Tired of the 9-to-5 grind?

Ready to take control of your financial future?

Discover a proven system that can help you generate significant income in just 7 minutes a day.

No technical skills required.

No prior experience necessary.

Join thousands of others who have already transformed their lives.

Click the link below to Unlock Your 7-Minute Financial Freedom:

https://bl.selfhelpresource.com/tl/13611

#onlinebusiness #passiveincome #makemoneyonline #digitalnomad #financialfreedom

The 2024 Paris Olympics was meant to be a celebration of athletic might yet it became a political battleground where the politics of identity were as fiercely contested as the sports themselves. The Olympics showcased an unsettling moment when Algerian boxer Imane Khelif faced a torrent of bigotry for allegedly not appearing woman enough. The likes of JK Rowling, Logan Paul and tech libertarian Elon Musk were amongst the many that amplified the disinformation campaign against Khelif, which has then spiralled into a public spectacle that not only cast doubt on Khelif's identity but also painted a stark picture of the broader systemic issues at play. Khelif is not trans, but the furor at the Paris Olympics over her gender identity mirrors the disturbing ideologies that trans people have long endured at the hands of transvestigators, who intrusively scrutinise appearances in their witch hunt to “expose” the next trans individual. Even popstar Taylor Swift did not escape scrutiny as people zoomed in on her ‘bulge’ under her navy blue bathers. It's called mons pubis, people. 

This is an example on how Visage Technologies classifies if a face is feminine or masculine. Screenshot from https://visagetechnologies.com/gender-detection/

And this is what Automated Gender Recognition (AGR) seeks to automate. AGR attempts to correlate physical attributes with gender identity, a premise that has already been challenged by contemporary research. In an editorial, Nature journal strongly argues that anatomy does not definitively determine someone's gender. It highlights the complexity of sex and gender as spectrums, which include a variety of biological, psychological, and cultural factors. It further emphasises the inaccuracy and harm of using certain characteristics to assign gender, noting that gender identity involves more than just visible or genetic markers. Another paper worth mentioning is that of Daphna Joel, who finds that human brains exhibit a “mosaic” of features, some more common in females compared with males vice versa. This undermines the notion that there are distinctly male or female brains, highlighting the complexity and variability of brain characteristics across genders.

By embedding these flawed assumptions into its algorithms, AGR technology institutionalises the discriminatory practices that sparked such controversy at the Olympics. Not only does it systematically enforce a flawed understanding of gender, it has also leveraged surface-level data to make profound decisions about people’s identities. This obsession has real life repercussions of perpetuating, at best, biases and exclusion, and at worst, death. At airports, AGR’s potential to out transgender individuals could be especially harrowing, particularly for those living in countries where their existence means capital punishment. And with the rapid advancement and distribution of these tools, we are carrying the risk of it falling into the hands of governments and people who right now use transgender individuals as scapegoats to foster fear or justify discriminatory policies for political gains. We are beyond the issue of privacy here and even past beyond just acknowledging risk. We are venturing into realms where the very existence of transgender people are at stake.

Outside airport security, the reach AGR could extend into everyday spaces such as public restrooms. And this is not just speculative as we are already seeing AGR being employed in various contexts, such as the Giggles for Girls app, the dating app L’App, and even a restaurant in Oslo that targets ads based on gender, showing men pizza and women salad. In areas with deeply conservative values, like the American Bible Belt, the deployment of AGR systems in these spaces to enforce gender norms is a real possibility. The city of Odessa, Texas, has already introduced a $10,000 bounty for reporting transgender individuals who use bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity. This illustrates a troubling trend where AGR could potentially be used to enforce discriminatory laws and stoking fear among transgender communities.

The application of AGR in public security systems, online platforms, and even in everyday consumer technologies frames trans bodies as subjects of suspicion and scrutiny. This invasive oversight is driven by the marriage of the state and the capital that seek to monitor and control societal norms, including rigid adherence to gender binaries. In this setting, trans people are perceived as deviations, bugs in the system if you will, and consequently, treated as threats to social or public order, as is the case for the arrest of transgender people in many countries including Malaysia, Indonesia, India and the Philippines.

