Gender Identification

Do you remember the song entitled, LOLA?  It was written and recorded by The Kinks and released in 1970.  "Man, I'm a man and so was Lola..." 

That was over 50 years ago and well before the LGBTQ+ movement.

So, could The Kinks see into the future?

NO...

Gender identification has been going on well before the birth of JESUS...  in case you are wondering...

• Boys wanting to be girls
• Girls wanting to be boys

I think, deep down inside, there are thousands of males both married and single, who have fantasized more than once about being with individuals who have both male and female equipment.

And, it certainly is a TABOO subject because the general public does not want to talk about their desires in public.

Scientifically, it makes sense that the more babies that a society gives birth to, the higher the risks of having DNA variations and misassignments...  which also includes babies being born with both genitalia.

I also believe that males should be able to marry males and females should be able to marry females.  I also believe that boy can become girls and girls can become boys once they are old enough to be aware of the consequences of those decisions.

Therein lies the problem...

What age does that kind of awareness take place?

What I am opposed to is biological males playing females sports and biological females playing male sports.

Society has gone too far.

However,

what about TRANS SPORTS?

Paradigms

 What is a paradigm?
A paradigm is a standard, perspective, or set of ideas. A paradigm is a way of looking at something. The word paradigm comes up a lot in the academic, scientific, and business worlds. A new paradigm in business could mean a new way of reaching customers and making money.

This is exactly what is happening in the USA...  we are in disharmony because we have different paradigms.

We simply see things differently.

When two people see things differently, it is difficult to reach a compromise.

If it is difficult to make a compromise, then very little gets accomplished and there is NO PROGRESS MADE.

Progress only takes place by those who:

• ARE IN POWER
• ARE EXTREMELY WEALTHY

In these two situations you don't need a compromise and you are betting that you were right all along...

But, what if you are wrong?

Examples of Paradigms

• Permitting Illegal Immigration 
• Defunding the police
• Ending reliance on fossil fuels
• Raising taxes
• Believing China is not a threat
• Anti-Jewish movement
• Believing Trump is a Fascist

Ordinarily, there is nothing wrong with Paradigms as long as you are willing to step outside of what you perceive and allow yourself to see things a little differently...

This used to happen but no longer...

Paradigms is why we have a 50% divorce rate in the the USA.

And, why this rate has remained at 50% for over 3 decades.

Paradigms is what prevents people from solving problems and designing or creating new inventions.

They just cannot see what is right in front of them.

BUT HOW DO YOU STOP PEOPLE FROM HAVING PARADIGMS?

Unpacking Politics

Liberals believe in:

• Large government
• High Taxes
• Few states rights
• Government handouts
• Management is the enemy

 

Conservatives believe in:

• Small government
• Low taxes
• Lots of states rights
• Few government handouts
• Labor is the enemy

However, it is not that CUT & DRY, but this is basically their differences.

The liberals believe that government knows what is best for the people while the conservatives believe the people know what's best for themselves as long as you give them a little help.

CAPITALISM - is an economic theory that revolves around the free-market enterprise system and the invisible hand concept.  This theory has the supply and demand model as the main component of the system around which decisions are made. 

How much to produced based upon what the consumer wants to buy or is demanding. 

Sometimes, decisions are wrong and the companies lose money, but for the most part, the system allows for the businesses to THRIVE and the workers to MAKE DO - or keep their heads above water.

It is at this point in time that the liberal's step in to balance the scales so that more and more of the wealth is shared with the worker either through the willing company or through taxes or through government programs for the workers.

The invisible hand theory says businesses will self-regulate and will not do something that harms them or causes their destruction.

The liberals do not believe that this will happen or is happening.

HOWEVER, since congress does not move very fast, the wealthy are able to HIDE most of their money away from taxes...  so, whenever the liberals want to raise taxes, it does not bother them that much.  And, the government NEVER gets what it really needs through that form of taxation.

ANSWER:  borrow money or print money- neither solution is good for the economy.

BUT - politics does not care because one of the reasons that congress moves slowly is because they care more about re-election than they do about helping the American General Public.

CURRENTLY - the liberals are in a bind because they need capitalism to fund their liberal agendas of offering more programs so those people will vote for them.

At some point in time POLITICS is going to have to pay off the NATIONAL DEBT...  otherwise, the USA will go bankrupt which is hard to believe that will ever happen.

