Author: A.T.

A.I. Poses ‘Risk of Extinction,’ Industry Leaders Warn.

So what to do?

It’s not at all clear — just urgent.

Having sensible, competent leadership may not be enough to navigate these waters.  But I’d sure rather that than the [Your Pillow Guy / I Alone Can Fix It] team at the helm.

I was on a call recently where they said A.I. is doubling in power not every 18 months, as with computing capacity (Moore’s Law), but every four months.

If true, A.I. will be 16 times as powerful by November 2024 as it is today . . . and which side do you think is more likely to play dirty with it?

Click here.

And enjoy every miraculous day while we’re still the smartest ones in the room.

Barely.

Bloomberg’s Matthew Winker last month — four minutes.

Fareed Zakaria yesterday — five minutes.

We ARE great again,

Summarized by a friend:

Those we honor today — like my mother’s brother, shot down over the Pacific — died fighting white supremacy in the Civil War and fascism in the Second World War; for freedom in Korea and, however ill-advised, in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

We did not see “very fine people on both sides” of those wars, nor did we “fall in love” with dictators or consider it “genius” when one country invaded another.

Democrats and many Republicans still don’t.

Click here.

Whether it concerns an error message, a health issue, or food (“Alexa: can you freeze cheese?”), many of us don’t ask for help as often as we should.

Now comes AI and it’s even crazier not to ask for help.

For years I’ve known there must be some way to save frequently-used blocks of text.  We had that capability way back in DOS.  I even had it in a limited way with my QYX intelligent typewriter. (I’ll bet you never knew Exxon once sold typewriters.)

So yesterday I turned to ChatGPT.

<< The problem with the “clipboard” is that its content disappears when you power off your computer. Macros used to be a great way to save frequently used blocks of text. Is there a way to do that on my iPhone? And/or in Windows? >>

Three seconds later:

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Yes, there are several ways to save frequently used blocks of text for easy reuse on both iPhone and Windows.

**On iPhone:**

The built-in “Text Replacement” feature is quite handy. It is a part of the keyboard settings and allows you to create custom shortcuts for frequently used phrases or blocks of text. Here is how you set it up:

1. Go to “Settings”
2. Tap “General”
3. Tap “Keyboard”
4. Tap “Text Replacement”
5. Tap “+” to add a new shortcut.
6. Enter the phrase you want to use, and the shortcut that will bring it up. For example, you might put “btw” in the Shortcut field, and “By the way,” in the Phrase field.

After this, whenever you type “btw” and then a space, it will be automatically replaced by “By the way,”.

**On Windows:**

There are a number of software tools available that let you manage clipboard history and create text macros. A popular one is PhraseExpress.

Here is how you set up PhraseExpress:

1. Download and install PhraseExpress from their website.
2. Once installed, open the application.
3. To create a new phrase or block of text, go to “File” > “New Phrase”.
4. You can define a shortcut for this phrase when creating it.

With this tool, you can create as many phrases as you like and assign each a unique shortcut. When you type the shortcut, PhraseExpress will replace it with the corresponding phrase.

Apart from this, Windows also has a clipboard history feature. It won’t save your clipboard history between restarts, but it does let you easily access items you’ve recently copied without needing to re-copy them.

To enable clipboard history:

1. Go to “Settings”
2. Click on “System”
3. Click on “Clipboard”
4. Toggle on “Clipboard history”

Now, when you press Win + V, you’ll see a list of items you’ve recently copied.

These are just a few of the available methods. There are many more out there depending on your specific needs and workflow.

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iPhone setup was a snap. I now have hard-to-type URL’s like this one stored, as well as the guts of oft-repeated emails and texts I’ll customize (“Great seeing you last night!  Was that pizza amazing, or what?!”) before sending.

I’m halfway through mastering this capability on my laptop as well.

BONUS

Look at this!  Pressing the Windows key and V at the same opens the clipboard and an extensive menu of emojis 😂🤣🐬bvg🦞🦉👣👩‍✈️, symbols ¥£↪⇖▩⇱⅚∑∰⊗⊮⨶⪒ᾚ (though not, unless I missed it, the Windows-key symbol I needed here), and gifs.

