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AI IS KILLING THE INTERNET CYBERCULTURE

This year, more commentators are using the same refrain: AI is killing the internet. The seepage of AI into our daily lives is like a sanitary sewer break flooding the neighborhood with toxic waste. We continue to report that AI and chatbots account for almost 50 percent of social media comments and targeted posts. The rise of deepfake videos and voice technology makes it seem that people are actually talking and interacting with fellow human beings. This gives scammers better tools to rip people off. Early cynics never believed that the Internet was filled with Truth. Today there is a consensus that the Internet is filled with more misinformation than verifiable facts. Does that mean the useful utilitarianism of the web, the library of information, has been breached? Yes. Does that mean we can no longer trust the search engine results and page links to find the Truth? Yes. Then, what is the point of the current Internet?

The yelling, spamming, doxxing, shouting, partisanship politics and fraud is like an endless drunken bar brawl. As an observer, it is tiring, even exhausting to watch or navigate. But is there an alternative?

Probably not. Traditional media is jumping into this polluted sinkhole. Creative people cost money. Too much money. A computer program can now replace creative people at just about every step of the entertainment pipe line. Is the output any good? No, but it does not matter if ALL the future output is basically the same. Parity in crap. As long as viewers accept and consume it like eating junk food, there is no reason to change.

For decades, traditional educators cried that new textbooks (like the new math) and cultural mandates in teaching materials were dumbing down students. Now, young people's screen addiction is on the rise. The more screen time means less time reading, writing and being a kid exploring the outside world. It creates a model of introversion, social awkwardness, lack of awareness, lack of common sense and reasoning, and the ability to be influenced and manipulated by others. Generations of followers will not breed leaders who will understand the problems facing society or capable finding solutions.

Many legal scholars fear that generative AI models can overwhelm the current information systems with propaganda, misinformation and legal malfeasance to create an authoritative government. Constitutional crisis is a phrase that is gaining traction because of the polarization of what used to be simple: what is right and what is wrong.

One of the problems with Big Tech is that it is not a fundamental public institution like the three branches of government, a free press, a free education system, and solid principles for the protections of human rights and property rights. Big Tech has only one goal: big profits. Wall Street has determined that Data is now the new Big Oil. The world has run its industrialization and advancements on the oil industry and its products, from fuel to plastics. But now, the finance class believes that the most valuable asset class is Data. Big Data. The companies that can gather and use Big Data will be rewarded with large stock prices while traditional industries will be cast away as relics of the past. This is why data companies like Google, facebook and X have high valuations because they mine the most data from the Internet

But Big Data does not mean big returns to investors. The old business model was that companies were rewarded for return-on-investment and profits. Newer companies do not have that same goal or accountability. The general public thinks Netflix is an entertainment company because it invests in shows for their subscribers. But in reality, it is a tech company not concerned with profitability but stock price growth. One can make more money on stock speculation with a good story than grinding out actual profits from selling goods and services.

It seems the lazy road is the easy road that more and more people are falling into its trap. AI's promise and speed of output generation is an easy fix for lazy people to be productive in the sense of finishing tasks. But if the production is wrong, what is the real value? Generative AI models are spitting out all sorts of business documents including legal contracts. We have seen an AI generated liability waiver form for jet ski rentals that was fatally flawed under state law precedent to make it worthless. But users think since AI has all the knowledge at its disposal, the output must be right. Wrong. It cannot take multiple sources such as statutes, legal case decisions, law review articles and understand the perplexities of any given legal question. Only practical experience of a trained professional can render such an opinion. But more people do not want to spend money to hire a lawyer when they can find an on-line form. There are two proverbs at play: you get what you pay for and he who represents himself has a fool for a client.

The final act for AI may be two-fold. Since AI models continue to scrap the Internet for more data, it is scraping more and more AI generated falsehoods and hallucinations. But since AI cannot tell the difference between truth and lies, it is training itself to be more incorrect, more fallible, more wrong. There may come to a point were the bad significantly outweighs the good to make all generated output suspect to worthless. But that can only hit home if users pay the consequences for relying on bad data. (It is happening as many lawyers have used AI to generate court briefs that contained egregious errors which have led to sanctions.) Second, users may become bored with AI just like any other Internet fad. Something new or different may come along to grab their attention. Or maybe nostalgia will return about learning things by opening up and reading a book.