One of the quickest ways to solve this problem is to stop the WEALTHY FROM HIDING THEIR MONEY FROM TAXES...

New USA Aircraft Carrier

 

Dark Matter Hiding in Collider's Particle Jets

A new search for dark matter has turned up empty handed — but, in a silver lining, the effort provided important limits that will help future experiments narrow down the hunt for this elusive substance.

Most astronomers believe that dark matter accounts for 85 percent of all mass in the universe, and that its existence would explain the apparent extra gravity detectable around galaxies and within huge galaxy clusters. However, so far, no one has been able to identify what dark matter is made of.    READ MORE...

Female Dancers

 

We Give Away

When I was growing up in Alexandria, Virginia, I remember my parents when they replaced something (not including automobiles), they would give that item away to a needy family as identified by members of the Methodist Church to which they belonged.

In my first marriage that lasted for 23 years, I was never in a position to give anything away because everything we purchased stayed with us until we divorced although like our parents we would trade in our old vehicles for new ones.

During my second marriage, I never purchased a new vehicle only vehicles that were a year old and had been leased.   While families around us had yard sells to make money off of items they were replacing or no longer using or needed, my wife and I gave those items away and never sold anything.

Although my wife did participate in yard sales but the items she brought for sale, if all were purchased, she would make less than $10.  She was there mainly for the conversation of being with friends and neighbors.

We have given away living room suites, kitchen tables, refrigerators, stoves, microwaves, riding lawn mowers, 50 inch televisions, and dish washers to name a few either to people we knew that had a need or we called Habitat for Humanity and gave it to them.

Did we need the money?   Not really...

Could we have used the extra money?   Yes...

We just thought it was better to help people that were worse off than us.  And with that said, my wife and I for the last 30 years of being together have been in the lower middle class...  which means we are well off but not that well off.

When we give it away are we trying to be GOOD CHRISTIANS?  No...  not really...

We are trying to be good neighbors...

Are we expecting to get paid back somehow some way?  No...

We are not against people having yard sells we just see our purpose in this life a little differently.

Somewhat Political

 

Breakthrough Known as Q*

In today’s column, I am going to walk you through a prominent AI-mystery that has caused quite a stir leading to an incessant buzz across much of social media and garnering outsized headlines in the mass media. This is going to be quite a Sherlock Holmes adventure and sleuth detective-exemplifying journey that I will be taking you on.

Please put on your thinking cap and get yourself a soothing glass of wine.

The roots of the circumstance involve the recent organizational gyrations and notable business crisis drama associated with the AI maker OpenAI, including the off and on-again firing and then rehiring of the CEO Sam Altman, along with a plethora of related carry-ons. My focus will not particularly be the comings and goings of the parties involved. I instead seek to leverage those reported facts primarily as telltale clues associated with the AI-mystery that some believe sits at the core of the organizational earthquake.  READ MORE...

NYC Vote

 

US 7th Fleet

 

The Unusual

BBC | Zaria Gorvett. Tyrian purple was the most valuable color in the world for hundreds of years until its recipe vanished. Using ancient clues, one man embarked on a 16-year quest to resurrect this legendary dye. (Read)

Atavist | Lily Hyde. The story of three Ukrainian women from two generations of the same family who all became pregnant a few weeks apart, before a war came between them. (Read)

Somewhat Political

 

What's A Coming?

Well...  we have gotten through Thanksgiving 2023 and we about to end the month of November 2023.  December brings us the Christmas Holidays whether you are religious or not, you still celebrate Christmas...  and some of you might even go to Church Christmas Eve...  Granted, the holiday is more about presents and time off from work and school than it is celebrating something that remotely resembles a religious holiday.

New Year's Eve is the final day of December 2023 and most of us will get SHIT FACED DRUNK either at home or by attending a party.  That is the one night that I do not go out for any reason after dark.  In fact, most of the time, I am in bed sleeping long before midnight comes a calling.

The month of December can be a chilly to cold month or it can be a chilly to warm month.  I remember back in the late 1980s when I lived in North Carolina, my wife (now ex-wife) and I hosted our parents for a Christmas Day Lunch and we ate that lunch outside on our back porch, because it was so warm.

Not much business is conducted between Thanksgiving and Christmas and if you are trying to solicit donations from companies in your area, you are typically SOL...  because their budgets for that year have already been allocated and more than likely, they have already gotten next year's budget approved by management or the Board depending upon whether they are a public or private company.