Transgender people, by their very existence, challenge these rigid gender norms and, by extension, the division of labour that underpins many economic and social policies. Capitalism relies heavily on the gender binary to sustain the nuclear family model, which in turn supports the reproduction of existing power structures. Angela Davis wrote a strong critique about this in her book ‘Women, Race and Class’. She highlights that Black women were subjected to a dual exploitation—both as labourers and as reproducers of more slaves, which was crucial for the perpetuation of the slave economy. This exploitation was not just a byproduct of slavery but a deliberate effort to uphold and benefit from the racist and sexist economic structures. The implications of this history are vast and echo in many ways modern capitalist societies continue to exploit bodies considered 'other'— may it be through racial, gender, or sexual discrimination. The surveillance and control of trans bodies through technologies like AGR is a continuation of this legacy, in which where certain bodies are monitored and regulated more strictly to conform to existing social norms that benefit the capitalist system.

Surveillance becomes a tool to 'correct' deviations within the system. It allows those in power to determine whose lives are deemed livable and whose are not, enforcing a normative standard from which deviation must be monitored and controlled. For trans people, this can mean the difference between visibility and erasure, between recognition and death. The utilisation of surveillance technologies not only strips individuals of their agency but also places them at an increased risk of violence and discrimination. When the state and societal institutions possess the tools to 'watch' and 'correct,' they wield a significant power that transforms surveillance from a simple security measure into a tool of social control.

We are past the point of reform. Surveillance, as it exists at the very depths of the capitalist inferno, is and always has been a tool for subjugating one class by another. Any reform to surveillance may appear to arise from below, but it still fundamentally revolves around power dynamics. As Brazilian educator Paulo Freire poignantly noted, “When education is not liberating, the dream of the oppressed is to become the oppressor.” No amount of diversifying the faces of those who operate the surveillance apparatus will alter its intrinsic function as an instrument of control. It is a tool designed not just to watch but to maintain and enforce the status quo, to keep existing power structures intact. Changing the operators does not change the fundamental operation of the system itself, which is to exert power over others, to reduce complex identities into manageable data points that can be controlled and manipulated. Thus, the challenge is not to reform surveillance but to dismantle the systems that necessitate and propagate it.

As we reflect on this reality today, on Transgender Day of Remembrance, we are compelled to honour the memory of those who have suffered and died under the weight of such oppressive mechanisms. Today, as we remember, we must also act and strive for a world where surveillance is no longer a tool of oppression but where safety and respect for all identities are upheld without the need for invasive oversight. Let this day serve as a call to action to build a more just and equitable society, one that truly honours the diverse tapestry of human experience and fiercely protects it from the corrosive effects of unwarranted surveillance.

In addition to writing opinion pieces and political stream-of-consciousness content, I've always loved writing book reviews. In fact, about ten years ago, I focused solely on that for a while. So, when I got back into writing and launched The Angry Leftist Blog, I started thinking about revisiting book reviews.

And that’s exactly what I’m doing. Red Ink Reviews is a fun spin on Leftist (Red) Literature (Ink). While it's a side project of The Angry Leftist, the reviews won’t be limited to just Leftist books. I'll be reviewing titles that are meaningful to me—some political, some autobiographies of people I admire, books from my faith tradition, and much more. But yes, there will definitely be political books on the list too!

I’m going to search through the Wayback Machine to dig up some of my old reviews and bring them over, but in the meantime, please save the blog link. You can also follow me on BlueSky or Mastodon (links below) to get updates whenever new reviews are live!

#Personal #Quick-Intro

Listening to Thursday Night Football, Commanders vs Eagles, and the game is as good as I hoped it would be. Heck, I usually head to bed at halftime of this night game, but here I am in the last part of the 3rd Quarter with a 10-6 score thinking I might stay up until the end. Yes, the eyelids are getting heavy, but... I don't know. we'll see.

