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cyberbarf

AI, WHY? COMMENTARY

Just about every industry is being burned to its core by Artificial Intelligence applications. Claims of consumer fraud have now entered the area of copyright infringement, misinformation, hallucination results and propaganda. For example, in the music world, AI “bands” like the Velvet Sundown first claimed that they were a real band, with humans with names, playing instruments. The band's bio-photos were clearly AI generated. The band's output of several albums in several weeks is impossible production output from even the best or popular music act. But that did not stop the streaming platforms from allowing it to continue to rack of monthly plays (which musicians and attorneys wonder where is that money going to?) The music channels on YouTube have been rocked by increasing copyright notices or strikes which appear to be generated by AI scrappers looking to find music samples in videos. These bots and notices are form generated and do not take into account fair use (for educators and commentators) to compulsory licenses (for cover artists playing music.) These strikes take away channel operators revenues per video to eliminating the channel for three strikes. The appeals process is arbitrary. Some channels need a full time person to challenge these claims. Most channels cannot afford to do it.

For a big operator like YouTube, it does not make sense for AI bots to undermine the foundation of your network channels. It is the individual creators who made YouTube the biggest information and entertainment nexus.

The unasked question is Why. Why do we need AI in the first place? As a society, we were doing fine without artificial intelligence programs. If you wanted to be a writer, you read books and wrote daily pages to learn your craft. If you wanted to be a musician, you learned to play the guitar, take voice lessons, joined a band to learn skills in order to perform. If you wanted to be a lawyer or a doctor, you went to graduate school to learn the tangible tools of your trade in order to practice your profession competently and ethically.

Work is hard. It is supposed to be HARD. An individual is supposed to learn, train and master skills to get a good paying job. But the lure of AI is that you don't have to work hard . . . take the easy way out. Punch in a few words into Chat GPT, and moments later you have a printed legal contract. Did the application merely cut and paste from contracts it found on the web? Or did it make it up based on the most used jargon scrapped from the web? It is baffling that anyone would rely upon the output of a machine for critical documents or services.

The medical profession is aghast at the use of ChatGPT for personal therapy sessions. First, a machine is not licensed to practice medicine. Second, how is a machine going to counsel an individual without the training and real life experience to find a real solution to the patient's problems. Third, it was found that bot counselors are programmed to please the user which is counterintuitive to a real professional suggesting hard truth to change bad behavior. Then there were reports of the chat concluding that the user harm themselves, well, I guess the platform is not perfect though it claims it can do anything well.

Clearly, professionals cannot rely upon AI output. Numerous cases of lawyers filing briefs and court documents with non-existent cases created by AI. Recently, a bankruptcy judge in Chicago stripped a law firm of its fees and fined the lawyers $5,000 for filing frivolous court documents riddled with AI errors.

There must be a misconception that AI is just a more powerful search engine. A search engine used to link a user to an actual document or web page to find the answer. AI does not. AI “tells” you the answer. There is a loss of verification. It is ironic that a recent study found that Google's AI search result top-of-age section is decreasing users from scrolling down and clicking on actual search result sites. Google's AI is directly sabotaging its own paying SEO customers.

Why continue to use AI with all its flaws? It is faster, easier and “the future.” No one wants to be left behind. If everyone is doing it, it must be OK. If no one gets hurt, no harm no foul. To be competitive, you need advanced technology.

The latter excuse begs another question: is AI actually a better, advanced technology? There are a few researchers who think the computing power of AI servers can make breakthroughs in medical science. But nothing has been shown to date. At the moment, has AI done more harm than good? Take a poll of musicians who have found their music copyright royalties evaporate into thin cyber-air. Take a poll of teachers who get AI generated homework from students who are falling behind the learning curve. Go talk to law enforcement officials and victims of deep fake theft crimes.