This is also true for sales, so the workforce is building inventory for the next year rather than filling orders for the remainder of this year.

Once we get these two holidays, Thanksgiving and Christmas and our hangovers from New Years Eve, we put BALLS TO THE WALL as we want to make the first quarter financials of the new year look better than expected.  This not always happens but that's management's game plan.

What will 2024 look like?

• We have a Presidential election
• Donald Trump will be spending a lot of time in court
• Russia will still be fighting in Ukraine
• Israel will still be fighting in the Gaza Strip
• China will still be contemplating invading Taiwan
• Illegal immigrants will still be flowing over the border
• Crime and violence will still continue in our big cities
• WOKENESS will still be cancelling non believers
• Transwomen will still be invading female sports
• Blacks will still hate white and will start hating all the Mexican coming into the USA
• Liberal will still push for the end of fossil fuels
• Joe Biden will still be investigated for corruption
• Gasoline prices will fluctuate again
• Inflation will remain above pre-Biden levels
• FOX News will report the news while the other networks continue to censor whatever hurts liberals
• Our military will continue to deteriorate as will our infrastructure
• Our National Debt will continue to increase
• College students will continue to memorize for the grade and retain nothing or very littlE

HUMANOID ROBOTS WITH AI WILL CONTINUE TO EVOLVE FASTER THAN ANTICIPATED LEAVING CONGRESS WITH THEIR HEADS UP THEIR ASSES NOT REALIZING THEY NEED TO PASS LEGISLATION TO REGULATE...

OOOPS

A Little Science

UK-based Oxford Quantum Circuits announces the world's first cloud-based quantum computing platform for use in commercial enterprise applications (More) | Quantum computing 101 (More)

Researchers find a distinct set of stem cells in the adult mouse brain activated during pregnancy, which develop into olfactory neurons; may play a role in helping parents identify offspring by their scent (More)

LODI

 

Running For Senate

 

New Science

Scientists identify almost 200 new CRISPR molecules after searching through databases of rare and unusual bacterial systems; may open new types of gene editing applications in mammals (More) |CRISPR 101 (More)

Study finds bladder-like cells on resilient plants like quinoa fend off insects and disease, are not used to store water for droughts; findings overturn a century-old theory in plant biology (More)



Astronomers detect second-most energetic cosmic ray on record; origins of the subatomic particle traveling near the speed of light remain a mystery (More)

Baby in Box

 

Just About Me

• Born in 1947
• Begin working in 1969
• Married twice
• One child - daughter
• Lived:  Virginia, Cairo, Egypt, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky
• Played football, baseball, basketball, volleyball, and track (discus, shot put, javelin) in high school
• I am spiritual but not religious
• Hobbies:  Writing, Oil/Acrylic Painting, Photography, listening to books on tape
• Banned from LinkedIn and Facebook
• President of Quest Training, Inc.
• Became debt free in 2000
• Retired in 2015
• Education:  BA, MBA, MCSE, Certifications
• Worked:  45 years - not including part-time work
• Positions:  waiter, construction worker, textile worker, customer service rep, sailor, reservist, computer technician, instructor, professor, department chair, assist dean, dean, salesperson, director, executive director, corporate director, adjunct, consultant, course writer, curriculum developer, auditor, and company president.

If I had the chance to live my life all over again, I would not change a frigging thing that I did.

WHY???

Because everything I did was specifically and carefully designed by someone greater than me to have me become the person I am today and will be tomorrow as my life keeps evolving.

Changing any of that would change who I am, and I like who I am today.

I possess no technical skills like auto mechanics, electrical, carpentry, plumbing, brick mason, or house building.

My driving skills are less now than they were when I retired.

I have lost part of my hearing, and my eyesight is worsening.

I am not a democrat nor a republican, but I am a liberal conservative who is not in favor of socialism or a high national debt.

I will never buy an electric vehicle nor a hybrid until the cost of battery replacement declines.

I have traveled all over the world, before I retired but much more since I retired and I like going to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina the best.

My wife and I have been on twelve 7–10-day cruises, including the Mediterranean, Hawaii, and Alaska.

I am very fond of Salmon, Cod, and Tuna.

I have not eaten red meat for over twenty years except an occasional hamburger once or twice a year or a steak once a year.  I prefer chicken and turkey.

