REALITYCHEX.COM - Constant Comments - A Letter from a Close Friend

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New York Times: “The New York Times Company has agreed to license its editorial content to Amazon for use in the tech giant’s artificial intelligence platforms, the company said on Thursday. The multiyear agreement 'will bring Times editorial content to a variety of Amazon customer experiences,' the news organization said in a statement. Besides news articles, the agreement encompasses material from NYT Cooking, The Times’s food and recipe site, and The Athletic, which focuses on sports. This is The Times’s first licensing arrangement with a focus on generative A.I. technology. In 2023, The Times sued OpenAI and its partner, Microsoft, for copyright infringement, accusing the tech companies of using millions of articles published by The Times to train automated chatbots without any kind of compensation. OpenAI and Microsoft have rejected those accusations.” ~~~

~~~ Marie: I have no idea what this means for "the Amazon customer experience." Does it mean that if I don't have a NYT subscription but do have Amazon Prime I can read NYT content? And where, exactly, would I find that content? I don't know. I don't know.

Washington Post reporters asked three AI image generators what a beautiful woman looks like. "The Post found that they steer users toward a startlingly narrow vision of attractiveness. Prompted to show a 'beautiful woman,' all three tools generated thin women, without exception.... Her body looks like Barbie — slim hips, impossible waist, round breasts.... Just 2 percent of the images showed visible signs of aging. More than a third of the images had medium skin tones. But only nine percent had dark skin tones. Asked to show 'normal women,' the tools produced images that remained overwhelmingly thin.... However bias originates, The Post’s analysis found that popular image tools struggle to render realistic images of women outside the Western ideal." ~~~

~~~ Marie: The reporters seem to think they are calling out the AI programs for being unrealistic. But there's a lot about the "beautiful women" images they miss. I find these omissions remarkably sexist. For one thing, the reporters seem to think AI is a magical "thing" that self-generates. It isn't. It's programmed. It's programmed by boys, many of them incels who have little or no experience or insights beyond comic books and Internet porn of how to gauge female "beauty." As a result, the AI-generated women look like cartoons; that is, a lot like an air-brushed photo of Kristi Noem: globs of every kind of dark eye makeup, Scandinavian nose, Botox lips, slathered-on skin concealer/toner/etc. makeup, long dark hair and the aforementioned impossible Barbie body shape, including huge, round plastic breasts.

New York Times: “George Clooney’s Broadway debut, 'Good Night, and Good Luck,' has been one of the sensations of the 2024-25 theater season, breaking box office records and drawing packed houses of audiences eager to see the popular movie star in a timely drama about the importance of an independent press. Now the play will become much more widely available: CNN is planning a live broadcast of the penultimate performance, on June 7 at 7 p.m. Eastern. The performance will be preceded and followed by coverage of, and discussion about, the show and the state of journalism.”

