| Time |
Event |
| 12:04p |
White faces generated by generative learning models
*White faces generated by [generative learning models] are more
convincing than [real] photos, finds survey.*
Does the capability to generate very credible unreal faces count as
knowing or understanding something? If it does, I would have to say
this system qualifies as "artificial intelligence". But I don't think
it does.
</li>
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| 12:04p |
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| 12:04p |
UK Minister of Cruelty dismissed
The UK's Minister of Cruelty has been dismissed and replaced.
The new minister is a Tory too, and may be expected to be more or
less cruel, but won't necessarily base his career on showing how cruel
he can be.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
Philippine Senator released from jail
Philippine Senator de Lima, jailed for investigating President
Do-Dirty's murderous "war on drugs", has been released from jail.
She was never actually convicted on any of the charges, but spent six years
in jail anyway.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
Fired Amazon drivers picketing
*Drivers for Amazon unionized, were fired and are now picketing around US.*
This illustrates how outsourcing of workers facilitates mistreating
them.
We need laws to limit outsourcing, or perhaps instead to make the ultimate
beneficial employer (to borrow a term from the field of wealth-hiding)
responsible for respecting workers' rights notwithstanding the outsourcing.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
China's investment in renewable electricity
China has recently increased investment in renewable electricity, and its
greenhouse emissions could fall starting next year.
This is a relief and a good example for the world. The rest of the
world needs to overcome the power of the planet roasters so we can
make other countries do likewise.
We should not overgeneralize. China remains an expansionist
repressive dictatorship; there is no sign of a change in that.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
Pilot program for stop-and-search in England
A pilot program for stop-and-search in England (1) displays racial
bias and (2) does not reduce violence.
This is no surprise, but it does show that stop-and-search is an injustice
now as it was before.
I made the above link to an article because it tells us something
important about racism. Racism is an intense form of bigotry; it is a
collective injustice that I condemn, and support the campaign against.
I think posting a link to that article will help that campaign.
Ironically, that article itself embodies symbolic bigotry by
capitalizing "black" but not "white". (To avoid this bigotry,
capitalize both words or neither one.) I denounce lesser forms of
bigotry too, and I don't want to normalize symbolic bigotry by letting
it pass without calling it out. Normally I avoid any mention of
articles that practice it.
I had conflicting feelings about that article based on these two valid
goals: to make a link, because of its important point about racism, or
not to link, to avoid normalizing the article's own bigotry. I
concluded that the first goal could not be neglected, and made the
link. But the second goal also should not be neglected — hence this
note to criticize the article's own bigotry.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
"Climate change" in haiku poetry
Usually "climate change" is a euphemism for climate disaster, but in
one special case, the tradition of haiku poetry, the mere fact of
change in climate
is a disaster in itself regardless of the details.
Perhaps future haiku poets could use the contrast between real
seasonal weather patterns (of that time) and the haiku traditions of
seasonal weather patterns to illuminate something about human beings.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
"From the river to the sea" chant
A thoughtful analysis of what's wrong about the "From the river to the
sea" chant.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
How the BBC is funded
The BBC is funded by a fee imposed on everyone who watches television
in the UK. This is rightly criticized as a regressive funding scheme
since rich and poor pay the same amount.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
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| 12:04p |
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| 12:04p |
Australian deportation prison
When a non-citizen commits a serious crime in Australia, after per
prison sentence, Australia's practice is to keep per in deportation
prison until deportation actually occurs — which was meant not to be
very long. But what if someone is impossible to deport? In practice
this resulted in a sentence of life in prison.
A court ruled that Australia must release those people
if actual deportation can't happen in the foreseeable future.
This is just, and safe. Citizens who commit the same crimes are not
sentenced to life in prison. If it's not too dangerous to release the
citizens who commit these crimes, why should it be more dangerous to
release non-citizens who commit them (when deporting them is impossible).
</li> |
| 12:04p |
US supporters of Israel and Palestine
*[Many] US supporters of Israel and Palestine fail to admit
suffering of other side.*
They become *so entrenched in [their]
views that to give an inch, even to acknowledge someone else’s
suffering, feels like a betrayal [of the side one supports].*
I do not want to try to compare the gravity of HAMAS's war crimes
with the gravity of Israel's war crimes. But we can easily see that
Israel commits fresh war crimes every day, while HAMAS does not.
It's not that HAMAS has reformed or learned anything about the
morality of killing or seizing civilians. It is simply that the
current tactical situation offers HAMAS no opportunities to commit its
forms of war crimes. It is nonetheless true that the newly committed
war crimes are committed by Israel. Therefore, in regard to putting
an end to the war crimes, we must focus on Israel's continuing war
crimes, which It cannot excuse by citing the crimes of its enemies,
"Retaliation" and "deterrence" are not excuses for war crimes.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
Australia's counterpart to Chelsea Manning
Australia is putting its counterpart to Chelsea Manning on trial for
leaking secret information about Australian soldiers' covered-up war
crimes in Afghanistan.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
Outdoor cats in Australia
Australians are learning to recognize the importance of not letting
pet cats roam outdoors and kill wildlife.
The issue is somewhat different in Europe and Africa, since wildcats
(from which domesticated cats were bred) have been present there since
before humans. To some extent, the ecosystem is adapted to their
existence. However, that adaptation depends partly on the presence of
larger predators that limit the number of wildcats.
</li> |
| 12:04p |
Urgent: No war crimes
US citizens: call on Congress: No war crimes in our names or with our
tax dollars.
Israel has a right to defend itself from HAMAS, but not a right to
commit massive war crimes against Palestinians in general,
and it cannot excuse them by ordering Palestinians to "Leave
northern Gaza or else be considered `terrorists'."
If you phone, please spread the word!
Main Switchboard: +1-202-224-3121
</li> |
| 12:04p |
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| 2:18p |
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