October 1st, 2023 • 3h 1m
Shownotes
Every new episode of No Agenda is accompanied by a comprehensive list of shownotes curated by Adam while preparing for the show. Clips played by the hosts during the show can also be found here.
Migration Replacement
Matt Long in Fred confirmed this Colony Ridge is real
12% foreclosures
Kissinger migration
Perhaps all of those countries in the UN study would not be experiencing "below replacement fertility" if Henry Kissinger hadn't called for "creating conditions conducive to fertility decline" back in 1974.
ICE Agents BOTG
I was just listening to episode 1595. I have a good friend I’ve made through jiujitsu that is an ICE Agent. Based on what he’s told me under the Biden Administration ICE has at best been turned into a travel agency and at worst been given the stand down order. They stopped apprehending anyone because when they do they are instructed to release and often have to facilitate transportation to other states as requested by the detained illegal. He says they have largely just stopped working because they have no authority to do anything to enforce immigration laws even if they are criminals. He’s literally getting paid to sit at a desk and go to the gym while he waits for this administration to exit office
Ukraine vs Russia
Ukraine drones BOTG
BOG I receive - about 10,000 small drones a month are lost - increasingly from electronic defenses and why the theater attack was made. Russians have learned to target drone pilot locations as more effective than trying to knock down small drones. Small drones are predominately a daylight anti-personnel weapon and important to identify supply lines or other targets for artillery. Payload does kill individuals and can damage some armored vehicles but most can be repaired quickly. We only see videos of the successes of the 10,000 launched each month.
The newly trained Ukrainian forces entering the offensive were trained in 90 days - much like Vietnam draftees.
ATACMS Pronunciation BOTG
I worked at Lockheed in the Simulation Department for 5 years on the ATACMS program.
The way the media is pronouncing the acronym is funny, I’ll admit. But we only ever pronounced it as a long A.
Aye-tacums
Ministry of Truthiness
Trudeau Government moves to regulate podcasts - The Counter Signal
Online streaming services operating in Canada that offer audio or video content that generate $10 million or more in annual revenues must complete a registration form by November 28.
Networks
Spotify
Climate Change
Climate change is 100% man made!
Big Pharma
Big Tech AI
AI winter - Wikipedia
In the history of artificial intelligence, an AI winter is a period of reduced funding and interest in artificial intelligence research.[1] The field has experienced several hype cycles, followed by disappointment and criticism, followed by funding cuts, followed by renewed interest years or even decades later.
The term first appeared in 1984 as the topic of a public debate at the annual meeting of AAAI (then called the "American Association of Artificial Intelligence").[2] Roger Schank and Marvin Minsky—two leading AI researchers who experienced the "winter" of the 1970s—warned the business community that enthusiasm for AI had spiraled out of control in the 1980s and that disappointment would certainly follow. They described a chain reaction, similar to a "nuclear winter", that would begin with pessimism in the AI community, followed by pessimism in the press, followed by a severe cutback in funding, followed by the end of serious research.[2] Three years later the billion-dollar AI industry began to collapse.
There were two major winters approximately 1974–1980 and 1987–2000[3] and several smaller episodes, including the following:
1966: failure of machine translation
1969: criticism of perceptrons (early, single-layer artificial neural networks)
1971–75: DARPA's frustration with the Speech Understanding Research program at Carnegie Mellon University
1973: large decrease in AI research in the United Kingdom in response to the Lighthill report
1973–74: DARPA's cutbacks to academic AI research in general
1987: collapse of the LISP machine market
1988: cancellation of new spending on AI by the Strategic Computing Initiative
1990s: many expert systems were abandoned
1990s: end of the Fifth Generation computer project's original goals
Enthusiasm and optimism about AI has generally increased since its low point in the early 1990s. Beginning about 2012, interest in artificial intelligence (and especially the sub-field of machine learning) from the research and corporate communities led to a dramatic increase in funding and investment, leading to the current (as of 2023) AI boom.
Spotify's podcast translation product is white privileged
These Prisoners Are Training AI | Clickworkers
Around the world, millions of so-called “clickworkers” train artificial intelligence models, teaching machines the difference between pedestrians and palm trees, or what combination of words describe violence or sexual abuse. Usually these workers are stationed in the global south, where wages are cheap. OpenAI, for example, uses an outsourcing firm that employs clickworkers in Kenya, Uganda, and India. That arrangement works for American companies, operating in the world’s most widely spoken language, English. But there are not a lot of people in the global south who speak Finnish.
F35 Op
F35 Self flying planes BOTG
Though all of this is unclassified, please do not mention any specifics as this could be used to identify CUI information.
BLUF: I work for the Air Force Research Laboratory in the Aerospace Systems Directorate (RQQC) dealing specifically with autonomy in air systems. Though you are right that the military has wanted "self-flying" planes for a while, they are many years away. This is not because of limitations in technology, but other factors detailed below.
every single one of these systems are made of of different solutions which have been developed by different directorates, and are at different stages of completion. There is no agreed-upon spec for interface or communication between any of these systems, though there are many that are vying for wider acceptance.
There is also a real problem of trust and transfer of authority between the systems.
Kennedy Op
To the fearless believers, passionate change makers and motivated citizens who make up People for Kennedy,
While we had placed our outreach on a bit of a "hold" as we were waiting on our Candidate and the Campaign to make some critical decisions – it looks like planning behind the scenes for an Independent run was the exact right call.
Yes!! Our People for Kennedy leadership team has been busy behind the scenes preparing for the Independent run. Although, we thought we had another week to get ready…now that the cat is out of the bag, 😻
***PLEASE JOIN US SUNDAY FOR A VERY IMPORTANT CALL***
Spread the word, invite anyone you know who may be looking for a way to be involved. Now is the time and tomorrow’s call will set us in the right direction towards supporting our candidates' Independent run.
LINK TO CALL SUN 10/1
4:00 PM Pacific/7:00 PM Eastern
A nation-wide movement needs more than a Slack Workspace. We want you to organize where you are most comfortable and already have your network. While we will continue to have a People For Kennedy Slack Workspace, we are committed to providing the support, encouragement and tools all #KennedyAmericans need to organize wherever and however you wish. For this reason we also have a new website people4kennedy.com which will become more robust in the coming weeks.
M5M
New York Public Radio to Cut 12% of Work Force - The New York Times
LaFontaine Oliver, New York Public Radio’s president and chief executive, said in a memo to employees that a “free fall in the advertising market” had led to the decision to cut staff.
“I know this news is hard to hear, and knowing macroeconomic factors have led to this moment doesn’t soften the blow when national trends land on your own doorstep,” Mr. Oliver said.
New York Public Radio, a nonprofit, operates WNYC, the classical music station WQXR and the Gothamist local news site. It has about 340 full-time and part-time employees. Staff members affected by the job cuts will be notified next week; Mr. Oliver didn’t say in his memo which areas of the organization would be hardest hit, but said the organization would preserve its journalism and music efforts. New York Public Radio is also planning to eliminate a majority of open positions, Mr. Oliver said in his memo.
Trudeau Government moves to regulate podcasts - The Counter Signal
Online streaming services operating in Canada that offer audio or video content that generate $10 million or more in annual revenues must complete a registration form by November 28.
Networks
Spotify
STORIES
New York Public Radio to Cut 12% of Work Force - The New York Times
Fri, 29 Sep 2023 12:59
Media | WNYC Parent to Cut 12% of Work Force https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/26/business/media/new-york-public-radio-job-cuts-wnyc.htmlThe chief executive of New York Public Radio, which operates WNYC and the classical music station WQXR, said the organization was facing a ''free fall'' in advertising.
A radio show at WNYC in 2019. Many public radio stations have suffered decreases in traditional listenership as audiences shift to newer platforms, such as Spotify, and on-demand listening. Credit... Brittainy Newman/The New York Times New York Public Radio, the parent organization of the WNYC news station, said on Tuesday that it was planning to cut its work force by about 12 percent.
