Oh this is so out of control.

You’ve got to be kidding me!

This is nothing more or less than Piracy.

It harkens back to the Barbary Pirates of the 16th and 17th centuries. There were wars fought against these Pirates. Hey, guess what? They were Muslims too! Funny how that works.

These pirates are obviously well funded and you do have to wonder which country is providing the pilots, the weapons, and oh, the ships actual location or the manifest. This particular operation was supposed to be so the Houthis could seize an Israeli shipment.

I’d say we need to go back to the old mechanisms of deterring piracy. Shoot to kill. Dump the bodies overboard. I’m the kind of asshole that would allow them to land their pirates to determine that they are in fact pirates. Then start shooting the pirates on board, and make sure that a surface to air missile blows their transport right the fuck out of the sky.

I think that private mercenaries should be allowed to provide security for every single ship passing through the Gulf and the Red Sea.

BTW were those missile pods mounted on the helicopter? Really? isn’t that shit usually reserved for governments? I pray the armaments are not from Biden’s disastrous Afghanistan pull out.

Maybe AI will be a good thing.

Bear with me!

I was on the phone with some utility… I don’t remember who. Who can? Their phone prompts sounded just like Apple’s, and every other “Helpful Automated Phone system.”  None of which are helpful to me at all.

In that moment while I was grinding my teeth listening to a bunch of choices that I didn’t want, and having the system telling me, “I didn’t understand what you’re asking for, so let’s try again…”

I thought, “I don’t want or need to deal with this frustration in my life,” in addition to the frustration of whatever problem was serious enough for me to call this Servicer Company in the first place.

Yeah, I’m getting right back to acting like a Nebari. Folks this ain’t gonna be pretty. 

“Servicer, here is the account number, I don’t care what your name is, I don’t choose to give you my name, I give the commands – You execute the commands. That is the extent of our relationship.”

I gotta admit there are some fictional races from science fiction that have really stuck with me. The Nebari from FarScape, The Romulans from StarTrek, The Omecs and the Indogenes from Defiance. There are others, Predators and Aliens for example, and still more which are the stuff of nightmares. 

I think the Nebari stick with me most because they simply “KNOW” they’re right. I identify with the kind of arrogance!

Anyway, my point is that I’m not going to willingly talk to automated phone systems anymore. I don’t as a rule use a company’s website for anything except the simplest of things and these days the list of simple things is dwindling as well. It’s gotten to the point that some websites won’t show you your bill without 97 factor authentication.

If I’ve already set up multi-factor authentication, then let’s do it! Stop changing the protocol such that my stored passwords are no longer functional and my stored user ID is locked out.

Does no-one test their software anymore prior to shoving it down a captive population’s throat?

Due to the ever increasing complexity of corporate phone trees, and the ever decreasing return on my investment of time to get something done I’ve started going to the branches of the corporations in question.

I will no longer be a faceless, imaginary, easily ignored, person. Oh they’re going to have to see me, hear me, and if I’ve been working in the yard… smell me!

If they point out that they have phone and web services I’m going to show them my smart phone or watch and loudly explain that I choose to be a physical pain in their asses because satisfaction cannot be had via their corporate phone or web site. 

I want to see them CRY!

As this particular train of thought derailed in my mind, it occurred to me that AI living on the Web might meet its demise not through corrupted use but through lack of use. AI could be the death of the internet, or at least a driving force in humankind choosing to use the internet less.

For years, there have been “news” sites on the internet that read like the old tabloid publications from the grocery checkout lines. Within the last 15 years or so, even so-called “reputable” news sites have become nothing more than replicators of a single story with a paragraph or two of “Original” material serving as an “Analysis” of the original item that is being reposted.

The same thing is happening on the major broadcast news sites too if you think about it.

The only changes there are the talking heads, and a slightly different spin to appear non-homogeneous but the underlying story is exactly the same shit.

That’s why a lot of people are disconnecting their cable feeds and going back to antennas or just the internet.

Why pay for the exact same take on every single news article from 50 news channels when an antenna can pull the same garbage right off the air for free?

See I just saved you $200 a month. You’re welcome!

I’ve been noticing for years that people “Writing” are actually dictating their articles. I’ve also noticed that they’re not always proofreading their articles. (Yes, I know I’m the kettle calling the pot black. I however am not a trained journalist. I also don’t dictate my pieces, I actually type them. Although sometimes the autocorrect systems “Help” me really fuck up a word I’ve spelled incorrectly.)

Lately I’ve been noticing AI generated output. I’m looking for an example because like an idiot I didn’t save what I was reading when I noticed the Artificial-ness  (I know, the word is “artificiality”, ) of the article. I went with “Artificial-ness so I wouldn’t be called racist for using actual English words correctly. Apparently having a vocabulary these days is in fact a demonstration of white privilege, a micro aggression, and completely racist. So you may notice me giving myself a lobotomy from time to time…

I digress, AI generated articles are interesting and noticeable. I can’t really describe what the tip off is, I can only say you’ll know it when you see it.