posted Thursday, Nov 14, 2024 at ~9:20 PM #QNNOV2024

Prayers, etc.: * 05:00 – Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel * 06:00 – praying The Angelus * 07:00 – praying the Joyful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary, followed by the Memorare * 10:00 – Thought for today from Archbishop Lefebvre: In the prayer of the Pater, our Lord says that the will of God must be done on earth as in Heaven. And He summarizes the whole Sermon on the Mount by saying, “You therefore are to be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt. 5:48). So God is asking us for a very great perfection. He is very demanding for us. And in calling us to that immense charity, He is also giving us the means to accomplish it. Those means He gives to us primarily through prayer. If we wish to be perfect, we have to pray. * 10:10 – Praying to Atone for Rome's 2025 Jubilee Mascot * 12:00 – praying The Angelus * 14:45 – prayerfully reading The Athanasian Creed, followed by today's Daily Meditation found in Benedictus Magazine. * 18:00 – praying The Angelus * 20:40 – praying the hour of Compline for tonight according to the Traditional Pre-Vatican II Divine Office, followed by Fr. Chad Ripperger's Prayer of Command to protect my family, my sons, my daughter and her family, my granddaughters and their families, my great grandchildren, and everyone for whom I have responsibility from any demonic activity. – And that followed by the Thursday Prayers of the Association of the Auxilium Christianorum.

Health Metrics: * bw= 214.29 lbs. * bp= 138/76 (70)

Diet: * 07:10 – 1 banana, ½ pb&j sandwich * 07:50 – Kutsinta * 11:30 – snacking on cheese * 12:30 – pork chops with mushroom & peppers grave, white bread * 18:20 – 1 ice cream sandwich

Chores, etc.: * 05:00 – listen to local news talk radio * 06:15 – bank accounts activity monitored * 07:30 – following news reports from various sources * 10:30 – watching women's college basketball, Niagra vs Penn St. * 12:30 to 13:45 – watch old game shows and eat lunch at home with Sylvia * 14:00 – following news reports from various sources * 17:45 – watching the NFL GameDay Kickoff show ahead of tonight's Commanders vs Eagles Game * 19:00 – listening now to Westwood One Radio's broadcast of tonight's Thursday Night Football Game, opening kick is only minutes away.

Chess: * 08:40 – moved in all pending CC games

posted Thursday 2024-11-14 ~21:10 #DLNOV2024

“Revenge is a dish best served by me—at whichever temperature I feel like.”

This post isn’t about fork bombs at all since I’m no longer a UNIX admin and furthermore I believe modern systems aren’t as exciting to goof around on due to ulimits and the like.

In much the same way a snake might shed its skin, I have left my special interest in fork bombs behind me.

Instead I now like to pick mushrooms; Something which used to anger me to the point where I would throw the big red plastic bucket into the deepest darkest part of the forest in an impressive display of raw primitive manliness.

Instead now it soothes me. Like a treasure hunt where everyone is a winner.

I’ve been stricken by profound thoughts again.

Always it seems on the duality theme; the thing is that the world is so complex that it’s easy to lose (I think) your footing along the way, as you can sway back and forth and it’s a strength too to be able to see things from multiple points of views: both sides of the medallion usw., but like I said: also a bad thing.

That’s a good start I think. A pretty good start.

Anyhow

The pregnant thought was: That which makes farts stink; the thiols, is the very same thing which makes the aged cheese smell so good.

That’s pretty interesting.

Speaking of which, now with my sense of smell seems to be returning to me, I will once again buy the banana shampoo and balsam that I liked so much.

It feels pretty good to have opinions on such things again after a long spell of apathy.

Draconis est un roman de science-fiction de l’écrivain américain Ryan Night, auto-publié en anglais en décembre 2023.

Draconis is an episodic squad based sci-fi adventure like Cowboy Bebop or Firefly. Like a TV mini-series, it's structured as 6 distinct episodes that come together to form one big 500 page sci-fi epic.

Draconis's TV series-like episodes come together to form one cohesive space opera billed as “Cowboy Bebop meets Apocalypse Now,” with heavy influences from movies, TV, video games and anime. What begins as a grounded sci-fi military adventure expands to become increasingly unmoored from reality as the crew ventures further into unexplored space. They face military threats, lovecraftian horrors, godlike AIs and much more.

Draconis is about a black ops military crew led by Adam Ikari-Wright, a legendary special forces operative, as they journey to the edge of the universe in pursuit of their target: the powerful intergalactic cult leader, River Crowley.

