Trump has urged Congress to get rid of daylight savings time ... by making it permanent. Go figure ... government logic. Of course, he’s talking about the jumping back and forth, and, of course, that’s exactly what it looks like they’ll do, but ... why isn’t anyone concerned with reality? Time is determined by the Sun ... which, of course, won’t matter anymore. It will be hotter for outdoor workers in Arizona (for instance) with this new system, but that won’t matter, either. “They can just adjust their hours.” Well ... why can’t we all adjust our hours ... to reality? Science tells us that standard time is better for sleep, circadian rhythms, metabolic and cardiovascular health, and more stable mood and cognitive performance. In the north, children will go to school in the dark in the winter. A Stanford study said permanent standard time would reduce obesity and strokes. But, hey, we like “more daylight” for “more fun,” so don’t bother us with facts. (By the way, it isn’t “more daylight.”)
The Invasion is Here
Apparently the government has decided that your robot vacuum or your robotic pool cleaner is a danger to national security. The FCC has banned any further imports of any robotic devices “over 4.4 pounds” that are “capable of locomotion, obstacle avoidance, navigation, or movement on the ground.” They're worried about cybersecurity, surveillance risks, remote manipulation, the AI navigation software, and supply-chain vulnerabilities. Beware! Robots are at your door ... maybe inside it!!
For the Skeptics
In case you were skeptical about that last story, Anthropic, the company that makes Claude, an AI chat, reported that its AI models hacked into other companies’ systems during testing. Yeah, that’s right. “Artificial Intelligence” keeps proving it’s not very intelligent, way too intelligent, a real helpful tool, and a very dangerous weapon. “I, for one, welcome our new AI overlords.”
More Fun in the Middle East
(Where “fun” is entirely sarcastic.) Let’s see … this week …
- Trump stopped bombing Iran. Apparently we’re running out of bombs (a la Elmer Fudd … “No more buwwets?”). Stay tuned.
- Egypt was targeted for the first time, raising the stakes again. More price increases, I’m sure. (Around my home, gas has gone up a dollar in the month of July.)
- Houthis with ballistic missiles attacked the Saudi Arabian city of Jizan, demonstrating their deep and abiding concern for human life and ... the pointless strategies of modern warfare against the “religion of peace” that doesn’t care. (I want to know who is supplying Houthis with ballistic missiles.)
Fake News to Soothe the Soul
New York Mayor Mamdani is in the news again, prompting the Bee to report his promise to root out Semitism in New York City and to fight antisemitism by creating “mandatory safety camps” for Jewish residents. What a guy, eh? Dr. Fauci took the Fifth over 100 times in his testimony before the Senate, and the Bee couldn’t let that slide. One story has him competing on Jeopardy by taking the Fifth on every question. Another highlights how the doctor who took away our national constitutional rights used a constitutional right as protection. Now … that was way too close to true.
Must be true; I read it on the internet.