Monthly Archives: July 2025

All Things Pass, America Too, It Seems

Posted on Thursday 31 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

The Atlantic’s Ross Andersen on how every scientific empire comes to end, with historical precedents; E.J. Dionne Jr. about the drop in murder rate, speculating why; Quick bits about religion as a mental disorder, how praying for the intervention of … Continue reading →

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The Outright Denial of the Scientific Consensus About Climate Change

Posted on Wednesday 30 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Trump’s EPA now denies the worldwide scientific consensus about climate change; The history of Trump’s fake history; How Trump wins by suing institutions for absurd amounts and settling for relatively trivial amounts; How Europe took Trump for a ride; Robert … Continue reading →

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TV, Juan Crow, Facts and Nonexistent Things, Alfred Schnittke

Posted on Wednesday 30 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Trump trusts only TV; Heather Cox Richardson on how Republicans are digging into positions that are contradicted by facts; How the Trump administration’s “Juan Crow” echoes “John Crow”; More nonexistent things that can be banned; Short items about disabling hurricane … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Music, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on TV, Juan Crow, Facts and Nonexistent Things, Alfred Schnittke

Proselytism, Manifest Destiny, Arvo Pärt

Posted on Monday 28 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Let Federal employees proselytize! Heather Cox Richardson on manifest destiny; Arvo Pärt. – – –   As with that notion about regulating AI to be non-woke, have they thought this one through? Washington Post, 28 Jul 2025: Trump administration urges … Continue reading →

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More Items from the Authoritarian Playbook

Posted on Sunday 27 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

About the conservative agenda concerning colleges, and education; Charlie Kirk thinks you don’t need college; just watch YouTube videos, especially his own online courses; Education Secretary Linda McMahon admits her political motivations for dismantling her department; Brief items about a … Continue reading →

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Conservative Thinking Means Whitewashing the Past

Posted on Saturday 26 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

A take-down of David Brooks, as an example of a conservative white-washing and distorting American history; How National Park gift shops are removing books about that same history for the same reasons; A religious rant bout Obama and Russia, and … Continue reading →

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How Can AI Tell the Truth? Whose Truth?

Posted on Friday 25 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

More about AI, and how (from Steven Levy) there’s no such thing as a bias-free AI; Speculation on what a MAGA ideologically correct AI would be; Following up on Harari: how would an AI handle inconsistencies among, and within, religious … Continue reading →

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“American” Intelligence?

Posted on Thursday 24 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

Trump wants AI to be not “woke”; how will he enforce that? And he doesn’t like the word “artificial”; A reel by Yuval Noah Harari about a realistic threat of AI; Heather Cox Richardson on the various deflections Republicans are … Continue reading →

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I visit you in another dream

Posted on Wednesday 23 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

How conspiracy theorists think most people agree with them; How Trump’s administration is purging climate data; How JD Vance thinks some Americans are more worthy citizens than others; Paul Krugman on ICE and New York City; Three items from JMG: … Continue reading →

Posted in Morality, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on I visit you in another dream

It’s Always About the Gap Between Ideology and Religion, and Reality

Posted on Tuesday 22 July 2025 by Mark R. Kelly

And whether humanity can “grow up” and thrive by living in reality and not fantasy. Infrastructure note about More tags; Paul Krugman on why the right would see AI as “communist” — because it’s reality-based; (Aside: another arc of history … Continue reading →

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