You’re welcome.

Those we honor Monday — like my mother’s brother, shot down over the Pacific — died fighting white supremacy in the Civil War and fascism in the Second World War . . . for freedom in Korea and, however ill-advised, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan.  We did not see “very fine people on both sides” of those wars, nor did we “fall in love” with dictators or consider it “genius” when one country invaded another.  Most of us still don’t.

Have a great week-end.

Not ALL guns — just new sales of military-grade weapons.

Also: sales of any guns without a background check.

And can we give states, cities, and towns the right impose their own local regulations as they did in the Wild West?

Are you really going to tell me the Wild West was somehow unAmerican?

Today, such local regulations might include — if a city or town so chose — reporting all sales of cop-killing bullets, silencers, bullet-proof vests, and large amounts of ammunition . . . with the right of law enforcement to make polite inquiries and sensible judgements.

Law enforcement: “I see you just bought a bullet proof vest and 1,000 rounds of ammo.  May I ask why?”

Sullen teenager: “I like to hunt rabbits.”

Law enforcement: “I’m sorry.  Local Ordinance 234 gives me authority to confiscate those items, and any other weaponry you have, until you can persuade a judge that your owning them does not pose an undue risk to your fellow citizens.  But you can still apply to join the National Guard, which is our state’s well-regulated militia.”

Most NRA members agree we should have more sensible gun-safety regulations.

To change other minds, it may take seeing their own daughter slaughtered. Or someone else’s daughter.

‘Gun-loving’ ex-US army officer calls for gun control after witnessing Texas mall shooting.

As for book banning, it’s accelerating.

We need a huge blue wave at all levels of government, from school board to Congress and the presidency.

Click here if you agree.

Help in any amount becomes part of that wave.

(Other than repealing it altogether, of course, as one of your fellow readers, Paul deLespinasse in both Newsmax and the LA Progressive.)

Robert Reich: “Biden should IGNORE the debt ceiling: Don’t declare an X-date. Keep paying the bills. Don’t default.  If McCarthy and House Republicans don’t like it, let them take him to court.”

Makes sense to me.

Building on Thursday’s Building Back Better BONUS . . . one of you sent me these bullet points from last fall:

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A 2021 UC Merced study found that covering all 4,000 miles of California’s [irrigation] canals [with solar panels] could save 63 billion gallons of water annually, or enough for around 2 million people’s residential use.

And generate about a sixth of California’s current power needs.

Evaporation helps cool the solar panels above the canals (making them more efficient), while maintenance costs are reduced (by slowing the growth of aquatic weeds that need to be cleared).

The UC Merced study was based on hypotheticals. The point of Project Nexus is to test the idea’s real-world efficacy.

---

I followed that link, listened to the interview, and then called Josh for an update.  Because of supply chain difficulties, work on Project Nexus won’t begin until November.  (It could start sooner, except that the canals are filled with water in the growing season.)  With luck, construction will be done in the spring, and the evaluation can begin.

There is no assurance the benefits will outweigh the costs, justifying building this out to scale — but reason to hope.

Add to that: reproductive health care, clean air and water, a livable climate, universal background checks, and a ban on assault weapons.

Trump famously called Putin a ‘genius’ and ‘savvy’ for his Ukraine invasion . . . famously sided with Putin over the FBI . . . famously changed just one thing in the Republican platform, its support for Ukraine . . . famously held back Congressionally mandated aid to get Zelensky to manufacture dirt on Biden (“I just need you to find 11,780” — oh, wait, wrong perfect phone call) . . . and famously thrice refused in last week’s interview to take Ukraine’s side over Russia.

Yet:

(1) [Sarcasm ON] any suggestion Trump and Putin are linked is a hoax; and

(2) [Sarcasm OFF] Ukraine is cleaning Putin’s clock (“I’ve Never Seen The Kremlin So Rattled”).  An encouraging read for anyone who values democracy and/or deplores war crimes and the slaughter of innocent people.

Have a great weekend.