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CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS? STUPID TRAMPS

The second 100 days of Trump's term continues the Mario Kart style game play of the first 100. His Big Beautiful Bill that passed the House as a tax and spending cut bill turns out to be a massive deficit time bomb. Also included in its 1,116 pages are new law changes that attempt to immunize Trump from court orders or following due process against citizens and resident aliens. At least one Republican lawmaker admits he had not read the provision about bypassing court orders before he voted for it. When asked at a May 27 town hall why he voted in favor, Rep. Mike Flood of Nebraska said, “This provision was unknown to me when I voted for the bill. ” Many Democrats are alarmed by the Bill's hidden provisions:

But the alarmists are being drowned out by the White House circus creating daily crazy high wire act headlines.

The Bill attempts to undermine the Judicial Branch from enforcing injunctions against Trump's executive orders:

A hidden provision bars courts from using federal funds to enforce contempt citations for violations of injunctions or temporary restraining orders unless plaintiffs post a bond. This requirement is rare in lawsuits against the government, which stops administration from judicial oversight for unconstitutional orders. The provision holds that no federal court may use appropriated funds to enforce a contempt-of-court citation for failing to comply with an injunction or temporary restraining order. In effect, anyone wanting to sue the federal government to stop an action or policy would need to pay a bond before the judge is able to enforce an order blocking the action or policy from being implemented.

The bill also undermines Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. vs. Sawyer (1952), which rejected Truman's unilateral seizure of steel mills. By contrast, this bill enables the president to defy of judicial orders in regard to executive actions.

The legislation includes changes to Medicaid, a popular entitlement program that provides government-sponsored health care for low-income Americans - - imposing work requirements for able-bodied adults without children, more frequent eligibility checks, cutting federal funds to states that use Medicaid infrastructure to provide health care coverage to undocumented immigrants and banning Medicaid from covering gender transition services for children and adults.

With a major deadline to address the debt limit on the horizon, the legislation would raise the debt ceiling by $4 trillion.

The lack of any public outcry or fact checking is troublesome.

Trump's continued use of tariffs to bully other nations has created the TACO meme.

Elon Musk has left the Department of Government Efficiency which has continued to lose in court challenges over firing of employees (including those covered by union collective bargaining agreements), firing independent agency heads, spending unappropriated money for severance packages, and accessing private and confidential information at various agencies including Social Security and the IRS. But many of his cuts have been incorporated in the big budget bill. Musk leaves Washington a bitter man, unhappy that he was the administration's whipping boy for change.

Trump continues to defy court orders including The Supreme Court's decision ruling that the administration must bring back a man who was deported without legal due process.

ICE agents continue to arrest aliens, lawyers and judges for allegedly interfering in an arrest of alleged illegal aliens. The administration continues to admit in court that it has deported non-criminal citizens by mistake but has done nothing to remedy their situation.

Trump's attacks on universities and law firms on contracts, grants and aid continues despite legal losses in District Courts.

Trump's DOJ has lost 96 percent of its cases in District Court that tried to justify the president's executive orders. His advisors are still trying to formulate arguments, some which Nixon used to try to cite executive privilege to avoid Congressional or Court oversight into his actions. But in the end, Nixon complied with court orders to turn over his tapes and documents which provided his wrongdoing. Here, Trump believes he is above the law.

As we wrote last month, the problem is that Trump does not care. But why? Examine for yourself the following traits:

Does Trump feel underappreciated or depressed when he is not the center of attention?

Does he need instant gratification and becomes bored or frustrated very easily?

Does he speak dramatically and express strong opinions but with few facts or details to support his opinions?

Is Trump gullible and easily influenced by others, especially by the people he admires?

Does Trump have rapidly shifting and shallow emotions?

Is Trump often dramatic and extremely emotionally expressive, even to the point of embarrassing friends and family in public?

Does Trump have a larger than life presence?

Is Trump persistently charming and flirtatious?

Does he have difficulty maintaining relationships, often seeming fake or shallow in their interactions with others?

Does he think that his relationships with others are closer than they usually are?

Is Trump's vanity being overly concerned with their physical appearance?

Does he draw attention to himself by wearing bright-colored clothing or revealing clothing?

In the past, has he acted inappropriately sexual with most of the people they meet, even when they are not sexually attracted to him? (As in the Carroll case)

All those traits are symptoms of Histrionic Personality Disorder.