I stopped smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol at the age of 40...  and did so COLD TURKEY with no aids except my own personal discipline and determination.

I am NOT WEALTHY and glad of it because I would not know what to spend all that money on because I believe in buying only what you need not what you want.

I am opinionated and sarcastic and not very diplomatic when it comes to telling the truth.

It is not easy getting to know me or becoming my friend.

 

Somewhat Political

 

World's Largest Iceberg

The world's largest iceberg is drifting from the Antarctic Circle toward the Southern Ocean, scientists confirmed late last week. The floating mass sheared from the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf in 1986 but became stuck on the floor of the Weddell Sea.

Labeled A23a, the iceberg is roughly 1,500 square miles in size (five times the land area of New York City) and about 1,300 feet thick (taller than the Empire State Building). Satellite imagery suggested the block had begun moving in 2020 before becoming fully adrift in recent months.

As A23a melts, its effect on sea level increase will be minimal—floating objects displace their own weight in water (see 101), with small differences due to salinity—though researchers say it may threaten wildlife if it runs aground at the nearby island of South Georgia.

Read more about the iceberg's trajectory here.

The Doors

 

Released Hostages

 Unless you are living under a rock, there has been a war in the Gaza Strip because Hamas, a terrorist organization, invaded Israel, killed a bunch of people and took women, children, and the elderly hostage.

Some news organizations blame Israel for Hamas attacking them and also claim that there were no hostages taken by Hamas.

So, over the last couple of days, Hamas is releasing the hostages they took in exchange for prisoners in Israeli prisons for committing crimes.

Hamas said they will release 50 hostages for 150 prisoners.

These same stations that said Hamas took no hostages are only airing the return of the Hamas prisoners and giving no coverage to the Jews being released because if they did, it would mean they had been lying all along.

Is this the kind of country that you want to live in where the truth is hidden from the general if it disagrees with your idea and/or ideals?

I think not...  BUT, this is the kind of country that the USA is turning into and the more this is done, the more the USA becomes divided...  not to mention the fact that no one really knows the truth.

Tambourine Man

 

New York City

New York's Adult Survivors Act deadline prompts slew of sexual assault suits.  The Adult Survivors Act created a one-year window (which expired Friday) for New Yorkers to sue those they claim sexually assaulted them, free from statutes of limitations. Under the act, New York Mayor Eric Adams was accused this week of sexual assault in 1993. Celebrities Jamie Foxx, Axl Rose, and Sean "Diddy" Combs, are also among those who were sued this week. All four have denied the allegations.

Competition

My Healthcare

 I pay $500/month for Medicare and a supplemental policy through Humana, totaling $6,000 each year.  My co pays for medicines throughout the year, dental and vision expenses brings my annual out of pocket expenses to somewhere between $6,000 and $10,000 with the understanding that this amount is closer to 10 than to 6.

My healthcare annual costs including chemo, IVIG, daily immunotherapy pills, CT and PET along with doctor visits with Oncologist, Cardiologist, Urologist, Dermatologist, Orthopedics, and Optometrist has been AVERAGING $500,000 each year.

This means that I pay about 2% of my overall healthcare costs each year...  for me, that seems to be a real bargain.

Of course, I need to factor in the cost of gasoline going to and from doctors' appointments, wear and tear on the vehicle, and value that I place on my time.

My immunotherapy pills are $1,000 each month

My Chemo treatments are $25,000 each month

My IVIG treatments are $15,000 each month

My CT scans are $500 (2 per year)

My PET scans are $2,000 (2 per year)

My doctor visits are $1,500 for each visit for Oncology and around $1,000 for all the others except my family doctor.

My 6 radiation treatments were $50,000

My 3 cancer surgeries were $60,000

I have been receiving CANCER TREATMENTS FOR 15 YEARS that has included the above...

$7,500,000 is approximately what has been paid so far on my cancer treatment.  Part of this high cost is that fact that I am fighting TWO CANCERS simultaneously...

• Non Hodgkins Lymphoma
• Melanoma

My only out of pocket costs have been $4 every 90 for 6 different medications and $790/each month for my immunotherapy pills.  The real cost is $1,500 each month.

NOTE:  Fortunately, I am getting a grant that pays for my immunotherapy pills.

HERE's A KICKER - If I was getting an infusion each month for my Lymphoma instead of pills, my insurance would pay 100% of the cost.