LaFontaine Oliver, New York Public Radio's president and chief executive, said in a memo to employees that a ''free fall in the advertising market'' had led to the decision to cut staff.
''I know this news is hard to hear, and knowing macroeconomic factors have led to this moment doesn't soften the blow when national trends land on your own doorstep,'' Mr. Oliver said.
New York Public Radio, a nonprofit, operates WNYC, the classical music station WQXR and the Gothamist local news site. It has about 340 full-time and part-time employees. Staff members affected by the job cuts will be notified next week; Mr. Oliver didn't say in his memo which areas of the organization would be hardest hit, but said the organization would preserve its journalism and music efforts. New York Public Radio is also planning to eliminate a majority of open positions, Mr. Oliver said in his memo.
Many public radio stations have had to adjust to changes in how audiences listen to their programming, with many people shifting to newer platforms, such as Spotify. The Covid-19 pandemic sped up some of those changes as fewer people commuted to work, a segment that had long been a staple of traditional listenership.
New York Public Radio is among the vanguard of public radio stations that have sought to embrace changing listener behaviors. Its WNYC Studios arm produces ''Radiolab,'' a popular podcast that explores themes of curiosity and the natural world, and ''The New Yorker Radio Hour,'' a podcast version of the magazine.
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United Airlines Would Save $80 Million Per Year If Everyone Took Ozempic - View from the Wing
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 14:11
Airline expenses break down across planes, labor, and jet fuel. The amount of fuel it takes to fly a plane varies based on how much weight the plane needs to carry. So if passengers would lose weight, airlines would save money. If everyone dropped 10 pounds on Ozempic, United Airlines would save $80 million per year.
Airlines and planemakers obsess about reducing jet-fuel consumption by constantly finding new ways to reduce aircraft weight. They may have new allies in Ozempic and other similar slimming medications.
United Airlines Holdings Inc. would save $80 million a year if the average passenger weight falls by 10 pounds, Sheila Kahyaoglu, a Jefferies Financial analyst, estimated in a report Friday.
David Slotnick reminds that United found it could save $290,000 by printing its Hemispheres magazine using lighter paper, saving weight and therefore fuel.
When Emirates launched their Airbus A380 with showers in first class they offset the added weight of the water for bathing with reduced paper in seat backs of economy.
Every tweak to onboard weight matters. In fact, if everyone reduced their weight by going to the bathroom prior to boarding a flight, airlines would save $100 million per year. That might even be an argument for charging for on board lavatory use '' since it would encourage people to use free bathrooms on the ground before the flight.
To be sure, I don't think we decide what to prescribe as a best practice based on airline fuel savings. And there are still questions about the long-term benefits of what appear to be miracle weight loss drugs, simply because they're still new. I do think this points to broader potential for ways that the drugs could be transformative.
Denmark now publishes its GDP with and without Wegovy manufacturer Novo Nordisk. Wegovy was a diabetes drug that helped obese patients lose 15% '' 20% of body weight in about a year. It's part of a GLP-1 agonist revolution that includes Ozempic and Mounjaro.
And lower body weight generally has health benefits. In a five year study Wegovy appeared to show a 20% decrease in risk for heart attacks and strokes in overweight, older patients. The drugs are expensive, but health care costs fall for people who lose weight, too (though not as much as the current cost of the medications). These drugs will become more accessible, though, as the patent on Ozempic expires in eight years.
(HT: @crucker)
More From View from the Wing
Russia-Ukraine war latest: No plans to deploy British troops to Ukraine, Sunak says
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 13:59
Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty arrive on the opening day of the UK Conservative Party Conference in Manchester Credit : Hollie Adams/Bloomberg Key momentsChosen by us to get you up to speed at a glance
1:25pmUkraine says working with US after Congress drops aid12:15pmFive more cargo ships head for Ukraine's Black Sea ports, says deputy PM11:25amRussian defence spending to surge next year, says MoD10:30amSlovak election heads for tense finish as early results roll in10:00amUkraine shoots down 16 Russian dronesRishi Sunak said on Sunday there were no immediate plans to deploy military instructors to Ukraine, rowing back on comments by his defence minister who had suggested troops could carry out training in the country.
Mr Shapps told the Telegraph Britain will ramp up its training programme for Ukrainian soldiers under plans being discussed with military chiefs.
One idea is to move ''more training and production'' of military equipment into Ukraine, he said, while calling on more British defence firms to set up factories in Ukraine.
On Sunday, Mr Sunak said: ''What the defence secretary was saying was that it might well be possible one day in the future for us to do some of that training in Ukraine.''
''But that's something for the long term, not the here and now. There are no British soldiers that will be sent to fight in the current conflict.''
His comments follow inflammatory rhetoric from former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Sunday, who said British troops would be legitimate targets for Russian troops if they were stationed in Ukraine.
Live ReportingRelated Stories1 October 2023 ' 2:40pm
2:40PMSlovakia's poll winner defies European consensus on UkraineSlovakia's pro-Russian and anti-liberal election winner Robert Fico was poised on Sunday to begin coalition talks to form a government likely to join Hungary in opposing the European Union's military aid for Ukraine.
The 59-year-old former prime minister's SMER-SSD party scored nearly 23 per cent of Saturday's vote, earning the president's nod to start talks to replace a technocrat government that has been backing Kyiv against Russia's invasion.
''We are not changing that we are prepared to help Ukraine in a humanitarian way,'' said Fico, whom analysts consider to be inspired by Hungary's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban who has frequently clashed with the EU.
2:14PMIn case you missed it: Here's the latest instalment of our podcast on Ukraine 1:50PMBritish troops in Ukraine would be legitimate targets, says MedvedevBritish soldiers training troops in Ukraine would be legitimate targets for Moscow's forces, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has said.
Mr Medvedev, who is deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, was responding to a recent announcement by Defence Minister Grant Schapps who said he had held talks with Army leaders about moving ''more training and production'' of military equipment into Ukraine.
Up until now Kyiv's forces have been training in the UK, with the idea of formal training programmes in Ukraine considered risky owing to the possibility of personnel being drawn into combat with Russia.
''[This will] turn their instructors into a legal target for our armed forces,'' Mr Medvedev said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
''They will be ruthlessly destroyed. And not as mercenaries, but namely as British Nato specialists,'' he added.
1:37PMRussian losses so far, according to Ukraine 1:25PMUkraine says working with US after Congress drops aidUkraine said Sunday it was working with Washington to ensure new wartime aid, after US lawmakers dropped new funding for Kyiv in a last-minute deal to avoid a government shutdown.
''The Ukrainian government is now actively working with its American partners to ensure that the new US budget decision, which will be developed over the next 45 days, includes new funds to help Ukraine,'' Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said.
12:45PMRussia intercepts five HIMARS, JDAM bomb, 37 drones over Ukraine in last 24 hoursRussia's defence ministry said Russian air defences had intercepted five US-made HIMARS shells, an air-launched JDAM bomb and 37 Ukrainian drones over Ukrainian territory in last 24 hours.
The ministry said those interceptions had occurred on the territory where Russia is fighting what it calls a ''special military operation''.
Separately, the ministry reported that its air defences had shot down six Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and two Ukrainian missiles over Crimea.
12:15PMFive more cargo ships head for Ukraine's Black Sea ports, says deputy PMFive more ships are on their way to Ukrainian sea ports using a new corridor opened to resume predominantly agricultural exports, an alternative arrangement to the Black Sea grain deal blocked by Russia, a top Ukrainian official said on Sunday.
''5 new vessels are waiting to be loaded in Ukrainian ports,'' Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on the X social media platform.
''Bulk carriers OLGA, IDA, DANNY BOY, FORZA DORIA, NEW LEGACY are going to export almost 120,000 (metric) tons of Ukrainian grain to Africa and Europe,'' he added.
11:56AMSlovak coalition talks to start after ex-PM Fico's election winSlovakia's Robert Fico, who won an election after pledging to end military aid to Ukraine, was in pole position to start talks on forming a government on Sunday while a liberal rival vowed to seek partners to prevent the former leftist prime minister's return to power.
