's wrong with them? How can they not grasp the consequences?
Many are people we know. Some are friends. Some are family.
They believe the lies. The propaganda. The poison.
Are they morally dead?
Didn't they hear him say "vermin," "poisoning our blood," "deport millions," "camps for illegals," "assassination of opponents?"
Mark Twain said: "History doesn't repeat itself, but it often rhymes." I've got to disagree. What Trump and his minions have in mind is an exact repeat of Nazi Germany's Third Reich. When American soldiers entered those death camps, the words "True Evil" became fully defined for the entire world.
Why do I think that Trump and his ilk are capable of this? Because I've listened to what he, and so many of his followers have said out loud. They've told us where they will go if they gain power. BELIEVE THEM.
Can we stop them before any of this happens? I don't know. But the first step is obvious. VOTE!
Republicans have stolen patriotism, its symbols, and the concept of reality.
You can't be a patriot if you're a Democrat. Why? Republicans say so.
You can't be seeing the reality of the world if you're a Democrat. Why? Republicans have told us so.
Why do so many believe this bullshit? Because Republicans have built the biggest and best propaganda machine in the history of the wold.
Fox "news," wingnut podcasts, lunatic blogs: Republicans have seized the majority of ways in which we receive our "news" and now, tens of millions are buying the shit they're selling.
But, Joe Biden is still the President and he has the biggest megaphone in the world. Yet, Trump and his sycophants seem to have an even bigger microphone. It all goes back to the saying that: "A lie will travel around the world before truth gets it's pants on."
If nothing else, understand this. Republicans don't "own" the flag, or the Pledge of Allegiance, or the National Anthem. As a matter of fact, today's Republican Party is a malicious, cruel, dangerous criminal organization that has fallen in love with totalitarianism and is entitled to claim none of the symbols of democracy.
Many of them believe the "reality they're peddling. But those funding their movement are just using those too uneducated and dense to understand that America is being stolen and enslaved.
And let's not forget that they claim to own god. Well, if she or he exists, I'm pretty sure she/he doesn't give flying shit what they believe.
The bottom line here is that far too many American voters are eating the crap the Republicans are peddling. And if Trump and his minions win/steal the election, their voters will be clueless that they're putting the noose of fascism around their own necks.
Ali Velshi just keeps getting better and better.
This evening, I watched Ali Velshi sitting in for Lawrence O'Donnell on MSNBC. Ali did a 20 minute opening monologue as does Rachel Maddow on Monday nights. He's informed about American and world politics, and he's become an MSNBC treasure.
At one time in America, John Kennedy was not dead until the TV icon Walter Cronkite of that era stated it to be so. Rachel, and now Ali, are virtually at that level of credibility.
Whatever political ideology you ascribe to, truth is truth. To me, Rachel Maddow has been the most reliable source of news for years. Now, she's being joined by Ali Velshi. TV has become but one of many media outlets. But regardless of which media you're paying attention to, credibility is everything. And Rachel and Ali have it.
Trump's Death Camps?
IMO, if he wins/steals the presidency, death camps are virtually inevitable.
He’s already said he’s going to deport 11 million people. Who’s going to pay for the boats and planes? Or is he just going to load them all on barges and push them out to sea?
He’s also talked about “detention camps” for illegal aliens. How much is it going to cost to feed and guard them? After all, we all know how Trump hates to “waste money.” Also, why would he stop at illegal aliens?
And let’s not forget that he wants to be able to assassinate his opponents ("opponents" meaning anyone he wants to assassinate). Does anyone really think that, in his mind, there’s any difference between a few dozen, a few hundred, a few thousand, or a few million?
Anyone who can’t foresee “Trump Death Camps,” isn't paying attention. Trump, his MAGAs, and others want a white, “Christian” nation. And there is no doubt in my mind that they’ll go for a “Final Solution” to get it.
VOTE.
Okay, that's my opinion. So fire away and let’s hear why you think I’m nuts.
Even if found guilty, he won't go to jail.
IMO, he'll be sentenced to house arrest with an ankle bracelet. My guess is that even if he announces that he's going to take the verdict to the appeals court, the judge will still order that his sentence begin immediately.
I have little doubt that, were this scenario to happen, the MAGATs would take to the streets. However, this time around, Joe Biden is the Commander in Chief and he can call out the military to put down any widespread violence.
Under these conditions, it will be interesting to see how many would still vote for him.
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Member since: Fri Apr 16, 2004, 02:36 PM
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