No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land. -- Magna Carta ~~~

~~~ New York Times: “Bought for $27.50 after World War II, the faint, water stained manuscript in the library of Harvard Law School had attracted relatively little attention since it arrived there in 1946. That is about to change. Two British academics, one of whom happened on the manuscript by chance, have discovered that it is an original 1300 version — not a copy, as long thought — of Magna Carta, the medieval document that helped establish some of the world’s most cherished liberties. It is one of just seven such documents from that date still in existence.... A 710-year-old version of Magna Carta was sold in 2007 for $21.3 million.... First issued in 1215, it put into writing a set of concessions won by rebellious barons from a recalcitrant King John of England — or Bad King John, as he became known in folklore. He later revoked the charter, but his son, Henry III, issued amended versions, the last one in 1225, and Henry’s son, Edward I, in turn confirmed the 1225 version in 1297 and again in 1300.”

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Saturday

Jul232016

A Letter from a Close Friend

Here's an e-mail I received Friday evening from my close personal friend Hillary. (How close, you ask? Well, as you can see, we're on a first-name basis. For reasons of national security I can't say much more, but you wouldn't be wrong if you guessed my Windows Live mailbox is full of baby pix of Chelsea's kids and quite a few e-mails marked "Top Secret.") -- Constant Weader

Marie --

I'm thrilled to share this news: I've chosen Tim Kaine as my running mate.

Tim is a lifelong fighter for progressive causes and one of the most qualified vice presidential candidates in our nation's history.

But his credentials alone aren't why I asked him to run alongside me.

Like me, Tim grew up in the Midwest. During law school, he too took an unconventional path -- he took time off and went to Honduras to work with missionaries, practicing both his faith and his Spanish.

When he returned to the states and graduated from Harvard Law, he could have done anything. But instead of going to some big corporate firm, he chose to fight housing discrimination as a civil rights lawyer in Richmond. He and his wife joined a church, built a home centered around their faith, and raised three beautiful children. Then, after 17 years of practicing law, Tim ran for city council -- and won.

Tim says his experience on city council taught him everything he knows about politics. To the people in Richmond, an underfunded school wasn't a Democratic or Republican problem. It was simply a problem that needed fixing, and his constituents were counting on him to solve it. So Tim would do it. He'd roll up his sleeves and get the job done, no matter what.

He’s a man of relentless optimism who believes no problem is unsolvable if you're willing to put in the work. That commitment to delivering results has stayed with him throughout his decades-long career as a public servant. So I could give you a laundry list of things he went on to accomplish -- as mayor of Richmond, governor of Virginia, and in the United States Senate.

But this is what’s important: Tim has never taken a job for the glory or the title. He's the same person whether the cameras are on or off. He's sincerely motivated by the belief that you can make a difference in people's lives through public service.

That quality comes through in every interaction. To know Tim is to love him. When I was talking to people about this decision, I couldn't find anyone -- Democrat or Republican -- who had a bad thing to say about him. From his staff over the last 20 years to his colleagues in the Senate, Tim's beloved.

He is a genuinely nice person, but Tim is no one's punching bag. He will fight tooth and nail for American families, and he'll be a dogged fighter in our campaign against Donald Trump and Mike Pence.

Marie, I want you to know that I didn’t make this decision lightly.

I’ve had the privilege of seeing two presidents and two vice presidents up close. I want a vice president who can be my partner in bringing this country together. I want someone who will be able to give me their best advice, look me in the eye, and tell me they disagree with me when they do.

But what matters most is a simple test that’s not so simple to meet: whether the person could step in at a moment’s notice and serve as president.

I have no doubt that Tim can do the job.

I want him by my side on the trail and in the White House.

Welcome him to our team, Marie, and let him know you're proud to have him. Chip in today: (Emphasis original.)

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Dear Marie, best of buds,
Just a follow up to the previous correspondence that was clearly a bid for more money. Since you and I have been cozy cousins from way back I just wanted to send a more personal note. Like your father who had that teacher who once had Herbert Hoover as a student and told her class that any one of them could one day be President, I, too, had a Mrs. Finklestein that urged us children to follow our bliss while knocking down anyone or anything that stood in our way. When I expressed interest in the political arena, she said, "Go for it, girl, you aren't the type to stay home and bake brownies." And I didn't––oh, well, a few times maybe––they weren't very good so we gave them to the dog––who died shortly after, although I'm not sure it was because of the brownies. Anyway––here I am running for President and I just wanted to thank you for sticking with me through all these tumultuous times. I so appreciate loyalty. I hear you are almost as famous as I am so maybe we can swap famous fables one of these days. Until then, remember to vote for me and Timmy.
Love and big juicies,
Hill
P.S. Bill says, hi and says he would like that surf board you borrowed from him back in golden times. He won't use it again but wants it back to remind him of fun in the sun times with one of his–––here he hesitated, but then said, "good old pal"–––it's ok, Marie, I forgave you long ago.

July 23, 2016 |

PD Pepe

Dear Hil: Had no idea that "Chip in today" was a bid for cash. It did confuse me, as I wasn't sure who Chip was. I thought he must be a mutual acquaintance who was coming to your house or mine today. Anyway, I baked some brownies for him in case he showed up at my door.

As for sending money, I don't know. I kinda cashed out with donations to our good friend Bernie. I was glad to visit with the two of you last week & especially heartened to see that you don't hold it against him that he's maybe a Jewish atheist.

Your BFF,
Marie

P.S. I hope Guccifer doesn't get hold of your e-mails, too, as I wouldn't want all our close personal correspondence exposed on the front page of New York Times. Say hi to Debbie for me. She's been pretty nice to me (BTW, this is true; Debbie has talked to me & sent me personal e-mails), but make sure to get her the hell out of the DNC.

P.P.S. Don't have the surfboard anymore. I gave it to Donald Trump & Corey told me Donald donated it to charity.

July 23, 2016 |

Marie Burns

Hey! Is the heat getting to you two (PDP & CW)

...What? Has PD mailed you some of her "special" brownies,
or did you DIY borrow the Alice B. Toklas recipe? perhaps the kind that sent Maureen Dowd to her bed in Colorado? Ladies, silly morning!

July 23, 2016 |

MAG

@MAG: Just gearing up for Trump-Free Day. Also, yes, since Hillary doesn't have a brownie recipe (or so her ghostwriter PD Pepe claims), I turned to the Alice B. Toklas Cook Book, but my copy is inscribed to my mother Isabelle Burns, most famous for her thin volume, "The All-Purpose Cook Book, Featuring the Burns Family Recipe." (Complete, unabridged text: "Turn on the oven and put it in.")

Marie

P.S. Sorry, Mom.

July 23, 2016 |

Marie Burns

Dear Close Friend:
Tim has one undeniable factor in his favor: He is of the caucasoid extraction. How better to triangulate the "support" of those of a particular GOP extraction during the general election? I remind you the _____(fill in the blank) John Podesta was in charge of the VP selection process.
Signed, The Corporatist

July 23, 2016 |

citizen625

Is this a writing contest to see who will replace Gail Collins?

I will not even attempt to go to-to-toe with Marie and PDPepe but did enjoy the interplay. If you don't like Hillary's smarmy approach you can always try DT's "give me money or we're all gonna die" approach.

July 23, 2016 |

cakers

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