With 99.98 per cent of voting districts reporting in the Saturday election, Fico's SMER-SSD party scored nearly 23 per cent of the vote, followed by almost 18 per cent for the Progresivne Slovensko (Progressive Slovakia, PS) party.
The winner is expected to be given a political mandate by President Zuzana Caputova to try to find a majority, and form a government if successful.
11:39AMWagner is trying to reignite civil war in Mali, says USRussia's Wagner mercenaries are trying to reignite Mali's civil war in an attempt to keep its African business venture afloat, US officials have told the Sunday Telegraph.
Far from disintegrating after the death of their founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, in a plane crash outside Moscow in August, Wagner forces in Mali have been involved in fierce battles across the country and have continued to expand their operations across Africa.
But where before their activities were limited mostly to providing security and training for Mali's forces, the guns for hire are now clashing with anti-government Tuareg rebels to sow instability, the officials said.
US officials believe the instability caused by extra fighting benefits the Wagner business model.
Read Joe Barnes's full story
11:25AMRussian defence spending to surge next year, says MoDRussia is preparing to dramatically boost spending on defence in a sign that it won't wind down its war in Ukraine any time soon, according to the Ministry of Defence.
Citing documents apparently leaked from Russia's defence ministry, the MoD said Moscow's defence spending is set to surge to approximately 30 per cent of total public expenditure in 2024.
''The ministry proposes a defence budget of 10.8 trillion roubles, equivalent to approximately 6 per cent of GDP and a 68 per cent increase over 2023.
''Full details on Russian defence spending are always classified, but these figures suggests that Russia is preparing for multiple further years of fighting in Ukraine.''
Despite being hit by punishing sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, Russia's economy is expected to grow this year.
However, the MoD said: ''It is highly likely that Russia can support this level of defence spending through 2024, but only at the expense of the wider economy.''
11:10AMPictured: Fires rage at grain warehouses following a Russian drone strike in Ukraine's Uman, Cherkasy region Credit : Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Cherkasy region/Handout via Credit : Head of Cherkasy Regional Civil-Military Administration Ihor Tablets via Telegram/Handout via Credit : Head of Cherkasy Regional Civil-Military Administration Ihor Tablets via Telegram/Handout via 10:53AMRussian regions hit by Ukrainian drones and shellingRussia was targeted by another wave of Ukrainian drones and shelling on Sunday, wounding three people and forcing an airport to divert flights, officials said.
Since Ukraine launched its counteroffensive in early June, Russian regions have accused Kyiv's armed forces of almost daily drone strikes and shelling on civilian targets.
''On Sunday morning, the armed forces of Ukraine shelled the area of the central market in Shebekino,'' said Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of Russia's Belgorod region bordering Ukraine.
10:30AMSlovak election heads for tense finish as early results roll inSlovakia's parliamentary election is poised on a knife's edge with exit polls handing liberal party Progressive Slovakia (PS) an initial lead while early official results put former leftist Prime Minister Robert Fico's party on top.
With 30 per cent of voting districts reporting, the SMER-SSD party led by Mr Fico - who has vowed to end military aid to Ukraine - led with nearly 25 per cent of the vote. The HLAS party and potential Fico ally followed at 17 per cent, with PS in third with 13 per cent of the vote.
''What has been counted are small districts,'' said Robert Kalinak, a SMER-SSD candidate and long-time Fico ally. ''It all depends on when you have 50 per cent, a critical mass of voters. Then you can start thinking about how many votes can still shift.''
10:15AMGrant Shapps to ramp up support for Volodymyr ZelenskyBritain will ramp up its training programme for Ukrainian soldiers under plans being discussed with military chiefs, Edward Malnick writes.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Grant Shapps said that he had held talks with Army leaders about moving ''more training and production'' of military equipment into Ukraine. He also called on more British defence firms to set up factories in Ukraine.
Following a trip to Kyiv last week, Mr Shapps also reveals that he has talked to Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, about how Britain's Navy could play a role in defending commercial vessels from Russian attacks in the Black Sea.
Both moves would mark a significant escalation in the UK's involvement in defending Ukraine against Vladimir Putin's onslaught.
Read the full story
10:00AMUkraine shoots down 16 Russian dronesUkraine's air defence systems shot down 16 out of around 30 drones that Russia launched on Ukraine's territory overnight, according to the Ukrainian Air Forces on Sunday.
It said on Telegram messaging app that drones were launched from the southern, southeastern and northern directions.
Authorities said the central Ukrainian Cherkasy region was under the attack.
British troops could deploy to Ukraine for first time to train soldiers, says Grant Shapps | Ukraine | The Guardian
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 13:58
The new defence secretary, Grant Shapps, said he has held talks with army leaders about deploying British troops within Ukraine for the first time for a training programme.
Shapps, who met Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, for talks in Kyiv earlier this week, said the proposal being discussed would reduce the reliance on the UK and other Nato members' bases.
The programme of training for Ukraine's military, supported by 10 other nations, has taught skills to more than 26,500 recruits and is on track to have trained more than 30,000 soldiers by the end of the year, according to the UK's Ministry of Defence.
In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, Shapps also disclosed that he talked to Zelenskiy about how the navy could help to defend commercial vessels from Russian attacks in the Black Sea.
After a briefing with Gen Sir Patrick Sanders, the chief of the general staff, and other senior personnel at Salisbury Plain, Shapps said: ''I was talking today about eventually getting the training brought closer and actually into Ukraine as well.
''Particularly in the west of the country, I think the opportunity now is to bring more things 'in country' '' not just training, but also we're seeing BAE [the UK defence firm], for example, move into manufacturing in country, for example.
''I'm keen to see other British companies do their bit as well by doing the same thing. So I think there will be a move to get more training and production in the country.''
Earlier this month, Royal Engineers sappers delivered explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) training to Ukrainian soldiers on disabling mines, munitions and other explosive devices.
Shapps replaced Ben Wallace in August for his fifth cabinet post in a year, prompting criticism from some Conservative MPs and former military figures about his lack of relevant experience.
He also suggested that Britain was preparing to help Ukraine counter the Russian army's targeting of cargo ships. The French military has said its aircraft have been carrying out surveillance over the Black Sea.
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Shapps said: ''We've seen, in the last month or so, developments '' really the first since 2014 in the Black Sea, in Crimea '' and Britain is a naval nation so we can help and we can advise, particularly since the water is international water.
''It's important that we don't allow a situation to establish by default that somehow international shipping isn't allowed in that water. So I think there's a lot of places where Britain can help advise. [I] did discuss it with president Zelenskiy and many others this week.''
The UK delivered £2.3bn in military aid to Ukraine in 2022 and the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has pledged to do the same in 2023.
Britain hosted the Ukraine Recovery Conference in partnership with Ukraine this summer, raising more than £49bn ($60bn) towards Ukraine's reconstruction.
CRTC takes major step forward to modernize Canada's broadcasting framework - Canada.ca
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 13:50
Today, the CRTC is advancing its regulatory plan to modernize Canada's broadcasting framework and ensure online streaming services make meaningful contributions to Canadian and Indigenous content.
September 29, 2023'--Ottawa''Gatineau'--Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)
Today, the CRTC is advancing its regulatory plan to modernize Canada's broadcasting framework and ensure online streaming services make meaningful contributions to Canadian and Indigenous content.
On May 12, 2023, the CRTC launched its first public consultations. After thoroughly examining all the evidence on the public record, including over 200 interventions, the CRTC is issuing its first two decisions.
First, the CRTC is setting out which online streaming services need to provide information about their activities in Canada. Online streaming services that operate in Canada, offer broadcasting content, and earn $10 million or more in annual revenues will need to complete a registration form by November 28, 2023. Registration collects basic information, is only required once and can be completed in just a few steps.
