the fisherman of halicarnassus

almost failed state.

its president* is considering banning netflix and regulating social media.

it will completely erase shared culture.

in the '80s and '90s, people more or less watched and listened to the same things. the next day, they would discuss and critique these in the office or at school, sharing their thoughts with friends. with the widespread adoption of social media, instead of a collective culture, a niche culture that only followers are aware of has started to emerge. someone might become famous somewhere, but you don't know who they are, right? yet, they have hundreds of thousands or maybe even millions of followers.

with the advent of artificial intelligence, this niche culture will be replaced by a completely "personalized culture." for example, think about spotify. you have marked the songs you like one by one. with the development of ais that produce good music, songs created specifically for you based on your preferences will start to play. no one else will know about them. you can extend this to films, series, and other types of content. thus, everyone will be exposed to what they like. in a way, it's good, but in another, it's bad. in the end, everything will become more individualized. there will be no common ground for sharing.

if i live long enough, i would love to see a high-quality ai that allows me to choose the actors in a film made just for me.

for the first time, they deleted donald trump's post about children and covid-19 due to false claim.

a technology company founded in 1998 by larry page and sergey brin at stanford university. headquarters located in mountain view, california. (see: googleplex) (see: google search)

fallacies are mistakes in reasoning or arguments that are based on incorrect or flawed logic. there are many different types of fallacies, and they can occur in written or oral arguments. it is important to be aware of fallacies in order to critically evaluate arguments and make informed decisions, and to avoid using fallacies in your own arguments.

aka truth serum. allegedly, it was used by secret service experts to make prisoners speak during corporal punishment. bbc's journalist* took it to show its effects. video

after world war ii, many nazis and collaborators fled europe to escape trial for war crimes. surprisingly, some of them found refuge in the united states. there were a few different ways this happened.

operation paperclip: this was a secret program in which the u.s. government recruited scientists from nazi germany to work on america's behalf during the cold war. these scientists, some of whom were alleged to have ties to nazi war crimes, were invaluable assets due to their advanced knowledge in rocketry, medicine, and other fields. perhaps the most famous of these was wernher von braun, a former member of the nazi party who played a key role in developing the v-2 rocket during wwii and later became an integral part of nasa's moon landing program.

intelligence use: the u.s., like many nations during the cold war, was focused on gathering as much intelligence as possible to gain an edge over the soviet union. some former nazis and collaborators were used as spies or informants, despite their criminal pasts.

immigration: some nazis managed to immigrate to the u.s., often hiding their past affiliations. they lived in the country for decades, typically maintaining a low profile. many were later tracked down and prosecuted or deported, particularly after the formation of the office of special investigations (osi) in 1979, a unit of the department of justice tasked with identifying and expelling former nazis.

it's important to note that the presence of nazis and collaborators in the u.s. after wwii has been a source of controversy. these events have been subject to numerous investigations and have led to changes in u.s. policies regarding war criminals and immigration. as of my knowledge cutoff in september 2021, these efforts to hold former nazis accountable continued, even as the number of surviving wwii-era nazis dwindled.

it is being used by outdoor cats as self-heating beds. image

did the cats affect the performance?

accused of promoting pedophilia with cuties.
twitter thread
netflix's tweet

1900 poem by thomas hardy. originally titled ‘by the century’s deathbed,’ the haunting piece describes the changes the narrator has observed through the turn of the 20th century. intriguing piece for many english majors as it contains strong pulls to both romanticism and modernism, and is deeply layered with opposing ideas which are interwoven. read it here

ernest shackleton was a prominent british polar explorer renowned for his leadership in the heroic age of antarctic exploration. born in 1874 in county kildare, ireland, shackleton moved to london at a young age. his adventurous spirit led him to join the merchant navy, where he quickly climbed the ranks and developed a fascination with exploration.

shackleton's legacy is largely defined by his leadership in the 1901 discovery expedition and, more notably, the 1907-1909 nimrod expedition, where he and his team set a new record by reaching the latitude of 88 degrees south, just 97 nautical miles from the south pole. this expedition was notable not only for its near success in reaching the pole but also for the spirit of endurance and courage that shackleton instilled in his crew.

however, it is his 1914-1916 imperial trans-antarctic expedition aboard the ship endurance for which shackleton is most remembered. this expedition aimed to achieve the first land crossing of antarctica. the endurance became trapped in pack ice and was eventually crushed, leading shackleton and his crew on a harrowing saga of survival. displaying extraordinary leadership, shackleton led all 28 of his men on a perilous journey over ice and open sea to safety. notably, he managed to keep his crew motivated and alive for over 500 days in the brutal conditions of the antarctic, a testament to his remarkable skills in crisis management and leadership.

shackleton's approach to leadership, characterized by his commitment to his crew's welfare and morale, his capacity to adapt to changing circumstances, and his unyielding perseverance, has become a model in both leadership studies and popular culture. his ability to foster deep loyalty and optimism among his men under the most adverse conditions is often cited as a benchmark of great leadership.

despite his financial troubles and less successful later ventures, shackleton's exploits during the heroic age of exploration have immortalized him as a model of courage and endurance against overwhelming odds. his final expedition, the quest, ended with his death in 1922 from a heart attack while his ship was moored in south georgia. yet, ernest shackleton's legacy lives on, inspiring not only future explorers but also leaders in all fields who seek to embody his indomitable spirit.

aunt sally is a term that refers to a straw man argument, which is a logical fallacy that involves presenting a distorted or misrepresented version of an opposing argument in order to make it easier to attack or refute. the term "aunt sally" comes from a traditional british fairground game in which players throw sticks or balls at a wooden figure, typically depicting a woman, in order to knock it down.

in the context of debating or arguing, the "aunt sally" is the simplified, distorted version of an opposing argument that is presented by one party in order to make it easier to attack or refute. this can be done in order to create the impression that the opposing argument is weaker or less valid than it actually is, or to mislead or deceive the audience by presenting a distorted version of the opposing argument.

for example, imagine that you are arguing with someone about the benefits of a vegetarian diet. they might present an "aunt sally" version of your argument by claiming that you believe that all meat is unhealthy and that everyone should become a vegetarian, which is a distortion of your actual argument. they might then attack this distorted version of your argument, saying that it is unrealistic or impractical, without addressing the actual points that you are making.

in order to avoid committing the straw man fallacy, it is important to accurately represent the opposing argument and to engage with it on its own terms, rather than attacking a simplified or distorted version of it. this can help to ensure that the argument is fair and based on accurate information, rather than relying on misrepresentations or distortions of the opposing viewpoint.

the 48 laws of power is a book written by robert greene that outlines 48 strategies for gaining and maintaining power in relationships, organizations, and society. the laws cover a wide range of topics including self-promotion, manipulation, deception, and the acquisition of power through the manipulation of perception and image. some of the most well-known laws include: "never outshine the master," "play a suckers to catch a sucker," and "conceal your intentions." the book is written in a historical context, with examples from figures such as machiavelli, sun tzu, and julius caesar. it is intended as a guide for individuals seeking to gain power, but has also been criticized for promoting unethical behavior.

a gift or superpower in some instances.

italian dictator who brought back order in italy using violence and his own private troops. his tyranny gorily ended like other dictatorships.