The utility grid operators are sounding the alarm. New AI server farms electricity demands are going to overwhelm the current power output grid. Big Tech companies are asking for nuclear plants to ramp up or be built to provide the new power to grow the AI industry. In the meantime, the public's electric bills are going to get jacked up.

People have short memories. AI is being sold as a god-send utility to make your life easier and better. It was the same song and dance about cloud computing: you never have to back up a file again. For a new monthly subscription, a stranger hold your hard drive and all your personal information (debatably securely). It was the same song and dance when the internet gained public traction. Everyone from a business to a grandma had to rush to get a domain registration, a web site and node on the Internet . . . or be left behind. And the Internet pioneers said it had to be free, you could not charge for content. The dot-com bubble burst with the average person losing money and industries like the newspaper business lost paying subscribers and advertisers to become today, an endangered species.

Some believe AI is just a fade that will go away. But there is too much Wall Street investment money for it to go away. It is like an avalanche of PR, technology religious fever and a means for con men to flourish. Apple gets ripped for not having a good AI strategy. Stock advisors say only invest in companies that have embraced AI. But has anyone found the golden AI goose? No. Apple, at its roots, will not send out new technology that does not work. At best, current AI is a buggy, virus plagued software application. But in tech beauty pageant world, what judge cares about the talent portion when the sexy sales curves are too alluring to forget.

AI is the landslide that will alter people, business and industries. But at today's crossroads, every person needs to ask the question: why do I need AI in my life? And if you cannot truthfully answer or understand the question, then you should not be using it.

cyberbarf

AFRAID, WHY? OPINION

After Trump's first term when he lost re-election, we preached that the media and public should just forget about him. Do not talk about him. Do not give him a platform. Let him slink away into the sunset. But no. The defeat made him into a bitter, angry and vindictive old man. The many civil and criminal investigations and legal proceedings only made Trump more vengeful and crazy. The bully was emboldened to win a second term. His past enablers were replaced with his minions who have the collective IQ of a chewed No. 2 lead pencil.

It has been a crazy six months of Trump's second term. In a government that prided itself on being the longest republic with the best checks and balance system, why is everyone afraid of Trump? It seems everyone bends over backwards, bows as he passes or hides from his verbal wrath. But why?

There is no good reason why. When Trump gets a red ass about a topic, goes ballistic, pens unenforceable or illegal orders, then spews nonsense on social media or to the press, all it takes is one institution or person or country to stand up to him for him to back down (or pivot to another rant, retribution or enemy harassment.)

His first act creating a global trade war with more than 100 countries was without legal basis. Only Congress sets tariffs by legislation, with the President limited authority with a warring country. But no one in the US stopped him. Canada blasted him openly and often, ridiculing his claim that Canada should be the 51st state. In return, both sides slapped each other with high tariffs which only hurt the American public's pocketbooks. An analysis of all his great trade deals show the US did not win any of them. When push comes to shove, the bully will normally back down.

His DOJ is a legal laughingstock. It continues to file frivolous arguments in cases with clear precedent as immigration rights, due process and birthright constitutional protections. Lawyers not aligned with the president's position were demoted or fired, replaced with people with no prosecution experience. Trump then attacked law firms who worked on cases against him; colleges who practiced diversity education; and unilateral spending cuts and grants. Judges have ruled against him time and time again, but he continues to press the illusory power to take away someone's government money. He has had some colleges and law firms bow to his demands, change their policies and pay to preach his myopic dogma. Why did these institutions cave? They feared they would lose more money, access and work. But the law firms that challenged Trump's bans have won. Harvard is willing to take Trump to trial.

Trump is more hyped by the fact that the Republican Congress has no backbone to challenge his fiat mandates. Republican leadership is so poor that any thread of the old GOP platforms and principles is gone. Leaders openly support clearly unconstitutional positions. Why? Because they think the MAGA voting bloc is too big to upset. The vocal supporters drown out any civil discussion or debate about compromise. The all-or-nothing crusade against liberal policies, programs and laws has Republican elected officials quaking in their shoes, whether they believe it or not. A rubber stamp Congress is not a check to balance an imperial president.