Second, the CRTC is setting conditions for online streaming services to operate in Canada. These conditions take effect today and require certain online streaming services to provide the CRTC with information related to their content and subscribership. The decision also requires those services to make content available in a way that is not tied to a specific mobile or Internet service.
A third consultation is ongoing. It considers contributions traditional broadcasters and online streaming services will need to make to support Canadian and Indigenous content. The CRTC will hold a three-week public proceeding starting on November 20, 2023, and will hear from 129 intervenors representing a broad range of interests.
Quotes''We are developing a modern broadcasting framework that can adapt to changing circumstances. To do that, we need broad engagement and robust public records. We appreciate the significant participation during this first phase and look forward to hearing a diversity of perspectives at our contributions proceeding in November.''
- Vicky Eatrides, Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, CRTC
Quick facts Social media services must register; however, users do not. Online services that offer podcasts must register; however, individuals who use social media to share podcasts do not. Online services that only provide video game services or audiobooks do not have to register. A list of registered services will be published on the CRTC's website. Associated links Registration for online streaming services Regulatory plan Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2023-329: Online Undertakings Registration Regulations, and exemption order regarding those regulations Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2023-331: Review of exemption orders and transition from conditions of exemption to conditions of service for broadcasting online undertakings Consultation about registration of online streaming services Consultation about exemption orders and basic conditions of service for online streaming services General Inquiries Telephone: 819-997-0313 Toll free: 1-877-249-CRTC (2782) TTY: 819-994-0423
Trudeau Government moves to regulate podcasts - The Counter Signal
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 03:43
Trudeau Government moves to regulate podcasts
The Trudeau government's foray into podcast regulation is a concerning encroachment on free expression.
Mike CampbellSeptember 30, 2023
The Trudeau government's recently passed Online Streaming Act is moving into its next phase of regulation by requiring podcasters to register with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
Trudeau Government moves to regulate podcastsThe government claims the regulation will ''ensure online streaming services make meaningful contributions to Canadian and Indigenous content.''
But critics worry the move is just the Liberal government's latest attempt to control what Canadians are able to see and hear online.
''The CRTC now wants to regulate podcasts,'' said the Toronto Sun's Brian Lilley. ''Here is my simple message to them. Go to hell.''
''Not a f**king chance You censorial Scumrat,'' said Dr. Jordan Peterson on X.
CRTC's announcement states that podcasters meeting certain criteria ''need to provide information about their activities in Canada.''
Online streaming services operating in Canada that offer audio or video content that generate $10 million or more in annual revenues must complete a registration form by November 28.
It's pitched as a one-time requirement collecting basic information.
''Second, the CRTC is setting conditions for online streaming services to operate in Canada. These conditions take effect today and require certain online streaming services to provide the CRTC with information related to their content and subscribership.''
Furthermore, CRTC stated that another ongoing consultation will address how podcasters and those offering video streaming services contribute to Canadian and Indigenous content.
''Creeping totalitarianism''The Online Streaming Act is legislation that was passed earlier this year, which Canadian author Margaret Atwood called ''creeping totalitarianism.''
While debating censorship Bill C-11, Canadian senator David Richards said, if it passes, Joseph Stalin would be ''looking over our shoulder when we write.''
Richards also said the bill is ''censorship passing as national inclusion.''
Liberals say the bill will promote Canadian content over non-Canadian content. They also say it will achieve equitable representation among gender, ethnicity, and related ''marginalized'' groups.
''In terms of diversity and inclusion, one of the goals of the bill is to put diverse and marginalized voices in the spotlight,'' said Senator Dennis Dawson of Quebec during the third reading.
It's crucial we stay in touch
Big Tech wants to censor us, that's why you need to stay in touch.
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Opinion | This Is How A.I. Ruins the Internet - The New York Times
Sat, 30 Sep 2023 12:31
Opinion | The Internet Is About to Get Much Worse https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/23/opinion/ai-internet-lawsuit.htmlGuest Essay
Video Credit Credit... Charles Desmarais By Julia Angwin
Ms. Angwin is a contributing Opinion writer and an investigative journalist.
Greg Marston, a British voice actor, recently came across ''Connor'' online '-- an A.I.-generated clone of his voice, trained on a recording Mr. Marston had made in 2003. It was his voice uttering things he had never said.
Back then, he had recorded a session for IBM and later signed a release form allowing the recording to be used in many ways. Of course, at that time, Mr. Marston couldn't envision that IBM would use anything more than the exact utterances he had recorded. Thanks to artificial intelligence, however, IBM was able to sell Mr. Marston's decades-old sample to websites that are using it to build a synthetic voice that could say anything. Mr. Marston recently discovered his voice emanating from the Wimbledon website during the tennis tournament. (IBM said it is aware of Mr. Marston's concern and is discussing it with him directly.)
His plight illustrates why many of our economy's best-known creators are up in arms. We are in a time of eroding trust, as people realize that their contributions to a public space may be taken, monetized and potentially used to compete with them. When that erosion is complete, I worry that our digital public spaces might become even more polluted with untrustworthy content.
Already, artists are deleting their work from X, formerly known as Twitter, after the company said it would be using data from its platform to train its A.I. Hollywood writers and actors are on strike partly because they want to ensure their work is not fed into A.I. systems that companies could try to replace them with. News outlets including The New York Times and CNN have added files to their website to help prevent A.I. chatbots from scraping their content.
Authors are suing A.I. outfits, alleging that their books are included in the sites' training data. OpenAI has argued, in a separate proceeding, that the use of copyrighted data for training A.I. systems is legal under the ''fair use'' provision of copyright law.
While creators of quality content are contesting how their work is being used, dubious A.I.-generated content is stampeding into the public sphere. NewsGuard has identified 475 A.I.-generated news and information websites in 14 languages. A.I.-generated music is flooding streaming websites and generating A.I. royalties for scammers. A.I.-generated books '-- including a mushroom foraging guide that could lead to mistakes in identifying highly poisonous fungi '-- are so prevalent on Amazon that the company is asking authors who self-publish on its Kindle platform to also declare if they are using A.I.
This is a classic case of tragedy of the commons, where a common resource is harmed by the profit interests of individuals. The traditional example of this is a public field that cattle can graze upon. Without any limits, individual cattle owners have an incentive to overgraze the land, destroying its value to everybody.
We have commons on the internet, too. Despite all of its toxic corners, it is still full of vibrant portions that serve the public good '-- places like Wikipedia and Reddit forums, where volunteers often share knowledge in good faith and work hard to keep bad actors at bay.
But these commons are now being overgrazed by rapacious tech companies that seek to feed all of the human wisdom, expertise, humor, anecdotes and advice they find in these places into their for-profit A.I. systems.
Consider, for instance, that the volunteers who build and maintain Wikipedia trusted that their work would be used according to the terms of their site, which requires attribution. Now some Wikipedians are apparently debating whether they have any legal recourse against chatbots that use their content without citing the source.
Regulators are trying to figure it out, too. The European Union is considering the first set of global restrictions on A.I., which would require some transparency from generative A.I. systems, including providing summaries of copyrighted data that was used to train its systems.
That would be a good step forward, since many A.I. systems do not fully disclose the data they were trained on. It has primarily been journalists who have dug up the murky data that lies beneath the glossy surface of the chatbots. A recent investigation detailed in The Atlantic revealed that more than 170,000 pirated books are included in the training data for Meta's A.I. chatbot, Llama. A Washington Post investigation revealed that OpenAI's ChatGPT relies on data scraped without consent from hundreds of thousands of websites.
But transparency is hardly enough to rebalance the power between those whose data is being exploited and the companies poised to cash in on the exploitation.
Tim Friedlander, the founder and president of the National Association of Voice Actors, has called for A.I. companies to adopt ethical standards. He says that actors need three C's: consent, control and compensation.
In fact, all of us need the three C's. Whether we are professional actors or we just post pictures on social media, everyone should have the right to meaningful consent on whether we want our online lives fed into the giant A.I. machines.
