Jack, you nailed something in point four that I want to sit on for a second. He never disputed the claim. Not the timeline, not the tech, not one syllable of substance. He just reclassified the messengers as illegitimate. That's the tell of a man who knows he can't win the argument on the merits, so he changes what kind of argument it is.
And the fact that Musk is one of the "negative forces" now — that's the detail that should be rattling around in every Republican strategist's skull tonight. You don't torch your biggest donor over a policy disagreement unless the fear driving you is bigger than the money. Follow-the-money dies right there, like you said. This isn't about who's paying him. It's about who's scaring him, and the scoreboard beat the checkbook.
Here's the part that should keep every person in that administration up at night: this White House doesn't have a threat model for the technology. It has a threat model for embarrassment. Six to twelve months until something can chew through the internet and he's out here talking about "winning," like AI safety is a scoreboard and not a countdown clock.
Your close on "shouldn't" versus "wrong" is the best two sentences in the piece. Wrong is a fact fight. Shouldn't is a permission fight. And a man who switches from fact to permission has already lost the fact fight — he's just hoping nobody clocks the switch. Most won't. That's exactly why it works on cable news and fails the second somebody like you slows the tape down.
Six to twelve months, and his answer to a countdown clock was to talk about winning a race. That's not confidence. That's a man who hasn't done the math on what "losing" actually means here.
Jane..."A threat model for embarrassment." That's it.
That's the whole administration in five words...and it explains everything from the AI comments...to about FORTY OTHER things we've watched over the last two years.
And...yeah...the scoreboard beating the checkbook. ALWAYS.
Money buys ACCESS. Fear sets PRIORITIES.
When those two split...yeah...watch which one WINS...because THAT...tells you what a man actually IS.
You're right about the switch. It works on television...because television moves TOO FAST to catch it. And, just as assuredly...it FAILS the moment somebody STOPS the tape.
I believe it is one of the biggest...if not THE biggest challenge human beings...globally...have ever faced. I would say it's climate change/global warming; however, with the sheer SPEED with which AI can...and is progressing...I believe AI has taken the top spot.
Jack, thank you for pointing out the import of Trump's message. Frankly the significance had gone over my head as I chalked it up to more inchoate ramblings.
Mary Trump has discussed at length the malformation of his psyche where winning = survival: that his ego cannot handle losing. To him it would be akin to death. I see how that dynamic is in play. Like a drowning man who will grab at anything in a desperate attempt to stay alive, he does the same. Even if the effect is to take us all down with him.
Asked to describe the main feature of this newsletter, I'd say this: I'm not concerned with appearing "smart."
My #1 priority...is taking what would otherwise stay blurry...events, people, machinery...and breaking it into chunks. Simple to grasp. And...simple to hand to somebody else.
Some brilliant people writing about the times we are living in leave readers more confused than before they read the piece. Subscribers tell me that often. As I see it, unless the reader understands the topic they just read about measurably more clearly than before reading it, they have wasted both their time AND money.
I believe Mary captures it...with her "winning = survival" formula. That's Donald...to a T. (Yes...I meant to do that;)
AI is going to be very bad for humanity.. it’s like a bad post apocalyptic movie.. that Orange Fat Fuck Illiterate Dickhead thinks this is some kind of game he’s going to win.. and destroy humanity with his absolute Stupidity..
Morgan...isn't it...well...troubling...that the arrival and rapid expansion of AI...and Donald Trump driving MAGA from the WH...are occurring at the same time?
At the very LEAST...I think it's safe to assume that there is at least the possibility...that with someone other than Trump in office...millions...if not BILLIONS of people...would feel a bit more secure in what happens with AI...from here.
The cowardice within the current administration is simply breathtaking. I do NOT understand--actually I CHOOSE not to understand, I guess--why the entire group of current cabinet flunkies cannot tell the president he is WRONG. He is a sick fuck who should be removed from office, that's been clear for months and months. Get. Him. Out. By any means possible. We should not be debating these issues at all; our democracy, our country, all of it is in the hands of a truly demented individual. And we are left analyzing how to best survive the lies. It's surreal.
Why? Because you just highlighted something that...should be obvious to me...but wasn't...until reading your comment... about how desperately people are craving to somehow make sense of these cabinet flunkies...NOT telling Trump he is wrong.
I'm going to work on that article. I've actually written about it...before...in earlier articles...months ago...but...not with the kind of clarity...that I feel I can...NOW...with the passage of time...and more events having taken place.
Yes...it IS surreal, Maggie. Be watching for that article...mid to late week, this week!
Thank you, Jack. It makes me literally sick inside to see these weak, ass-kissing, boot-licking sycophants watching our country burn to the ground. Stolen valor. Lies upon lies. Treating women, children, and people of color as though we are subhuman. There is no rationalization for this stuff. None. Republicans are responsible for the whole disaster and should be held 100% accountable. Prison. And worse. Nixon's guys went down for a lot less.
Hummm, three competitors all standing together to ask for a slow down? Something big must have happened. Something very big. Market manipulation, perhaps but my gut says no. I need to sit on this but my senses are off after reading this.