Trump's final hammer (he thinks) is the Supreme Court, packed with 6 conservative justices. Trump believes that all his unilateral power plays will be rubber stamped by the high court. Supreme Court justices take their role very seriously. They are the defenders of the constitution. Trump is the man who does not comprehend its meaning or purpose. Trump took a minor procedural victory on nationwide injunctions to proclaim he is correct on birthright citizenship. Of course, he is dead wrong. No matter how much word parsing will come, the law is clear. Trump forgets that the Justices are not up for an election, they cannot be leveraged to vote a position, they are not mouthpieces for a politician. It is predicted that Trump will have a volcanic meltdown if the Supreme Court does not follow his demands.

Trump's foreign policy tirades against foreign leaders "make a deal or your going to wiped out" has led to no progress in ending the conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza or Israel-Iran. Those foreign leaders think Trump is a blowhard not a man of action or principle. When they push back, he does not react. Here lies the blueprint to push back.

When cornered, a bully often gives up. Unless he has his own loyal muscle, he will not fight on his own. His political muscle has been the MAGA zealots he groomed with conspiracy theories like the Epstein files. The president's selective memory is getting himself into trouble with his base: he was a good friend with Epstein before Epstein's sex trafficking was uncovered. His loyal followers want the files (to go after Democratic foes) but whoops, Trump's name is in the investigative records (there is no presumption Trump did anything wrong, but waving off a campaign pledge to stop embarrassing himself makes some think otherwise.)

He is so narrow-minded to sue the Wall Street Journal for $10 billion for publishing articles tying him to Epstein. Trump has been emboldened by suing CBS with a dubious claim of election interference (eventhough he won the election) to extract $36 million from Paramount/CBS. The press was stunned by the settlement and the clear defeat of the First Amendment. It angered many that Paramount made the settlement, then shortly thereafter their $8 billion merger was approved by Trump's FCC. Any reasonable federal prosecutor would find that timing suspicious. Then, as a cherry on the cake, harsh Trump critic Stephen Colbert gets fired from his popular late night show. Why did CBS do this boot licking? It was all about money.

We hope the Wall street Journal puts Trump to the fire . . . and demands a Trump deposition under oath (in other cases, Trump dismissed his complaint to avoid submitting himself t answer questions under oath.) The amount of meritless complaints and petitions has made a mockery of the US court system. Why? Because even when Trump loses, it is not reported and he is not sanctioned for his bad behavior.

Trump has taken a recent Supreme Court ruling that presidents have broad immunity for presidential actions in performance of presidential duties. Trump has taken this ruling out of context to believe (through his actions) that he is immune for anything he does as president. He has a get-out- of- jail free card to lash out at enemies, sue people with impunity and violate the Constitution.

Trump's second term is the Apprentice: White House in all of its reality world BS. Except, the public cannot turn off this out-of-control reality show nightmare. Why? Because Trump is addicted to the power and the attention he gets for creating chaos. He does not think his golden brand, his Name, can ever be tarnished in the eyes of his followers. But it takes just one crack in the dam. For example, SOUTH PARK has not been on TV for two years. Out of sight, out of mind. Then it roars back with an episode mocking and blistering the CBS settlement (which in most circles should not have been aired due to its ending content) and making Trump into the new version of Saddam Hussein. It starts the conversation that Trump was made a fool of on national television. Whether the "foolish" label will stick and cause people to change their opinion on Trump is another matter. But it is a start. Somebody has to stand up to the bully.

iToons

cyberbarf

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY LETTER FROM THE PUB

This month marks the 24th year for cyberbarf.

We have come a long way, baby. The landscape of technology and culture continues to evolve. Some things have gotten better, some things have gotten worse. Clearly, computers have gotten more powerful, smaller and part of every person's daily lives. At the same time, politics, national leadership and civility are all at all-time lows.