And consent should not mean having to locate a bunch of hard-to-find opt-out buttons to click '-- which is where the industry is heading.
Compensation is harder to figure out, especially since most of the A.I. bots are primarily free services at the moment. But make no mistake, the A.I. industry is planning to and will make money from these systems, and when it does, there will be a reckoning with those whose works fueled the profits.
For people like Mr. Marston, their livelihoods are at stake. He estimates that his A.I. clone has already lost him jobs and will cut into his future earnings significantly. He is working with a lawyer to seek compensation. ''I never agreed or consented to having my voice cloned, to see/hear it released to the public, thus competing against myself,'' he told me.
But even those of us who don't have a job directly threatened by A.I. think of writing that novel or composing a song or recording a TikTok or making a joke on social media. If we don't have any protections from the A.I. data overgrazers, I worry that it will feel pointless to even try to create in public. And that would be a real tragedy.
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Rethinking the Luddites in the Age of A.I. | The New Yorker
Sat, 30 Sep 2023 12:29
On December 15, 1811, the London Statesman issued a warning about the state of the stocking industry in Nottingham. Twenty thousand textile workers had lost their jobs because of the incursion of automated machinery. Knitting machines known as lace frames allowed one employee to do the work of many without the skill set usually required. In protest, the beleaguered workers had begun breaking into factories to smash the machines. ''Nine Hundred Lace Frames have been broken,'' the newspaper reported. In response, the government had garrisoned six regiments of soldiers in the town, in a domestic invasion that became a kind of slow-burning civil war of factory owners, supported by the state, against workers. The article was apocalyptic: ''God only knows what will be the end of it; nothing but ruin.''
The workers destroying the lace frames were the group who called themselves Luddites, after Ned Ludd, a (likely fictional) knitting-frame apprentice near Leicester who was said to have rebelled against his boss by destroying a frame with a hammer. Today, the word ''Luddite'' is used as an insult to anyone resistant to technological innovation; it suggests ignoramuses, sticks in the mud, obstacles to progress. But a new book by the journalist and author Brian Merchant, titled ''Blood in the Machine,'' argues that Luddism stood not against technology per se but for the rights of workers above the inequitable profitability of machines. The book is a historical reconsideration of the movement and a gripping narrative of political resistance told in short vignettes.
The hero of the story is George Mellor, a young laborer from Huddersfield who worked as a so-called cropper, smoothing the raised surface of rough cloth with shears. He observed the increasing automation of the industry, concluded that it was unjust, and decided to join the insurgent Luddite movement. A physically towering figure, he organized his fellow-workers and led attacks on factories. One factory owner who was targeted was William Horsfall, a local cloth entrepreneur. Horsfall threatened to ride his horse through ''Luddite blood'' in order to keep his profitable factories going, hiring mercenaries and installing cannons to defend his machines. In the background of the story, figures such as the ineffectual Prince George, a sybaritic regent for his infirm father, George III, and Lord Byron, the poet, who voiced his sympathy for the Luddites in Parliament, debate which side to support: owners or workers. Byron exhorted the workers in his poem ''Song for the Luddites'' to ''die fighting, or live free.''
Merchant ably demonstrates the dire stakes of the Luddites' plight. The trades that had sustained livelihoods for generations were disappearing, and their families were starving. A Lancashire weaver's weekly pay dropped from twenty-five shillings in 1800 to fourteen in 1811. The market was being flooded with cheaper, inferior goods such as ''cut-ups,'' stockings made from two pieces of cloth joined together, rather than knit as one continuous whole. The government repeatedly failed to intervene on behalf of the workers. What option remained was attacking the boss's capital by disabling the factories. The secretive captains of the Luddite forces took on the pseudonym General Ludd or King Ludd, which they used to write public letters and to sign threats of attacks. The spectre of violence led some factory owners to abandon their plans for automation. They reverted to manual labor or closed up shop completely. For a time, it seemed that the Luddites were making headway in empowering themselves over the machines.
The book offers plenty of satisfying imagery for the twenty-first-century reader experiencing techlash. Merchant argues that the message of Luddism is just as relevant today, as our lives become increasingly enmeshed with digital platforms, from TikTok to Uber and Instacart, that translate our labor and attention into profit, ''overlaying a sort of psychic factory onto its workers' lives.'' (Who hasn't at times wished to take a hammer to their MacBook?) The Luddites sought revenge against the innovation that was holding them hostage. In Merchant's telling, they were activists, punks, and masked celebrities standing up for the skilled working class, the successors to Robin Hood, another product of Nottingham. ''Luddite'' by that measure sounds like a compliment.
''Blood in the Machine'' is being published just as we are facing a new wave of technological automation centering on artificial intelligence'--which some, including the consulting firm McKinsey, have labelled the ''Fourth Industrial Revolution.'' Merchant uses anachronistic terms like ''startup'' and ''tech titan'' to describe early factories and entrepreneurs, seeking to draw parallels with the present. (The book's analytical sections are weaker than its narrative ones.) The ''labor-saving technology'' of today threatens new categories of jobs: customer service is being performed by chatbots; Amazon is selling e-books written by ChatGPT. Designers and illustrators are losing jobs to image generators; translators are being asked to ''clean up'' transcripts generated by A.I. The profusion of dubious A.I.-generated content resembles the badly made stockings of the nineteenth century. At the time of the Luddites, many hoped the subpar products would prove unacceptable to consumers or to the government. Instead, social norms adjusted. Both the mass-manufactured products and the regimented jobs that produced them quickly became entrenched.
The Luddites watched as sprawling factory buildings rose over their rural towns, concentrating labor that had traditionally been performed independently in the home or small workshops. The working conditions in those factories, often staffed by children, were execrable; the horror stories that emerged, of mangled limbs and bodies, eventually helped encourage reform. The victims of automation today are less immediately obvious. ChatGPT users can't see the low-paid content moderators in countries such as Kenya who undergird the program's output, performing an onerous psychological task that studies have shown can induce P.T.S.D. There is no single machine that can be smashed to disable artificial intelligence. If the physical server farms that host A.I. programs were attacked, the software could simply be hosted elsewhere. What's more, the foundation of A.I. is the raw material that humanity has already labored to produce: reams of text and images that programs process into patterns and then remix into fresh ''content.'' Unlike the machines of the first Industrial Revolution, A.I. does not necessarily need more input; it can sustain itself. ''Jobs are definitely going to go away, full stop,'' Sam Altman, the C.E.O. of OpenAI, recently told The Atlantic.
The tragedy of the Luddites is not the fact that they failed to stop industrialization so much as the way in which they failed. In the end, Parliament ''sided decisively with the entrepreneurs,'' as Merchant writes, and frame-breaking was made a capital offense. Dozens of workers were executed for Luddite activities, including, in January of 1813, fourteen in one brutal day. George Mellor, the Luddite captain, was eventually convicted of assassinating Horsfall, the factory owner, and was hanged, at the age of twenty-three. Human rebellion proved inadequate against the pull of technological advancement.
''Blood in the Machine'' suggests that although the forces of mechanization can feel beyond our control, the way society responds to such changes is not. Regulation of the textile industry could have protected the Luddite workers before they resorted to destruction. One proposal suggested a tax on every yard of cloth made by machine. After a pro-worker bill failed to pass in the House of Lords, Gravener Henson, a frame knitter turned advocate and historian, led an association of workers that demanded higher wages and labor protections, though such ''combination'' was outlawed at the time in the U.K. Eventually, Luddism faded into a more general political movement. By the late nineteenth century, the majority of Nottingham's lace production had been mechanized. In the era of A.I., we have another opportunity to decide whether automation will create advantages for all, or whether its benefits will flow only to the business owners and investors looking to reduce their payrolls. One 1812 letter from the Luddites described their mission as fighting against ''all Machinery hurtful to Commonality.'' That remains a strong standard by which to judge technological gains. '...