January 2024 begins my 16th year of fighting cancer(s).

Unless you are in my shoes, you have no idea how lucky I feel to still be alive!!!

Bird and Ball

 

More Hostages Freed

A four-day pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip began Friday as Hamas  released 24 hostages (13 Israeli women and children, 10 Thai nationals, and one Filipino citizen) while Israel released 39 Palestinian women and children detainees. The exchange is part of a short-term cease-fire deal brokered by Qatar and marks the first time fighting has temporarily halted between the two sides since Hamas captured more than 240

people during a surprise cross-border attack seven weeks ago.

During the duration of the pause, Hamas is set to free at least 50 hostages in exchange for the release of at least 150 Palestinians held in Israel's prisons. Israel has said the truce could be extended for an extra day for every 10 hostages released. At least 137 trucks carrying aid and fuel also entered Gaza Friday through the Rafah crossing as part of the agreement, with UN officials calling the humanitarian convoy the biggest since Hamas' Oct. 7 raid.

Cold, Flu, or Whatever

The day before the day before Thanksgiving, I woke up with a scratchy throat.  At the same time, I noticed that my sinuses had been draining more than normal for the last two weeks.  Neither symptom, I paid any attention to.

The day before Thanksgiving, I again woke up with a scratchy throat and draining sinuses.  Thanksgiving Day, again the same thing and maybe a TAD (whatever that means) worse.  I ignored the symptoms and enjoyed my Thanksgiving meal and play in Sevierville that we went to.

The day after Thanksgiving, my sore throat was much worse as was my draining nose and I felt like I had the flu or was getting over the flu.  I drank hot vanilla cappuccino drinks that seemed to ease my hurting throat but my nose was like a water faucet.

Saturday, the symptoms were worse and I did the same thing that I had done the day before which seemed to work.  However, on Sunday (today) it was much worse and I went through a box of tissue and my flu like symptoms were worse.  I did not have a headache but I did not get off the couch unless I absolutely had to because that caused me to cough even more.

I began taking cough medicine and have decided that I am going to the CLINIC tomorrow when it opens at 1:00pm.  The clinic is in the same building as my family physician, but you do not need an appointment.

I am hoping for a shot and then a prednisone pack which means by the middle of the week I should be back to my normal self.

CONCERN:  With my history of cancer treatments and since I am currently without an immune system and have anemia, I get fairly concerned any time something like this happens.  I don't think I waited too long.

Animal Lover

Growing up in Alexandria, Virginia we had animals in our home all the time.  Our favorite dog was a dachshund and at one time we had 3-4 of them.  Rebel was the name of the first one and lived to be 21 years old before my father had to put him down from old age pain the Vet said he was experiencing.

Since dachshunds, I have had labs, goats, and cats as pets.  My wife and I treat these animals as if they are members of the family and will spend whatever money it takes (within reason) to take care of them.  One cat needed shoulder surgery which was not cheap.  Another cat needed to have a cancer removed.  And still another cat went through several tests to determine they had a respiratory infection and would need steroids for the rest of their lives.

Cats are easier to take care of than dogs, especially since you can no longer let a dog loose without being on a leash.  Cats don't need leashes and don't need to be walked so they can go potty outside.  Cats have a litter box.

However, cats shed their hair more than dogs do and cats of all ages scratch furniture with their claws despite having cat trees and scratching boxes all around the house.

Dogs bite and chew furniture when they are young and grow out of that annoying behavior.

On the other side of the coin, cats like to jump around on furniture and are oftentimes careless when they jump up on things, making all sorts of messes.

Neither cats nor dogs know when they have made q mess even when they see the mess they have made; therefore, we as ADULTS have no business getting mad at animals when they misbehave.  We need to overlook that behavior or calmly try to break them of that behavior, similar to housebreaking a dog.

If you mistreat an animal, you have no business having an animal as a pet.  

If you want to keep the dog outside, then make sure he has a warm place to sleep during the winter, like a heated doghouse and make sure he has a fenced in back yard so s/he can run around an exercise.  Just putting a dog outside on a chain leash anchored to something is cruel treatment for your animal.

We had cats that like to go in and outside whenever they wanted so we had a cat door put into our garage door in the basement.  There was another cat door in the door going down to the basement which we kept locked at night so strange animals could not get inside the house.