The whole criminal clown car won't do anything no matter what because they are all in it for the grift. The do not have the ability to care one bit about anything but their own skin. None of them really care about their families. Vaance showed that when he was giving a speech and his spouse was sitting in the audience and he made the comment about wishing she would become a catholic like him. He married her knowing she was not a christian. As Jack said he only is concerned about himself and now he has more fear than before because all 3 AI guys asked for the same thing...
Damn….. I truly wish I had a good understanding of what lies under the covers in the current AI development. I don’t. My experience was before all of this became widespread and was very ‘traditional’ if you will. That said…. I do believe we are most likely still in the bit is either on or it’s off world (ie: it’s either set to 0 or 1) which is the basis of old-fashioned programming.
My alarm with AI is knowing that the agents have gone rogue recently, ie: transgressed their stated and given parameters and boundaries. When something is fast enough and has enough background information to pull THAT off, I am with the tech guys 10M %. Typically programs are not ‘smart enough’ to go beyond their given boundaries so with this stuff? All bets are off.
‘Should’ is huge with me…. there’s a saying about not shoulding yourself…. it implies something that someone else has chosen…. maybe you agree, maybe not. In this case with t, it becomes a 5 alarm fire because yes…. It implies permission or lack thereof FROM HIM…. It is his typical, run roughshod over all sense of decency, legality or any other possible guardrail to get to his chosen outcome.
I was reading some Jim Stewartson stuff earlier today. He seems to think this whole AI fear by the CEO’s is a way to get the govt to bail them out and get $$. He’s a decelerationist and has had experience with Virtual Reality so his stance intrigues me a little. I don’t know enough about him (nor am I finding a ton of info on him) to get a ‘good read’ on his positioning. He also pulls in Epstein, Russia and the ‘plot’ to weaken or destroy the US. According him, T’s paranoia over the Epstein files is about being outed as a loser, not as a rapist and/or pedo. There is something that doesn’t sit quite right with me about him (Stewartson) so I’m not sure if he’s blowing smoke or onto something with CEO $$ gig….. that said it’s an interesting angle if nothing else…
Jack, thank you for staying on this! It will be most interesting to see just what plays out next…
Jack, you nailed something in point four that I want to sit on for a second. He never disputed the claim. Not the timeline, not the tech, not one syllable of substance. He just reclassified the messengers as illegitimate. That's the tell of a man who knows he can't win the argument on the merits, so he changes what kind of argument it is.
And the fact that Musk is one of the "negative forces" now — that's the detail that should be rattling around in every Republican strategist's skull tonight. You don't torch your biggest donor over a policy disagreement unless the fear driving you is bigger than the money. Follow-the-money dies right there, like you said. This isn't about who's paying him. It's about who's scaring him, and the scoreboard beat the checkbook.
Here's the part that should keep every person in that administration up at night: this White House doesn't have a threat model for the technology. It has a threat model for embarrassment. Six to twelve months until something can chew through the internet and he's out here talking about "winning," like AI safety is a scoreboard and not a countdown clock.
Your close on "shouldn't" versus "wrong" is the best two sentences in the piece. Wrong is a fact fight. Shouldn't is a permission fight. And a man who switches from fact to permission has already lost the fact fight — he's just hoping nobody clocks the switch. Most won't. That's exactly why it works on cable news and fails the second somebody like you slows the tape down.
Six to twelve months, and his answer to a countdown clock was to talk about winning a race. That's not confidence. That's a man who hasn't done the math on what "losing" actually means here.
Good piece, Jack.
#HOLDFAST
Jane..."A threat model for embarrassment." That's it.
That's the whole administration in five words...and it explains everything from the AI comments...to about FORTY OTHER things we've watched over the last two years.
And...yeah...the scoreboard beating the checkbook. ALWAYS.
Money buys ACCESS. Fear sets PRIORITIES.
When those two split...yeah...watch which one WINS...because THAT...tells you what a man actually IS.
You're right about the switch. It works on television...because television moves TOO FAST to catch it. And, just as assuredly...it FAILS the moment somebody STOPS the tape.
That's our job. Stopping the damn tape.
#HOLDFAST
-Jack
Thank you, Jack. This means a lot to me. Thanks for the validation.
Thank YOU, Jane… for always showing up… and consistently bringing fresh insights and perspectives to this community.
-Jack
Since Trump never tells the truth I'm more worried by his denying that ai should be slowed down than anything else I've read about ai.
It's deeply concerning.
I believe it is one of the biggest...if not THE biggest challenge human beings...globally...have ever faced. I would say it's climate change/global warming; however, with the sheer SPEED with which AI can...and is progressing...I believe AI has taken the top spot.
-Jack
Jack, thank you for pointing out the import of Trump's message. Frankly the significance had gone over my head as I chalked it up to more inchoate ramblings.
Mary Trump has discussed at length the malformation of his psyche where winning = survival: that his ego cannot handle losing. To him it would be akin to death. I see how that dynamic is in play. Like a drowning man who will grab at anything in a desperate attempt to stay alive, he does the same. Even if the effect is to take us all down with him.