Peak TV Is Over. A Different Hollywood Is Coming. - WSJ
Sat, 30 Sep 2023 12:18
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Who will replace Feinstein? This is who Newsom might tap - Los Angeles Times
Sat, 30 Sep 2023 12:14
Though California Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged in 2021 to appoint a Black woman to the U.S. Senate if Sen. Dianne Feinstein retired, he has kept his deliberations private and shrugged off rumors of who could be his top choice. Now, with the death of Feinstein at 90, the question of whom Newsom might appoint to replace the senator has become more urgent.
The U.S. Senate has not included a Black woman since Kamala Harris resigned to become vice president, and Newsom said earlier this month that he still intends to appoint a Black woman. But he said it won't be anyone already running for Senate in next year's election, ruling out Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) '-- and angering her and her supporters.
Some of them called on Newsom on Friday to change his stance and tap Lee.
''At a time when 20 million Californians are one paycheck away from falling into poverty, and our democracy and freedoms are under threat, we need a fighter who can immediately fill Sen. Feinstein's shoes,'' said a statement from Aimee Allison, president of She the People, a group that advocates for women of color in politics.
''Barbara Lee is ready to lead in the Senate on Day 1.''
Newsom previously said he doesn't want to interfere in the 2024 Senate race underway and will pick someone to serve as a caretaker for the period until voters choose a new senator who would take office at the start of 2025.
Whoever it is, ''Newsom is going to be very keenly interested in continuing Feinstein's legacy,'' said Elizabeth Ashford, a Democratic political consultant and vice president of California Women Lead, a nonpartisan organization Feinstein helped found in 1974.
Here are some people who could be picked.
Potential contendersAngela Glover Blackwell, PolicyLink founder
(Roy Rochlin / Getty Images)
Newsom could avoid potential conflicts with other elected Democrats by appointing someone like Angela Glover Blackwell, who has deep experience in law and policy but does not hold elected office.
A leader in the movement for racial equity, Blackwell has had a long career working on civil rights as an attorney, policy advocate, educator and writer. She is the founder of the PolicyLink racial justice organization, a lecturer at the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy and author of scholarly articles and co-author of the book ''Uncommon Common Ground: Race and America's Future.''
''As a Black girl growing up in a segregated St. Louis, Mo., in the 1950s and early '60s, I adopted the prevailing story about our country,'' she wrote in an article earlier this year in the Stanford Social Innovation Review.
''It was the tale of a nation carved by ruggedness, exploration, and aspiration. A nation full of potential that could be tapped through individual grit and courageous efforts pushing society toward equality and justice.''
In 2014, then-President Obama appointed Blackwell to his Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans. In 2020, Newsom appointed her to his Task Force on Business and Jobs Recovery, created to help the state rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic with what Blackwell described at the time as ''an equitable response in the absence of badly needed federal support.''
Lateefah Simon, Bay Area Rapid Transit board member
(Photo By Lea Suzuki/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
Lateefah Simon, currently on the Bay Area Rapid Transit board of directors, is running for the U.S. House seat that Lee now holds representing Oakland and the East Bay.
Early in her career, Simon worked for then-San Francisco Dist. Atty. Kamala Harris, leading an anti-recidivisim program for youths. In 2020, as the nation grappled with fallout from the police killing of George Floyd, Newsom tapped Simon to advise him on police reform. She currently serves on the California State University board of trustees.
Simon is well known in the Bay Area for decades of community organizing and civil and human rights advocacy, and could be a safe choice for Newsom because she's already running for Congress.
Simon's campaign declined to provide a statement and said she was instead focused on her current race.
London Breed, San Francisco mayor
(Photo by Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
San Francisco Mayor London Breed is a trickier political choice. She's running in a challenging reelection next year amid a backdrop of doom and gloom in San Francisco, where voter dissatisfaction over homelessness and crime has taken center stage in the race.
But she's also a prominent California politician from the same city as Feinstein, which could make her selection symbolic, too.
During a Friday news conference, Breed was asked if she had spoken to Newsom about whom he might tap as Feinstein's replacement, and whether she would accept the position if he offered it.
She said that was a ''conversation we can save for another day.''
''That's the governor's responsibility, and I am sure he is already working on it and doing what he needs to do,'' Breed said. ''But so many of us, including Gov. Newsom, have great relationships with Feinstein and her family, and we want to take a moment to just really make this about her, her legacy and everything she's done before we move to that chapter.''
Shirley Weber, California secretary of state
(Photo by Rich Pedroncelli/AP Photo)
Newsom turned to Shirley Weber a few years ago when he had a big position to fill. The governor tapped the then-Assembly member in 2021 to fill a vacancy as the state's chief elections officer after he appointed Alex Padilla to the U.S. Senate. Weber won her election by more than 20 points in 2022 to retain the job.
Weber can serve in her current position, if reelected, until 2030, so accepting a temporary appointment would bring her time as secretary of state to an early end '-- and create another vacancy for Newsom to fill.
Weber declined to comment on the possibility of being appointed.
Laphonza Butler, EMILY's List president
(Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images)
Laphonza Butler is the president of EMILY's List, a national political organization that focuses on electing Democratic women to office who support abortion access.
Butler has an accomplished resume in Democratic politics and campaign strategy, with deep roots in California. She served as senior advisor to Vice President Harris' 2020 presidential campaign and as president of one of California's most influential and powerful labor unions, SEIU Local 2015, which represents long-term care workers.
If she accepted an appointment, Butler would also make history as the first out person of color in the Senate. Newsom has prioritized the appointment of LGBTQ+ people to positions of power, including state Supreme Court Associate Justices Martin Jenkins and Kelli Evans.
Her appointment would require a move back to California, as Butler currently lives in Maryland, according to her online biography. The U.S. Constitution requires that people live in the state they seek to represent when they're elected to the Senate. But for people who are appointed, the law is that they must reside in the state upon assuming office, said Rick Hasen, an election law expert at the UCLA School of Law.
''So in theory someone could change their residency upon appointment,'' he told The Times.
Malia Cohen, California state controller
(Photo by Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)
Malia Cohen was elected as California's accountant in 2022, and her political history runs through the same halls of power that catapulted Feinstein to national prominence.
A San Francisco native, Cohen previously served on the California State Board of Equalization and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
However, she may be an unlikely pick, and said Newsom has not reached out to her about the post.
''Everyone is being respectful and quiet, allowing the family time to rest and reconcile this loss,'' Cohen said in an interview Friday in discussing Feinstein's death.
Leondra Kruger, California Supreme Court justice
(Photo by Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)
Once on President Biden's shortlist for a U.S. Supreme Court appointment, Leondra Kruger serves as an associate justice on the California Supreme Court.
She has previous experience in the U.S. Department of Justice and has argued several cases before the nation's highest court on behalf of the federal government.
Former Gov. Jerry Brown appointed Kruger to the state Supreme Court in 2014. She went to high school in Pasadena and, during law school, was the first Black woman to serve as editor in chief of the Yale Law Journal.
Not interested:Maxine Waters, congresswoman
(Photo by Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Rep. Maxine Waters is one of California's longest-serving officials, having been elected to the House of Representatives in 1990 to represent South Los Angeles and, before that, to the state Legislature where she held office for more than a decade.
The top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, Waters joined those calling on Newsom to appoint Lee.
''I'm a big supporter of Barbara Lee '... who has identified herself as a very highly competent legislator, leader and organizer who has advanced progressive politics throughout her career. You can't find a better committed legislator than Barbara Lee,'' she said.
''I think there is no better person than Barbara Lee for Newsom to live up to his commitment to appoint a Black woman.''
Karen Bass, Los Angeles mayor
(Photo by Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
As an experienced lawmaker and political leader, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass would be a logical appointment. But she just won an expensive and difficult election last year to lead the nation's second-largest city and has indicated she's not interested in leaving to become a short-term senator.
Asked by Politico earlier this year if Bass would consider the post, her spokesperson Zach Seidl said, ''Absolutely not.''
The mayor declined to answer questions about the appointment Friday, saying, ''Today is a day to remember and acknowledge [Feinstein's] history, and I think that is what needs to be our complete focus.''