Our basement had several places, up high where the cats could go with blankets to keep warm.  Inside the garage was 20 degrees warmer inside than outside in the heart of winter.  So, if it was 20 degrees outside, which it seldom was and if it did get that low, it did not last long, and 40 degrees inside the garage.

Bear in mind that their garage beds were up high and heat rises, so it was warmer up there than down on the garage floor.

They were always sitting by the door down to the garage in the mornings waiting for us to open the door and let them in.

We replaced those two cats when they died with three others and neither of them like spending too much time outside, especially our Siamese who goes outside for 10 minutes, then wants back in and back on his heating pad.

 

Romping Horse

 

Artificial Intelligence

We are living in an ever-changing world and some of us believe that we are changing faster than we should.

Artificial Intelligence is being used to write college term papers, medical research, create songs from deceased musicians and Israel is using AI in their war with Hamas.

Some people say there is an ethical issue using AI in the military, but if it is, it will take our congress a decade or more to pass legislation.

We have a humanoid AI Robot as a CEO of a company.  We have humanoid robots working in warehouses and factories.  We have robots assembling our vehicles and robots controlled by doctors performing operations.  We have robots serving food to customers and robots performing simple maintenance routines in some of companies.

Humanoid Robots with Artificial Intelligence are here and there is no stopping the progress of these THINGS.

The genie has been released from the lamp.

Our experts say that robots will replace 80% of our jobs by 2030...  That is only 6 years from now in a month.  China has declared it will start mass producing robots in 2025.  

If the US passes laws against robots and it is doubtful, they will move that fast.  Or if the UN passes laws against robots and that does not seem likely either...  CHINA will not obey those laws or rules, but they will expect the USA to obey and in so doing that will give CHINA the strategic advantage...

What do I mean?

• CHINA WILL BE THE FIRST TO BUILD A ROBOT ARMY
• CHINA WILL BE THE FIRST TO SEND A ROBOT CREW INTO SPACE
• CHINA WILL BE THE FIRST TO USE ROBOT CREWS IN SPACE TO BUILD COLONIES FOR HUMANS

All this will be done while the USA is fighting over electric vehicles, climate change, trying to end the use of fossil fuels, and making sure that transwomen can compete with real women...  not to mention, coming up with some kind of solution on how to deal with all the illegal immigrants that have come into the country with skills, without immunizations, and without speaking English...

SEEMS LIKE WE GOT OUR PRIORITIES WRONG...

Somewhat Political

 

Brothels for Political & Military Leaders

The three individuals charged with running brothels in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., that allegedly hosted high-profile clientele, including political and military leaders, brought in over a million dollars running the operation, a top federal investigator on the case said Wednesday.

According to an affidavit submitted to the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts by the Department of Homeland Security, the alleged ringleaders of the operation, James Lee of California, along with Han Lee and Junmyung Lee of Massachusetts, made the chunk of change while running the service out of high-end apartments in Massachusetts and the Washington, D.C., suburbs since 2020.  READ MORE...

My Sweet Lord

 

Time For New Blood

 You have heard me bitch a lot recently about what PISS POOR job President Joe Biden and his cabinet are doing...  I have also bitched, probably not as loudly, about former President Donald Trump and his 91 felony indictments.  He did an excellent job at building up the USA economy and maybe will do so again, but he is 77 years old and Biden is 81 years old.

TIME FOR SOME YOUNG BLOOD IN THE WHITEHOUSE...

At this point in time, I don't much care if it is Republican or Democrat,  I just think we need a younger President...  maybe someone in their 50s...

We have definite threats from RUSSIA, CHINA, IRAN, North Korea, and some other countries that are not quite as vocal.

Will these countries want to TERMINATE all those that live in the USA?

I doubt it because of all the damn nuclear weapons we have.

So what is their ENDGAME?

Control us economically...

I think that strategy has possibilities especially since our economy is struggling with green energy and trying to end fossil fuels.

But, I think our worst threat is not from outside but from within.

Humanoid robots with AI will start replacing our labor force.

Robots will make the wealthier more wealthy but will hurt those who have lost their jobs.

IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT WE NEED YOUNG BLOOD IN THE WHITEHOUSE

I am sure these young people already have developed a game plan and can't wait to have it implemented.

I also believe that the younger generation does not like WARS and see no benefit from wars.  So, with someone young in the Whitehouse, I doubt we will ever go to war again. 