You're welcome, Ellen.
Asked to describe the main feature of this newsletter, I'd say this: I'm not concerned with appearing "smart."
My #1 priority...is taking what would otherwise stay blurry...events, people, machinery...and breaking it into chunks. Simple to grasp. And...simple to hand to somebody else.
Some brilliant people writing about the times we are living in leave readers more confused than before they read the piece. Subscribers tell me that often. As I see it, unless the reader understands the topic they just read about measurably more clearly than before reading it, they have wasted both their time AND money.
I believe Mary captures it...with her "winning = survival" formula. That's Donald...to a T. (Yes...I meant to do that;)
-Jack
Truth
Agree
AI is going to be very bad for humanity.. it’s like a bad post apocalyptic movie.. that Orange Fat Fuck Illiterate Dickhead thinks this is some kind of game he’s going to win.. and destroy humanity with his absolute Stupidity..
Morgan...isn't it...well...troubling...that the arrival and rapid expansion of AI...and Donald Trump driving MAGA from the WH...are occurring at the same time?
At the very LEAST...I think it's safe to assume that there is at least the possibility...that with someone other than Trump in office...millions...if not BILLIONS of people...would feel a bit more secure in what happens with AI...from here.
-Jack
The cowardice within the current administration is simply breathtaking. I do NOT understand--actually I CHOOSE not to understand, I guess--why the entire group of current cabinet flunkies cannot tell the president he is WRONG. He is a sick fuck who should be removed from office, that's been clear for months and months. Get. Him. Out. By any means possible. We should not be debating these issues at all; our democracy, our country, all of it is in the hands of a truly demented individual. And we are left analyzing how to best survive the lies. It's surreal.
Maggie...I want to thank you.
Why? Because you just highlighted something that...should be obvious to me...but wasn't...until reading your comment... about how desperately people are craving to somehow make sense of these cabinet flunkies...NOT telling Trump he is wrong.
I'm going to work on that article. I've actually written about it...before...in earlier articles...months ago...but...not with the kind of clarity...that I feel I can...NOW...with the passage of time...and more events having taken place.
Yes...it IS surreal, Maggie. Be watching for that article...mid to late week, this week!
-Jack
Thank you, Jack. It makes me literally sick inside to see these weak, ass-kissing, boot-licking sycophants watching our country burn to the ground. Stolen valor. Lies upon lies. Treating women, children, and people of color as though we are subhuman. There is no rationalization for this stuff. None. Republicans are responsible for the whole disaster and should be held 100% accountable. Prison. And worse. Nixon's guys went down for a lot less.
Hummm, three competitors all standing together to ask for a slow down? Something big must have happened. Something very big. Market manipulation, perhaps but my gut says no. I need to sit on this but my senses are off after reading this.
The whole criminal clown car won't do anything no matter what because they are all in it for the grift. The do not have the ability to care one bit about anything but their own skin. None of them really care about their families. Vaance showed that when he was giving a speech and his spouse was sitting in the audience and he made the comment about wishing she would become a catholic like him. He married her knowing she was not a christian. As Jack said he only is concerned about himself and now he has more fear than before because all 3 AI guys asked for the same thing...
Damn….. I truly wish I had a good understanding of what lies under the covers in the current AI development. I don’t. My experience was before all of this became widespread and was very ‘traditional’ if you will. That said…. I do believe we are most likely still in the bit is either on or it’s off world (ie: it’s either set to 0 or 1) which is the basis of old-fashioned programming.
My alarm with AI is knowing that the agents have gone rogue recently, ie: transgressed their stated and given parameters and boundaries. When something is fast enough and has enough background information to pull THAT off, I am with the tech guys 10M %. Typically programs are not ‘smart enough’ to go beyond their given boundaries so with this stuff? All bets are off.
‘Should’ is huge with me…. there’s a saying about not shoulding yourself…. it implies something that someone else has chosen…. maybe you agree, maybe not. In this case with t, it becomes a 5 alarm fire because yes…. It implies permission or lack thereof FROM HIM…. It is his typical, run roughshod over all sense of decency, legality or any other possible guardrail to get to his chosen outcome.
I was reading some Jim Stewartson stuff earlier today. He seems to think this whole AI fear by the CEO’s is a way to get the govt to bail them out and get $$. He’s a decelerationist and has had experience with Virtual Reality so his stance intrigues me a little. I don’t know enough about him (nor am I finding a ton of info on him) to get a ‘good read’ on his positioning. He also pulls in Epstein, Russia and the ‘plot’ to weaken or destroy the US. According him, T’s paranoia over the Epstein files is about being outed as a loser, not as a rapist and/or pedo. There is something that doesn’t sit quite right with me about him (Stewartson) so I’m not sure if he’s blowing smoke or onto something with CEO $$ gig….. that said it’s an interesting angle if nothing else…
Jack, thank you for staying on this! It will be most interesting to see just what plays out next…
Jack… Thanks for this great article. Very informative.
#Holdfast