24 years ago, we started this digital zine in order to examine the Internet and how cyberculture would interact with the real world. At the very beginning, were we very basic as shown in the first published cyberbarf cartoon:

Besides SOUTH PARK reruns, does anyone mention Al Gore anymore?

To put things in context, it was about a month after the first cyberbarf issue was published on the web that the September 11th attacks took place. The Day that Changed Everything. We still have ripples of that event today: we have increased airport security; we have enhanced REAL ID; there are still no-fly lists. We still live our daily lives not knowing what disaster could happen at the snap of a finger.

A person born 24 years ago would have just graduated college to start their career. Or if he got a job after high school,he could have banked enough salary to put a down-payment down on a house. In time line terms, an entire generation has passed since the first issue.

In today's culture, not many things last 24 years. Is it an accomplishment, a habit or a curse? There are still enough people out there who receive some value from this site to keep it going. Thank you.

cyberbarf

QUICK BYTES CYBERCULTURE

GO DUCK GO. DuckDuckGo browser has announced that it will have a feature that will filter out AI generated images from its search results. One of the sticking points to many Internet users is the lack of transparency of AI generated content. People want to know if the content is real or AI (as there is a perception difference between the two). Kudos to a tech company that is concerned about its users and is going something about it.

TATTS TO TELL. A South Korean scientific company has developed a temporary tattoo that can in seconds detect date rape drugs being consumed by the wearer. This would be a major safety device for people in bars and clubs. There is a current saying in the dating scene in South Korea: South Korean women are most afraid of South Korean men.

NEW WAVE OLD WAVE. Gen Z is still staking out its own culture. It was reported that Gen Z has taken greatly to the Japanese anime music scene. For those not in the know, popular animes have an opening and closing song which gives the series an iconic vibe. Bands who get songs into an anime become quite popular. There is talk of anime music clubs to cater to Gen Z. Rock on.

FAKE FOR REEL. There has been a surge of fake FB and YouTube videos. Many of these posts are on sports teams, financial news and celebrity news. A quick search to a local news site quickly debunks click bait claims of sports team cutting a star player, a stock that tanked or a celebrity couple break up that never happened. Clearly, these are either news bots without human supervision or human pranksters with too much time on their hands. Either way, the platforms are not policing their content providers.

cyberbarf

FOUND BUT NOT LOST ON THE INTERNET

The Internet is full of information. Some of it actually has some historical context. For example, an old newspaper article on the chilling topic of ghosts. The recipe for seeing ghosts states that people seeing ghosts is a symptom of indigestion. OK. There are several cable channels dedicated to indigestion in 2025. You know who you are.

Source: facebook feed

Graphic information is supposed to help people understand the world. Since we do not live on the other side of the planet, we do not how the other side lives . . . in the weather sense. This map attempts to show an overlay of what America's climate matches on the other side of the oceans. I take exception to the Chicago representation. This year, Chicago summer matches perfectly with South Korea's heat wave and tropic nights.

Source: Maps Porn/facebook

There is a new beer bottle for the beach. Instead of wasting beer by tipping flat bottom bottles, this new torpedo shape allows the drinker to get wasted quicker by allowing the bottle to push through the sand to get a stable base. Drinking can be the mother of invention. Party on.

Source: neatorama

cyberbarf

THE WHETHER REPORT

cyberbarf

STATUS

Question: Whether unstopped massive world government debts can never be controlled?

* Educated Guess

* Possible

* Probable

* Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

* Doubtful

* Vapor Dream

Question: Whether harmful Big Tech inventions tied to stock market valuations is too big to stop or roll back?

* Educated Guess

* Possible

* Probable

* Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

* Doubtful

* Vapor Dream

Question: Whether consistently high grocery prices will stop or slow discretionary spending in the near future?

* Educated Guess

* Possible

* Probable

* Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

* Doubtful

* Vapor Dream

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THE WAIT IS ALMOST OVER.

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