The text is just “off”, and the conclusions of the piece are skewed in an odd way. It’s rather like reading something that’s been passed through Google Translate© several times. The construction is prefect but the meaning is ambiguous or lost entirely. 

Admittedly, there are some articles that are very subtly non human. I’ve noticed that I don’t enjoy reading them. In the case of some “scientific” articles the lead is buried completely.

For Example, there’s an archeological site in Turkey that was thought to be a “One Off” religious site not an example of a civilization. The site is called Göbekli Tepe and dates to somewhere between 10 and 12 thousand years and was intentionally buried.

10 to 12 thousand years ago, Humanity was supposed to be loosely aggregated bands of small semi-agricultural hunter gatherer villages, there was no civilization as defined by archeologists. That’s why the site is called a “one off” religious site and Archeologists breathed a sigh of relief that they didn’t have to explain the sophistication of the site as anything other than religious fervor. 

Then a second site called Karahan Tepe, using the same architecture, and also buried intentionally was discovered 10-20 miles away. Then a third site may have been discovered in the same general area, 10-20 miles from the first two sites, which has yet to be excavated but appears to have the same architectural elements.

We’re talking about a heretofore undiscovered civilization that pushes humanity’s civilization period 5000 years back in time. That’s a big deal! Archeologists are having to rethink civilization and how long humans have been capable large scale coordinated building projects and why.

Interestingly, this discovery also reopens the question of age of the Sphinx. The Egyptian authorities have steadfastly maintained that the Sphinx was built by the Egyptian civilization not an older civilization. The weathering on the sphinx enclosure and the sphinx itself indicate that the sphinx is approximately 12000 years old. Egyptian authorities have denied this age because it predates the Egyptian civilization of the Nile by around 6000 years. 

They’ve been able to maintain their denial because there was no evidence of other civilizations from 10-12 thousand years ago.

Until now.

The AI version of this information was “A site has been discovered in Southern Turkey which has a similar age and building style to Göbekli Tepe, a neolithic site of interest.”

The AI version went on to discuss the original site, and that it was thought to be a Temple Complex for an unknown religion.  The article details the original sites discovery date and makes vague reference to the detailed bass reliefs carved into the stones. 

What the AI articled failed to point out was finding a second site and potentially a third site with the same architecture and artwork isn’t what is typically associated with neolithic people. You might get some petroglyphs on cave walls but you don’t typically get freestanding stones with bass relief depictions of local wildlife, fantasy/mythology creatures,  and humans.

AI doesn’t have soul. AI isn’t going to be fascinated by discoveries. While AI might connect the RAW data, as in this case, AI will not recognize the significance. AI will ultimately produce something that is factually correct but lacks excitement. 

I think that a lot of people will stop using AI because of its lack of excitement in discovery. 

How many people do you know that call utility companies to talk to the helpful people personality phone tree?

One can hope that people with brains will be unimpressed with AI and the technology will be relegated to the pile of interesting ideas that didn’t really pan out.

Fingers crossed! Otherwise the internet is going to become really dull, boring, and extremely annoying to use. Sort of like attempting to contact your local utility company.

It’s been a weird busy week.

Not that I’m complaining about it. 

The week has been a weird one. It’s the one year anniversary of Jerry’s death. I was feeling it a little, but nothing unexpected, and in a way, now that I’ve been through a whole year there’s a sense of relief.

Part of it is distance from him having died and part of it is that now that I’ve been through all the holidays and special days I’m somewhat relieved and confident about having survived. Oh sure I was a little melancholy and nostalgic…

I’m still standing.

Monday into Tuesday

I was struck by the memory that on those dates it was the beginning of the end. I’d seen him carried out the door to the hospital unconscious and unresponsive. Most of that memory was fear and intense worry coupled with trying to convince myself that everything was going to be okay.

Just a few days later he was dead.

Wednesday

Nothing much happened, I was cleaning and tossing but the day passed in a bit of a fog

Thursday,

Was the actual date… The day Jerry died. I spent with the dog, quietly. 

Friday

I was at the temple for service and that was nice. It was music Jerry arranged or had a particular fondness for. After the service, one of the congregants said they were still upset and a little angry that Jerry had passed on. They said, “You must still be feeling that way too.” 

“Oddly,” I explained, “I don’t. I still miss him terribly, but we had 34 years together. Most of those years were good ones. The years we had were more than many people get. Divorce, illness, accidents, all cut time spent with someone. That we found each other, loved, and endured for all that time was a gift. Of course I’d like to have more time but I’m thankful for what I got.”

The congregant nodded and said I had a good attitude. I suppose maybe I do.

Saturday 

I had a lot on fun and pretty much spent all day yesterday laughing my ass off. 

A long overdue get together with two men I’ve known for 44 years finally happened. We had a drink, in my case two… we wandered, talked, laughed, and enjoyed being together once again.

This get together should have been called the Fixed Income tour!  It was the first time that all three of us got together after having retired.

We met when we were starting out, I remember those first paychecks, waiting in line to buy gas, and wondering why so much of our puny paychecks was whittled away in taxes. 

What I didn’t know then was that these friends would in fact remain lifelong friends who cared, and for whom I cared, about all these years.