It turned out “he alone” could not fix it.

(How ‘Infrastructure Week’ Became A Long-Running Joke)

It’s his successor, the guy who beat him, who got an infrastructure bill passed.

His successor, Joe Biden, we have to thank.

Decades overdue, the work has finally begun:

Click to see the big projects.

Click to see projects near YOU.

This is something to be excited about. 

No fewer than 30 Republican senators voted to block it; more than 200 Republicans in the House.

BONUS

I’m excited about this, too: Solar panels that float, cutting down on evaporation while generating electricity without tying up land.

Executive summary from CoffeeTimeNews:

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Hillary Clinton, Mueller and the FBI have been fully EXONERATED in the Durham investigation. No charges will be filed. They will not be locking her up.

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Barbara McQuade elaborates (emphasis added):

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After four years, review of 1 million documents, 490 interviews, his conclusion is that FBI should have opened a preliminary investigation (PI) instead of a full investigation (FI) in 2016.

[According to Trump, this was the “crime of the century.”]

The only difference between FI and PI is the duration and the authorities that may be used. This is a hairsplitting quibble, and one on which FBI officials routinely disagree.

Durham also minimizes the reasons FBI was alarmed enough to open a FI in 2016 based on information received from Australian diplomats about Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos.

According to Aussies, Papadopoulos said, “Trump team had received some kind of suggestion from Russia that it could assist this process with the anonymous release of information during the campaign that would be damaging to Mrs Clinton.”

Papadopoulos’s statement came right after the DNC hack. FBI was properly concerned about Russia’s efforts to influence the presidential election. This was an investigation into RUSSIA.

Trump had other concerning ties to Russians: real estate deals, Miss Universe Pageant, loans from Russian lenders, Trump Tower Moscow project. Campaign Chairman Paul Manafort had lobbied for pro-Russian oligarchs.

Trump campaign members also had ties to Russia. Mike Flynn was paid $45,000 by Russia Today in 2015 for a speech he gave at a banquet where he sat next to Putin. He later lied to FBI about his calls with the Russian ambassador about sanctions during the transition.

Carter Page had been seen meeting with Russian intel officers. It now appears that he was unaware that they were trying to recruit him. Papadopoulos worked to set up a meeting with Putin.

Durham criticizes the FBI for relying on the Steele Dossier for the Carter Page FISA. Steele Dossier was not the basis for opening the investigation, but it makes for a useful scapegoat to blur that fact.

We now know FBI was unable to corroborate the Steele Dossier, which contained explosive details about Russian kompromat on Trump. That’s 20/20 hindsight. And, importantly, Durham never says the information in it was false, just unconfirmed.

In fact, some aspects of Steele Dossier were confirmed by Mueller and DNI: Putin favored Trump and was working to influence the election in Trump’s favor and against Clinton. It also contained unconfirmed information that could have seriously compromised Trump as president.

Failing to investigate these ties would have been a breach of duty by FBI. This was an investigation into RUSSIA. Russia was the threat and the focus. Trump was just Russia’s useful idiot.

Page FISA also was based on an e-mail altered by an FBI lawyer. That lawyer was identified by IG, not Durham, and he was properly convicted for making false statements. Mueller disregarded all aspects of Page FISA.

In addition to criticizing the FBI for opening a FI instead of a PI, Durham also ignores other facts and helps advance the narrative that the Russia investigation was a hoax.

Like Barr, Durham says Mueller found no conspiracy between Trump and Russia but fails to mention the 2016 Trump Tower meeting to receive dirt on Clinton, sharing of polling data with Russian intel officer Konstantin Kilimnik, and coordinating of messaging with Wikileaks.

Durham also ignores Trump’s public statement, “Russia, if you’re listening …” asking them to find Clinton’s missing emails, and the subsequent release of hacked emails hours after the release of the Access Hollywood tape.

The result of Durham’s four-year investigation is two failed prosecutions of bit players outside of government and a recommendation for FBI to hire someone to oversee their FISA work.

But the Durham Report provides fuel for the false claim that the Russia probe was a hoax. Don’t fall for it. While Mueller found no conspiracy, he concluded that Russia worked to help Trump become president.