Young people DON'T LIKE the 9-5 work routine, so if they were in power, they would be able to change that.  Perhaps we could go to a 4-6 hour work day and maybe a three day weekend...

Anything is possible with ROBOTS.

Muscle Women

 

Continued to be Amazed

I am surprised but should not be surprised by the stupidity of half of this country.  It would be easy to say that the stupid half are the Democrats but that is not always true.

I am surprised by the illegal immigration that still continues to flood into the USA like a tidal wave and we cannot see the unintended consequences that are right around the corner.

I am surprised that the current administration and its advisors do not see CHINA as a threat but see Russia as a threat when Russia cannot even defeat the small country of Ukraine.

I am surprised by the current administration that does not see or wants to admit that it is only the wealthy people that are buying electric vehicles.

I am surprised by the ANTI-ISRAEL hatred that has not only permeated the USA but the rest of the world from the standpoint that this has been festering for decades and we did not see it.

I am surprised by all the crime and violence that continues to take place in our large cities because district attorneys don't want to put more blacks than whites in our prisons.

I am surprised as well as amazed that the ILLEGAL DRUG problem is getting worse instead of better and our LAW ENFORCEMENT has no clue as to how they are going to stop it.

I am surprised that our EDUCATIONAL LEADERS are allowing biological males to compete in female sports and set records that the biological females will never be able to reach.

I am surprised that our Congressional Leaders do not see the problem that our continually increasing NATIONAL DEBT is going to cause the next generation.

I am surprised that the VOTING AMERICAN PUBLIC continues to want to vote for Presidents that represent the baby boomer generation.

Somewhat Political

 

Dancing Humanoid Robots

While the Fourier's GR-1 humanoid robot's primary focus is aiding older people, a recent video highlights the robot's potential for entertainment. Despite not reaching the dance prowess of competitors, the GR-1 exhibits dynamic camera moves, finger wiggles, arm waves, air punches, shallow half-squats, waist twists, and a bit of stiff-legged walking.

The engineers at Fourier Intelligence have successfully combined functionality with a touch of creativity, making the GR-1 more than just a caregiver. The 300-Nm hip actuators, equivalent to 221 pound-feet (lb-ft), empower the GR-1 to lift a remarkable 110 lb (50 kilograms, kg) – an impressive feat for a robot of its stature. This capability positions the GR-1 as valuable in assisting patients with various activities, from getting up from a bed or toilet to navigating a wheelchair.  READ MORE...

Dancers

 

16 Tons

 

BLACK FRIDAY

HISTORY

The first recorded use of the term “Black Friday” was applied not to post-Thanksgiving holiday shopping but to financial crisis: specifically, the crash of the U.S. gold market on September 24, 1869.


Two notoriously ruthless Wall Street financiers, Jay Gould and Jim Fisk, worked together to buy up as much as they could of the nation’s gold, hoping to drive the price sky-high and sell it for astonishing profits.


On that Friday in September, the conspiracy finally unraveled, sending the stock market into free-fall and bankrupting everyone from Wall Street barons to farmers.

The most commonly repeated story behind the Thanksgiving shopping-related Black Friday tradition links it to retailers. As the story goes, after an entire year of operating at a loss (“in the red”) stores would supposedly earn a profit (“went into the black”) on the day after Thanksgiving, because holiday shoppers blew so much money on discounted merchandise. 

Though it’s true that retail companies used to record losses in red and profits in black when doing their accounting, this version of Black Friday’s origin is the officially sanctioned—but inaccurate—story behind the tradition.

In recent years, another myth has surfaced that gives a particularly ugly twist to the tradition, claiming that back in the 1800s Southern plantation owners could buy enslaved workers at a discount on the day after Thanksgiving. 

Though this version of Black Friday’s roots has understandably led some to call for a boycott of the retail holiday, it has no basis in fact.

THANKSGIVING DAY

Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and the Philippines. It is also observed in the Dutch town of Leiden and the Australian territory of Norfolk Island.

WHY DOES THE USA CELBRATE THANKSGIVING?

The annual feast is in honor of the “first” Thanksgivings in America, in 1619 in Virginia, and in 1621, when colonists in Plymouth, Massachusetts, later known as the Pilgrims, shared a meal with the Wampanoag Indians, who were native to the land.

The later feast was in honor of the help the Pilgrims received from the Native Americans in cultivating crops and surviving their first harsh winter and it lasted three days.