Holly Mitchell, Los Angeles County supervisor
(Photo by Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
One of California's most high-profile female leaders, Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell said she is focused on winning reelection next year.
''While I am absolutely flattered that I've seen my name mentioned among many other amazing Black woman leaders across the state, I am not [interested],'' Mitchell told The Times in an interview Friday.
''L.A. County, the largest county in the country '-- 10-plus million people with great needs '-- is a job that I'm really enjoying now. ... There's lots of work that we started that I'm deeply proud of, and lots more work to do.''
Oprah Winfrey
(Photo by Christopher Smith/Invision/AP)
Despite media attention on the possibility of Newsom tapping Winfrey for the job, it's an unlikely choice.
Winfrey's spokeswoman earlier this year said the media mogul ''is not considering the seat should it become vacant,'' despite her national influence as an author, former talk show host and friend to many of America's most famous celebrities.
Times staff writers Kevin Rector, Taryn Luna, Julia Wick and Erin B. Logan contributed to this article.
12ft | After acquittal, Texas AG Paxton vows to take on huge illegal-alien shantytown north of Houston - American Thinker
Alef Aeronautics's flying car soars at Detroit Auto Show
Fri, 29 Sep 2023 22:22
It's flying into the future '-- of driving.
The world's first flying car made its grand debut Monday at the Detroit Auto Show '-- wowing crowds just two months after gaining legal approval.
California-based Alef Aeronautics unveiled its swanky Model A prototype, which closely resembles a standard sedan except for its UFO-esque bubble-like seating area big enough to fit two passengers with an affinity for soaring.
The history-making vehicle was not flown at the annual event '-- Alef is still roughly two years away from starting production on the first flyable car.
''It's still not the final consumer version,'' founder and CEO Jim Dukhovny told Robb Report.
''But at this point, it's pretty close.''
When it hits the market, the Model A will come attached to a $300,000 price tag.
California-based Alef Aeronautics unveiled its swanky Model A prototype at the annual Detroit Auto Show. Alef Aeronautics / SWNSThe flying car was awarded a Special Airworthiness Certification from the Federal Aviation Administration in June, meaning the company will be allowed to test it on both the road and in the air.
Dukhovny, whose father was famous musician and poet Leonid Dukhovny, originally imagined that the flying car could help save time wasted in traffic, but said, ''Every time I talk to somebody, people come up with new use cases.''
The fully electric vehicle can be driven up to 200 miles on public roads, but it can also launch vertically into the air with a flying range of 110 miles.
The car will offer ''cinematic'' 180-plus degree views, the company said. Alef Aeronautics / SWNS Alef's fully electric Model A is designed to drive up to 200 miles and fly 110 miles. Alef Aeronautics / SWNS Alef founder and CEO Jim Dukhovny said he originally envisioned the flying car as a way to beat traffic. Alef Aeronautics / SWNSThe cabin is engineered to rotate and stabilize the driver/flyer as they weave through the air.
Plus, the car will offer ''cinematic'' 180-plus degree views, the company said.
The conveyance measures about 17 feet long, 7 feet wide and 6 feet high '-- similar to the dimensions of an SUV '-- and is designed to fit in any parking space or garage.
When it hits the market, the Model A will have a $300,000 price tag. Alef Aeronautics / SWNSBecause it is aimed at the general public, the Model A was designed to be easy to learn, especially considering there will be little air traffic to deal with while learning the ropes.
''I can teach you how to fly and drive this in about 15 minutes or less,'' Dukhovny told Robb Report.
''If you can tell the difference between the right, left, up, down, front and back, you can do this. It's pretty much the only controls it has.''
The BIC Browser is Watching You '' Socio Business blog
Fri, 29 Sep 2023 16:06
As an introduction to this week's post, let me pick up where we left off with last week's post (''Please Don't Make Me Think''). Thinking is hard, reading is hard, sometimes even watching can be hard. Falling asleep seems to be one of the few things left that's usually easy (unless our brains won't let us ð ).
There is a widespread notion that watching '-- whether leaning forward or leaning back '-- is more or less ''passive''. Many years ago, ''fireside chats'' were introduced as a genre to bring the propaganda to the people '... blanketed in a warm, cozy atmosphere of trustworthiness. Walter Cronkite became the leading heir to this sort of bullshit, and over the years this bogus mainstream crap continues to creep in through the crevices of modern technology.
Take, for example, YouTube (owned by Google), the mainstream TV of the new millennium. Millennials and boomers alike swallow this shit up like there's no tomorrow. The marginally more literate among us do realize that it is not only a manipulation engine but also a data collection device much like all of the other devices developed by the so-called ''parent'' company (Alphabet '-- aka Google).
Let me warn you that all of what I've written so far still belongs to the ''introduction'' '... and here's the punch line: since YouTube uses ''https'' it is considered a ''secure'' website. Well, as long as there's a certificate '... and of course these certificates are brought to you by neato companies '... like Google. In other words: the Google certificate certifies that YouTube.com is a secure website. Wonderful! Have you watched any YouTube videos lately? Anyone who feels secure on that website probably needs a vacation.
People who lap up my every word may already know where this is headed '-- if you don't, just take a glance at some of my recent posts (like ''Do Not Read This''). Yet again today, I will reference a YT video '-- and of course I don't touch any Google crap with a ten-foot pole '... luckily there are dozens of services online to download video junk in exchange for free offers, business opportunities, games and other potential services to gather even more data (because these days, such reliable, secure data makes the world go 'round '-- right?).
There is indeed a humungous ''Browsing Industrial Complex'' (BIC) '-- a vast network of spy organizations (whether for industrial espionage or for governmental institutions or military or simply to make a quick buck) '-- that's watching you '... in order to manipulate you '... into voting for the right leader, or buying the new product or service, or whatever. It is so big that most people simply ''tune it out'', ignore it, repress it into the subconscious layers of the brain where it can fester and torment us with all the other things we also repress on a daily basis, and which may time and again ''resurface'' in our dreams and nightmares or whatever.
Today's image comes from a video brought to you by YouTube (of course) and they seem to have found some huckster who seems to present a somewhat trustworthy infomercial.
Cropped image of ''browser'' technology, from a video titled ''Digital Certificates: Chain of Trust''; My search engine also provides further information, including ''Dave Crabbe'', who seems to have worked at NSCC.ca (yet the NSCC.ca website does not have any related information when searching for strings like ''Dave Crabbe'', ''Digital Certificates'', etc.)This quasi-tutorial on how mainstream browsers actually work is something ''they'' should teach kids in school '-- but of course they don't, because perhaps this would make reaping profits from this kind of industry more difficult.
Once you realize that the only time BIC browsers are NOT watching you is when the WARNING signs are thrown in your face, it sort of turns ''secure'' vs. ''insecure'' upside-down '... doesn't it? Oh, sorry '-- am I making you think again?
Obesity, diabetes drug ad spending hit nearly $500 million: report
Fri, 29 Sep 2023 14:40
A view of a plastic model of a stomach during an interview with Doctor Thomas Horbach, specialist in surgery, visceral surgery and nutritional medicine on Novo Nordisk, which will start selling its hugely popular obesity drug Wegovy in Germany later this month, in Munich, Germany, July 17, 2023.
Christine Uyanik | Reuters
Drugmakers spent nearly $500 million on advertisements for obesity and diabetes treatments in the U.S. during the first seven months of this year, up 20% from the same period a year ago, according to new data released Friday.
The data, from advertising analytics firm MediaRadar, demonstrates the rush by companies to capture new customers after months of hype around Novo Nordisk 's diabetes drug Ozempic and weight loss counterpart Wegovy.
Those drugs and similar treatments have soared in demand this year for their ability to help patients lose unwanted pounds. The medicines, known as GLP-1s, mimic a hormone produced in the gut to suppress a person's appetite.