Set 600 years in the future, in a universe where the Earth Defense Federation, Andromedan Technocracy and Centauri Trade Authority are competing over territory, an existentialist cult named Lea Monde emerges with power and influence to rival the three major factions. Its leader, River Crowley, is vicious and cutthroat, but also increasingly heralded as a hero on the colonized planets and other pockets of the galaxy.

Adam is sent on a mission to terminate River Crowley's command. He's joined by the genetically modified twins, Aztec and Tezca Rai. The hotshot rookie, Raziel Graves. The galactically renowned hacker Jackie Visken, aka Vice. And an enigmatic, scatter-brained scholar, Dr. Grant Fourier-Lee.

Le livre est construit autour d’une structure épisodique. Il se compose de six novellas, comme autant d’épisodes d’une série TV. L’ensemble forme tout de même un récit complet, avec un début, un milieu et une fin, comme peut le faire l’arc d’une saison télévisée.

1. Djevica 9

Adam infiltrates River Crowley’s compound on Djevica 9 only to discover what was described to him as a simple cult is actually a thriving academy.

La première novella est une très bonne introduction à l’univers à au personnage principal, Adam Ikari-Wright. Le récit est peut-être un peu trop didactique mais cela fonctionne bien et l’objectif principal est atteint : on découvre un univers riche en promesses, et on a envie de lire la suite.

2. Aesir Colony

The squad answers a distress call from Aesir Colony in the outskirts of the Andromeda Galaxy, but it looks like they may have bitten off more than they can chew.

Dans la deuxième novella, nous faisons connaissance avec l’équipage qui va accompagner Adam Ikari-Wright dans sa mission. C’est du classique, le groupe pourrait être tiré tout droit d’un jeu de rôles de science-fiction, mais le récit est divertissant et efficace.

3. The Triangulum

The Triangulum Galaxy is considered the Bermuda Triangle of space but the crew decides to take a shortcut and finds cosmic horrors beyond comprehension.

La troisième partie nous plonge dans une ambiance un peu différente, avec des influences lovecraftiennes. La science-fiction horrifique n’est pas forcément mon sous-genre préféré, mais ici cela fonctionne bien et cela permet de creuser la psychologie de certains personnages.

4. F.A.T.E.

The crew discovers an enormous A.I. in deep space that seems to be torturing a digital consciousness. They intervene and attempt to save the two robots Apollo and Sonmi.

L’idée de départ de cette quatrième partie est intéressante mais je n’ai pas été totalement convaincu par l’exécution. C’est peut-être la novella parmi les six qui m’a le moins plu, même si la fin douce-amère est jolie.

5. Shangri-La

Far in deep space, beyond the reach of humanity, the crew finds a perfect planet inhabited by party-goers gathered from across the universe. They meet a familiar face.

Cette cinquième novella m’est apparue comme une dernière pause avant d’atteindre la destination finale du voyage narratif et littéraire. Nous en apprenons plus sur le passé d’Adam, dans ce qui constitue la partie la plus intéressante de cette novella, le reste étant plaisant, sans plus.

6. Draconis

The crew finally reaches their destination: the mysterious planet Draconis. There they encounter Crowley and uncover the secrets of Draconis and its ancient civilization.

La sixième et dernière novella, qui est également la plus longue, conclut le récit avec des scènes d’action spectaculaires et sanguinolentes et fournit quelques explications, sans pour autant répondre à toutes les questions. C’est plutôt réussi, mais cela peut aussi être frustrant.

Conclusion

Globalement, Draconis un roman de science-fiction plaisant à lire, divertissant, et riche en idées. Peut-être même trop riche en idées, comme si l’auteur avait voulu faire entrer toutes ses idées dans un seul livre au lieu de se concentrer sur quelques unes et d’en garder d’autres pour d’autres romans à venir. J’ai en tout cas passé un très bon moment de lecture, et c’est bien l’essentiel.

Partint de la premissa de respectar l’estètica de la coentor valenciana, com a un instrument referencial poètic i com a una proposta estètica creativa, interpretada i incorporada pels artistes valencians en el seu discurs visual identitari, aquesta obra és un colofó perfecte per a la reflexió plantejada en aquest apartat del llibre. Ja vaig tindre l’oportunitat de conéixer en directe la peça, profundament irreverent i a la vegada síntesi ideal del respecte sentit cap als valors hiperbòlics vitalistes de la cultura i l’estètica valencianes.