We know politicians have big egos and ambitions. Many elected officials boldly speak their minds,at times with intense, unstable emotions and a distorted self-image. However, more extreme people with HPD often do not realize their behavior and way of thinking are problematic, dramatic, theatrical or destructive. Many commentators describe Trump as an Imperial President who is acting to be the sole powerful character on the world stage. But in many ways, his foolish behavior will turn others against him, isolate him and ridicule him. And there lies the ultimate crisis: how will he take it?

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QUICK BYTES CYBERCULTURE

STILL LOST. Fifteen years ago, the iconic, perplexing and confusing American television series LOST ended its six season run. The final season was controversial. Its ending highly debated. The behind-the-scenes tales were enlightening as it both confirmed and denied what many viewers show perceptions were at the time. It may have been the last network serial television show. It did not fit TV syndication episodic daily time slots because if you saw a Monday episode, and missed the rest of the week, you would be lost on the next Monday. The one lasting impression of the show was that prior to social media, it spawned vibrant on-line communities that blogged and posted theories, comments and insight with fellow fans. Today, it is very rare for shows or genres (like K-drama) to create and foster fan communities.

YUCK ZUCK. At a recent technology forum, Mark Zuckerberg remarked that in the future, relationships will be more defined by technology than humanity. Chatbots and AI personae will be the primary social interaction between human beings. The idea of building up the social outcast living in their parent's basement with a high-speed Internet connection being a ideal lifestyle choice would set mankind back to the stone age. Industrialized nations that have staggering low birth rates will turn into dystopian wastelands. For a guy whose billion dollar idea was getting college kids to date, this concept is the exact opposite.

LOST IN TRANSLATION. Duolingo gamed the foreign language learning space by creating games to subscribers to use to learn foreign languages. The idea of creating a daily habit to learn something new was good and the execution helped many people. But out-of-the-blue, the company decided to wipe out its contract work force and replace them with AI. Users were rightfully outraged. Foreign languages are complex. You cannot substitute dictionary words with foreign dictionary words. Translation needs context and cultural perspective that only humans can understand. The push-back from users may crush Duolingo's AI plans.

FILM TARIFFS? . President Trump's proclamations continue to show his lack of basic legal understanding of issues. He claims foreign films have ruined Hollywood. Hollywood is having a hard time because of a) COVID set backs and b) a long writer's and actor's strikes. Then, two years of tent-pole box office failures did not help studios rebound to past glory. But it is easy to blame foreigners for the root of all problems. However, Trump's command to tariff films is ridiculous. Tariffs are only imposed on foreign goods. A film is not a good but an intangible asset, a license to show an artistic work. It is transmitted not by ocean vessel but over the Internet It was one of the dumbest ideas the administration has had this year. But the year is still young.

iToons

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FOUND BUT NOT LOST ON THE INTERNET

One of the most debated things in America, after whether one can eat breakfast dishes for dinner, is whether pineapple belongs on a pizza. Some claim it was created in Hawaii, but in reality it was created by a man in Canada. Now, restaurant chains have created dessert pizzas in the past that contained fruit, but a regular tomato and cheese pie clashes with pineapple chunks for most eaters. The idea of landmine sweepers finding and removing pineapple from a pizza is funny.

Source: facebook

AI created images and videos continue to flood social media feeds. This one was one of the more stranger ones. Is AI telling us that someday a child will have a robotic mommy? That the next generation will not look for guidance and support from their human parents but to sexy allure of technology? And why is the young boy touching the female robot's pelvis?

Source: facebook

Rarely do American judges have a sense of humor in their courtrooms. The judicial system is stoic, prim and proper. It has rules and guidelines for conduct and procedure. When a law firm started filing pleadings with a colorful watermark of a dragon, the Michigan federal court went off on the firm. One does not put a cartoon watermark on important legal documents. The reason is unclear. Was it a marketing department gone amuck? Why did not the attorneys notice that this was a huge faux paux? The firm was ordered to correct pleadings and never use the mark again in its filings.

Source: neatorama

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THE WHETHER REPORT

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STATUS

Question: Whether the start of summer will slow down the nonsense happening in Washington D.C. ?

* Educated Guess

* Possible

* Probable

* Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

* Doubtful

* Vapor Dream

Question: Whether global leaders see the U.S. no longer as a strong ally but a circus act?

* Educated Guess

* Possible

* Probable

* Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

* Doubtful

* Vapor Dream

Question: Whether trade schools enrollment doubling in less than a decade is a good sign?

* Educated Guess

* Possible

* Probable

* Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

* Doubtful

* Vapor Dream

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