U.S. health care providers wrote more than 9 million prescriptions for Ozempic, Wegovy and other obesity and diabetes drugs during the last three months of 2022, up 300% from early 2020.
MediaRadar compiled ad spending from national TV broadcasts, print publications, newspapers and websites and social media platforms from Jan. 1, 2022 to July 31, 2023.
The top four drugs advertised were Ozempic, Wegovy, Novo Nordisk's diabetes pill Rybelsus and Boehringer Ingelheim's own diabetes treatment Jardiance, which is set to face drug price negotiations with the federal Medicare program.
Together, those treatments accounted for $358 million, or about three-quarters, of total ad spending for obesity and diabetes drugs during the first seven months of this year, according to the data.
Spending on Ozempic ads was $120 million during that time period, up 23% from the same period last year.
MediaRadar said in a statement that Ozempic's rise in popularity has had a "positive impact on similar medications."
"It's a classic case of 'a rising tide lifts all boats,'" MediaRadar CEO Todd Krizelman said in the statement. "As Ozempic's popularity grows, so does the demand for other weight loss and diabetes drugs, especially Wegovy, which has made a significant mark this year, particularly from Q2 onwards."
Wegovy accounted for more than $20 million in ad spending during the first seven months of the year, primarily due to a spike in spending from April to July, according to MediaRadar.
But MediaRadar noted that Novo Nordisk in May paused some key promotional advertising for Wegovy, specifically local and national TV advertising.
MediaRadar said most of the spending on the drug was for digital advertising, such as online video.
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VIDEO - Rep. Bowman under investigation for pulling fire alarm as McCarthy compares it to Jan. 6
Sun, 01 Oct 2023 14:33
WASHINGTON '-- House Speaker Kevin McCarthy called for Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., to be punished after he pulled a fire alarm in a Capitol office building on Saturday, comparing it to the Jan 6 rioters who attacked the building.
"When you think about how other people were treated when they come in and wanted to change the course of what was happening in the building," McCarthy said.
McCarthy went on to say that the Ethics Committee should take the pulled fire alarm "seriously."
"This should not go without punishment," McCarthy said. ''I'm gonna have a discussion with the Democratic leader about it. But this should not go without punishment. This is an embarrassment.''
Bowman later put out a statement saying it was unintentional.
"Today, as I was rushing to make a vote, I came to a door that is usually open for votes but today would not open," he said Saturday night. "I am embarrassed to admit that I activated the fire alarm, mistakenly thinking it would open the door. I regret this and sincerely apologize for any confusion this caused."
"But I want to be very clear, this was not me, in any way, trying to delay any vote. It was the exact opposite -- I was trying urgently to get to a vote, which I ultimately did and joined my colleagues in a bipartisan effort to keep our government open," he added.
A screen grab of security footage was distributed to officers so they could locate the person who pulled the alarm, a person familiar with the matter.
Photo linked to Rep. Jamaal Bowman pulling a fire alarm at the Capitol on September 30, 2023.Democratic Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said he has not yet seen the video of the fire alarm being pulled.
''Until I see the video, I have no further comment," he said when asked.
The U.S. Capitol Police are investigating, according to a statement that did not mention Bowman by name, and the House Administration Committee is conducting a probe as well.
"Rep. Jamal Bowman pulled a fire alarm in Cannon this morning," an account controlled by the Republicans on the committee wrote on X, the website formerly known as Twitter, including spelling the congressman's first name incorrectly. "An investigation into why it was pulled is underway."
The post was signed by committee Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis.
And fellow New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, a Republican, said on X that she'll introduce a resolution to expel Bowman from the House over the incident. "This is the United States Congress, not a New York City high school. This action warrants expulsion & I'm introducing a resolution to do just that," she wrote.
The fire alarm sounded in the Cannon office building, which is connected to the Capitol via an underground tunnel, as the Republicans were trying to begin a vote on a 45-day spending measure to keep the government open.
"Today at 12:05 p.m., a fire alarm was activated on the 2nd floor of the Cannon House Office Building," a Capitol Police spokesperson said in the statement. "The building was evacuated while USCP officers checked the building. The building was reopened after it was determined that there was not a threat. An investigation into what happened and why continues."
Democrats appeared to try to delay starting the vote, which they had been given very little notice about. Many complained that Republicans were trying to vote before Democrats had time to read the bill.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader, delivered a 52-minute speech in what was seen as an effort to give his fellow members and staff time to figure out whether his party would support the bill.
Ultimately, the vote began two and a half hours after it was scheduled to start. And Democrats overwhelmingly voted in favor of the bill.
Ginger Gibson Ginger Gibson is the senior Washington editor for NBC News Digital.
Rebecca Kaplan Rebecca is a producer and off-air reporter covering Congress for NBC News, managing coverage of the House.
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VIDEO - Meet the big city union that wants to kill its own members' jobs | Fox News
Fri, 29 Sep 2023 15:57
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!
Most union bosses understand their job is a balancing act. They want generous pay and benefits packages for workers, but they know those rewards can only be delivered if the employer stays in business.
In California, we're seeing something much different. Leaders of the Unite Here union in Los Angeles claim to represent thousands of striking hotel workers. But Unite Here is fighting for a policy that would put its members in physical danger, leave them jobless, and destroy LA's hotel industry.
Unite Here wants to force all LA hotels to house homeless people next to paying guests. Here's how the union's plan would work: Each day at 2 p.m., hotels would report to city hall how many vacant rooms they have. The city would then assign homeless people to any unoccupied rooms, including those located right next to paying customers.
Homeless encampment on San Vicente near La Cienega, in the Beverly Grove neighborhood of Los Angeles. (Fox 11 Los Angeles)
But the homeless people participating in this program would get more than an overnight room. They would get access to all the amenities a property offers, including swimming pools, fitness centers and all public areas.
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It is hard to imagine a better way to put hotel workers in danger and destroy LA's tourism industry. In 2020, nearly 25% of Los Angeles County's adult homeless population had "severe mental illnesses," while 27% had a "long-term substance use disorder," according to Stanford University.
These statistics explain why hotel job losses will be catastrophic if Unite Here succeeds in turning all LA hotels into homeless shelters. Who will want to work or stay at an LA hotel when doing so comes with enormous safety risks?
The physical safety of hotel workers and guests must be our primary concern, and it's incredible the union would want to place its own members in this volatile situation.
We can easily predict what's in store for hotel employees and guests because the city has already experimented with putting homeless people in hotels.
In August, the Los Angeles Times wrote about the vandalism, assaults and drugs that followed homeless hotel guests. The city was on the hook for $11.5 million in damages homeless guests caused at '¯just one hotel.
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Challenges related to homelessness, such as mental illness and drug dependency, are serious and need to be addressed. But those issues are best left to social workers, medical personnel and other professionals who have been trained to deal with these unique hardships.
Thanks to Unite Here, however, these problems will be left to hotel workers to solve. The union successfully pushed for a ballot initiative that will require LA residents to decide in March whether to turn all LA hotels into homeless shelters. If passed, hotels will be forced to house homeless people next to paying guests without any social services or medical support from the city or elsewhere.
Unite Here leadership seems to be the only source of support for the idea. A recent poll commissioned by the American Hotel & Lodging Association showed that 98% of LA residents see homelessness as a problem, but 86% of those surveyed said they disagreed with prioritizing putting homeless people in hotels.
When the idea was put before the LA City Council in 2022, it was overwhelmingly rejected, and then-Councilman Joe Buscaino, a Democrat, called it "the dumbest measure I've seen in my 10-year tenure as a City Council member."
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Unite Here appears to be ignoring complaints from hotel workers about having to work alongside homeless people in hotels. Instead, the union seems to think it has some sort of expertise on the broader societal issue of homelessness, and for some unknown reason is making this a priority over the safety of its own members.
They say the future happens in California. Let's hope it's a future in which Unite Here drops its dangerous demand to turn hotels into homeless shelters, in LA or any other city where they might try it.
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Chip Rogers (@ChipAHLA)'¯is president and CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