Curiosament, una proposta hiperbòlica que recorre precisament a l’economia de mitjans i l’austeritat del vitalisme gòtic, per a oferir una extraordinària síntesi de l’esperit valencià, amb tan sols tres elements. El joc simbòlic i la disposició d’aquests tres elements, genera, per contra, un relat kitsch, propi de la coentor més exquisida i pura extreta d’una atenta observació al caràcter vital dels valencians. 

Per una banda, la seriositat implícita i solemne de la figura del Crist, es contraposa a l’expressió, escrita en lletres i tipografia de brillants, amb l’exclamació Mare Meua! Aquesta simple contraposició arreplega ja moltes de les dèries pròpies que defineixen als valencians. Per una banda, la veneració cap a la imatge de la Mare de Déu, davant de la figura i la imatge del mateix Crist, present des dels orígens en la formulació identitària valenciana, ens vincula de nou amb el vitalisme que ens apropa a una figura humana, no divina, i que a més representa el concepte i la idea de Mare, amb totes les implicacions simbòliques que això representa.

Una síntesi de les dues mirades, la hiperbòlica barroca i kitsch de la coentor i la vitalista gòtica, en una mateixa imatge. Minimalisme de recursos visuals per a crear una reacció estètica hipertrofiada i conceptualment quasi perfecta, en el sentit de representació identitària. El joc de desafiament, lluny de caure en la irreverència aparent, cau en el respecte cap al nosaltres i la nostra forma de ser i interpretar el món. Un respecte cap eixe sentit de fugir de les interpretacions literals del món, de fugir del sentiment tràgic de la vida, sense menysvalorar la tragèdia, però integrant-la dins una forma de fer i veure les coses igual de desdramatitzada que passional i exagerada. Però exagerada en el vital, en el sarcasme, en la idea que, al cap i a la fi, eixe crit tan pròpiament valencià de: Mare Meua! Implica la resposta a les múltiples accions i formes de vida hiperbòliques dels nostres conciutadans culturals, i ho fa amb un sentit de descàrrega emocional i solidaritat compartida, en el fet que amaga una sorpresa fictícia. Un, Mare Meua! implica la idea de: quina barbaritat, però quina barbaritat més pròpia, més nostra, més compartida. Sabem del que parlem.

Però aquesta complaença hiperbòlica compartida, no ens evita ser crítics. L’obra de Martina és tot un relat de crítica fina, que podríem aplicar a tantes i tantes coses de la cultura valenciana. Al contrari, utilitzem el mateix recurs hiperbòlic per estructurar la nostra crítica a les nostres pràctiques hiperbòliques, que més que tenir la voluntat d’eliminar, com a molt ens agradaria matissar, transformar, canviar, però no destruir ni dissoldre, evidentment, ja que estimem la nostra cultura, i no es vol destruir allò que s’estima. Es vol que continue viu, i tots sabem que únicament el canvi i la transformació permanent, permet la supervivència. No veure això, és certificar un relat necrològic sense adonar-se d’estar al cementiri. 

L’expressió amb la boca oberta de la calavera, de nou hipertrofiada, hiperbòlica, situada sobre el rostre del Crist en la creu, reivindica amb humor la nostra capacitat de riure de nosaltres mateixa, que els fervorosos garants de les essències mortes, no toleren. I ho fem, evidentment, amb els recursos estètics per excel·lència de la nostra identitat, la coentor. Així, aquesta obra, riu i posa en evidència, aquesta actitud essencialista, que hem vist exemplificada en els atacs violents a obres d’art, en posades serioses i afectades en els gestos, que els adoradors de la mort fan valdre amb instruments diversos, i que es van a veure sovint reflectides en les accions polítiques dels governs de la ultradreta que ens tocarà patir durant alguns anys.

Necessitem, llavors, moltes més obres i artistes compromeses, per redefinir, ara encara amb més urgència, les estètiques identitàries valencianes. Cal reivindicar, per tant, l’estètica de la coentor, com al model estètic identitari valencià, en realitat més transgressor i que segurament resultarà més incòmode a les posicions dels amics de l’immobilisme i el fanatisme necrològic, dels essencialistes identitaris. No cal dir molt més en aquest punt.