To be honest, a shit ton of people pass through our lives. Some of them you’re happy to see go, others you can’t hold onto, time and life pulls you apart, and the last and best category are friends that are constants like stars in the sky.

(Yes, I know stars aren’t forever… Shut it! Science brain. I’m waxing all poetical… The stars in the sky will outlast us and the planet!)

Yesterday  I managed to walk right past a couple of Pro-Palestein protestors with their flags and stupid slogans and not challenge them. My two friends were hanging back a bit as we passed, whether to help if I lost control and shot my mouth off, or to just laugh if shot my mouth off and started a riot, I’m not sure. Perhaps a bit of both…

When we were going to pass the protestor’s spot again I wished I had a lighter because I wondered if I could legally burn their flags. The question popped out of my head following the logic that you can burn an American flag with impunity so why not a foreign flag?

It appeared that the Palestinian protestors had gone home for the day, protesting and waving flags being such hard work. (Dudes, you didn’t have to go to the gym on arms day!)  I presume they were drowning their sorrows about Gaza with a lovely half caf double latte, a hot meal prepared by someone else, and a bong full of the latest variation of pot they’d procured. Their lives are, after all, soooo difficult. 

I was gratified to note that there were only two Palestinian flags and it didn’t look like a lot of people were paying attention to the protestors. Maybe as Americans tend to do, we’re just getting bored hearing about it. Seen any Ukraine flags lately?

I suggested at one point that perhaps the three of us could go on a stealing spree through all the high end stores at the Glendale Galleria in keeping with the times. There was some question about what exactly the cash limit was before it became a felony. Since all of us are planners and have expensive tastes we couldn’t come to consensus about what we could steal and how much. Next time though…

We’re gonna shock the world as the “Geriatric Three”. At our ages it would be the perfect capper to our lives. Mug Shots in our 60s! I wonder if the police are more afraid of arresting old guys than young guys? The young guys are more like brawlers in a school yard, lots of swinging but not much damage.

Old guys though, well, we’re JUST PLAIN MEAN! Next time I see one of the local sheriffs maybe I’ll ask.

I even noticed I was “Hunting” there were some interesting people at the mall and I wasn’t being too subtle about checking them out. It’s been a year, I could start dating again without it being unseemly. I noticed I was doing something I swore I’d never do, I was being a little chicken-hawkish. Some of the guys I was noticing were so young, mid 30s to early 40s. My god! They could easily be my kid!

They were safe… The only way I could’ve caught them was if I was riding on one of those mobility scooters you see old folks riding in the park. The eye candy was nice. I knew some of them were pretty to look at but wholly incompatible with me or any of my beliefs. Perhaps it’s just as well that time and age is slowing me down a bit.

The way my knee was acting up toward the end of the day, I’m probably going to be in the market for a good cane soon. When I got home last night I think the health app said I’d walked 7 miles yesterday. I know I’d walked 1.5 miles with the dog in the early morning before heading to Glendale but was surprised that the total had ended up so high.

My knee didn’t start really acting up until later in the day. I’d tweaked it again on Wednesday or Thursday and had to ice it.

All told yesterday, aside from being slow to start working after we’d been sitting for a while, it wasn’t too bad,  It’s probably a sign that I should increase my walking distance and start stretching a bit more to continue rebuilding strength in both knees. 

One of my friends described being at a Mall as something approximating Hell in his estimation. After seeing Duck-lipped women, men with painted fingernails wearing too short, “skinny jeans” as fashion statements, and too many languages to count he might have a point. 

I’m reminded that I’ve been fairly isolated, preferring to stick close to home. Some would say it’s a holdover from the COVID lockdowns, in truth, it started prior to COVID. I’d been living in San Diego and in close contact due to apartment dwelling, and I’d become super tired of people in general.

The point is, that because I’ve not been around a lot of folks I’m even more uncomfortable in crowds these days. Not that I’m a germaphobe but I’m mindful that my immune system hasn’t needed to be as active in recent years as it had in the past. Without being exposed to the filth of humanity daily, your immune system starts eating Bon Bons and doing its nails.

So I might end up with some stupid late winter cold, but being out in the world with my friends was totally worth it.

The next time we get together perhaps it should be here. We could cook out on the grill, listen to music, and laugh watching the sun track across the mountains, while listening to the sound of light breezes in the trees. Bonus, the dog would be happy with new people to annoy!

The dog is currently pissed at me. He was alone two consecutive nights and missed our ball time. Thankfully the temps have been very moderate but both nights the wind picked up before I got home. He hates the wind!  So last night he pointed the stinky end at me and slept at the foot of the bed.

I’m going to have to make it up to him. 

But that will have to wait until tomorrow. 

Today, Sunday, I’m going to lunch with one of Jerry’s friends and then I’m looking forward to resting a bit on Monday.

Then it’s back to sorting and tossing the accumulated crap. I’m still shooting for having the house on the market in spring. If something happens between now and then to change that desire, it will still be okay because I wont’ have a bunch of crap.

I hope everyone is in as good a space as I am. Uh OH, the Dog is looking for me. It’s time for me to get dressed and take him for a walk.