[And Mueller was hindered by at least 10 cases of Obstruction of Justice!  As affirmed by 1,000 former Republican and Democratic federal prosecutors.]

And rather than report Russia’s overtures to FBI, Trump’s campaign was willing to accept the help.

The only winner here is Russia, which succeeded in its mission to get its favored candidate elected, sow discord in the United States, and undermine public trust in American institutions.

But first . . .

Friday I linked you to Glenn Sonnenberg’s Mother’s Day column on over-wokeness.

Well, guess whose Day comes after Mother’s?

That’s right!

If only I had kids and a lawn, I’d so want one of these June 18:

A “Roomba” for your lawn and the environment.  Amazing.

(Where do I come up with this stuff?  Thanks go — again and again — to the amazing Tony Seton for sharing his favorite links with me, which I frequently share with you.  The link to Sherlock Holmes was also Tony’s.)

And now . . .

UNIT

Twice suggested, though only for money you can truly afford to lose .

Rob: “Saw this article at fool.com.  Highlight: <<Uniti, which was spun off from Windstream, is another problem child. This REIT owns fiber optic cables, with Windstream accounting for around two-thirds of rent even after nine years as a stand-alone company. Along the way, it has been caught up in the bankruptcy proceeding of its former parent, and right now is eyeing a big lease renewal that is likely to be very contentious. In fact, Windstream, which is now a private company, has been explaining in presentations that it expects rent costs to drop by around two-thirds when the lease is renewed in a few years. If that comes to pass, Uniti will be in a financial pickle, and a dividend cut would be nearly impossible to avoid. This helps explain why Uniti’s dividend yield is an eye-catching 19%. For most investors the risk/reward balance probably won’t be worth the investment.>>”

My guy: “I’m well aware of the UNITI/Windstream situation. First, the lease contract does not expire until 2030. Second, while they are at odds with each other, they will clearly settle over the next few years as it is in their best interest to do so. Third, Windstream has no alternative to using UNITI. So they can blather about huge reductions but they won’t get them. Fourth, Aurelius Capital essentially stole Windstream in a bizarre lawsuit and is trying like crazy to monetize the acquisition so they will say all kinds of things.  So I will collect my dividend for the next seven years. UNITI will continue to grow away from Windstream. There will be a new agreement between the two sides.  UNITI has put a huge amount of new fiber in place. The projections show massive growth over the next five years. A final point: UNITI refied its debt last year so they are good to 2027. It’s a carefully run company. I am buying down here. Maybe I’m wrong but I’ll take the chance.”

→ I’m with my guy, but we’ll see.

PRKR

Humayun Mian: “Are you still hanging on ?  If so why?”

→ Yes.

My hopes were shattered by a judge who could just as easily have made us all rich (and, at least as I understand the situation, allowed justice to prevail).  But I hang on because I’d feel worse seeing it quintuple after I sold than I would seeing it hit zero.  Intel’s $25 million patent-infringement settlement, though puny, may not be PRKR’s last.  And the company claims to have new technology on its shelf that could conceivably prove valuable.

APE

Continues to sell at less than a third ($1.59) what its identical twin AMC sells for ($5.20), and APE shares will almost surely become AMC shares this year.  No one can say where the stock will trade then — it could be even lower than APE’s current price.  But wherever it is, today’s APE holders will be a lot happier (or less sad) than today’s AMC holders.

OPRT

Mentioned around $4 few weeks ago.  Though up 30%, my friend who knows it well is holding all his.  He calls it “ridiculously cheap, selling at less than 2x management’s projected cashflow which itself is roughly 1/2 of what it reasonably could be if they radically downsized their bloated overhead and focused on only the profitable parts of their business.”  I listened to this whole interview and read this hopeful press release over the weekend and then bought some more yesterday.  Only with money we can truly afford to lose — who knows (for example) what will happen if the extreme MAGA Republicans throw the world into chaos by reneging on our Debt — but Brian Finn sees a company that could be earning $3 a share in 2024.