---

Aquest text és un fragment del llibre Pedagogies Visuals de la Identitat Valenciana publicat per Afers Editorial.

#art #publicacions #envalencià

Eat Food. Mostly Vegetables. Not Too Much.

Seems like a reasonable approach to me.

---

Angels Envy is my weapon of choice

What qualifies as creativity?

That's the question I've been asking since seeing the below toot from Gary Marcus.

How much work does one need to put into something before he can consider himself creative? How much of creativity can be automated or outsourced before it becomes something else entirely?

Hiring someone on Fiverr to design your logo isn't considered a creative act. (We call such practice 'delegating'.)

So why should the act of telling a computer to design that same logo ever be considered creative?

You could argue that an artist using an iPad isn't as creative as the artist using a sketchbook. You could say the same about a writer who uses a laptop versus the writer who uses pen and paper.

But in both cases—the artist using an iPad, and the writer using a laptop—a human is still very much involved. But it's harder to say the same about the person who uses generative AI to make something.

Where's that line, and what point have we crossed it?

#creativity #generativeai #ai

I haven't written here for two days. Did anyone out there wonder if the blog title was no longer true? You never know. But, no, I'm here. Not dead, FYI.

I'm a diligent writer in my personal journal. Every. Damn. Day. When I first started this, I wondered if I would make the same level of effort to put something—anything—on the page, day after day. It only took four days to find out the answer to that question. Ah well!

This one will be a bit of a quick one (I hope). I didn't think anything today was even worthy of being written about, but I feel like it's already becoming too easy to say that every day, and from there it's a slippery slope to totally abandoning this project.

(Since you're now reading below the fold, rest assured, I probably will be abandoning this project sooner rather than later, like everything else I start. But c'mon, I've gotta make it at least, like, a week, right?)

Tonight, as we walked in the park, there were a lot of signs up announcing various traffic control measures for the nearby roads this Saturday. Likewise, when we got to the top of the hill, by the running track, the area looked quite different. A great deal of canopy tents were set up, flanked by electrical generators, a big stage, and more signage. All evidence of something going on this weekend. Some sort of anti-smoking fun run, apparently.

It's rather amazing to see how quickly everything appeared. I took the old scooter out this morning to run some errands. The weather was nice, and it's always fun to putz around with the vehicle that was once my primary means of transportation, but now feels like a go-kart.

One reason I occasionally fire up the old scooter is to make sure everything's still working and to keep the battery charged. Thus I usually take the scenic route, as driving directly to my destination today would have taken fewer than five minutes. Better to give the scooter some time to stretch its legs, so to speak.

So I drove the old Yamaha around the park to add some time and distance. Just a little fossil fuel burned for no purpose at all, I'm doing my part as a citizen of planet Earth. We can all produce a little greenhouse gas emissions as a treat, right?

There was no evidence of any of this fun run stuff at all as I scooted by in the morning. Less than twelve hours later, the place is transformed. Amazing efficiency, in service of what I'm not quite sure, but there it is nonetheless.

Events at the park used to be such a source of anxiety for me. I wondered how it would affect our walks. How busy would the place get? Would we have access to certain facilities? Etc.

I realized tonight that now, it no longer really matters at all. It's entirely possible that this fun run on Saturday will pass me by and if they're as efficient at breaking it down as they were at setting it up, it'll be gone before the nightly walk's time comes.

This made me feel surprisingly emotional. I know it's stupid. Having fewer sources of anxiety should be one of the upshots I can take from this whole situation. But it's just a reminder. That the walks no longer really mean anything. Not in the same way they did before. We depended on them, and therefore I had to contend with things like fun runs. No other choice.

Small things like these are the things that continue to surprise me. Things I never thought I'd be sad about in a million years. They make me wonder if I'll ever stop feeling down about unexpected, random events that remind me of your absence. I know there's light at the end of the tunnel, surely, but sometimes it's still hard to see.

Hopefully, this entry will be the last time I ever have to type the phrase “fun run.” I believe I've hit my lifetime quota. Not dead, FYI.

< Back to the Index