Questions for Alexa

There was a test devised  by Alan Turing to tell you if you are dealing with true artificial intelligence. This test was to determine if you were communicating remotely and you couldn’t tell if your responder was a computer or a person. Now we are obviously getting closer to success in this process with search engines and with Alexa-like devices.

But are we really? Clearly, as we  are learning from politics, the search-engine algorithms are not immune from human interference. And Alexa can often be a little hazy or even thick headed in her answers.

So, I would like to suggest a few questions that might be asked of Alexa-like devices to make sure that they are really (artificially) intelligent. Here they are (with result accuracy grade):

Alexa ...

Are you a computer?    -

Is there a God?    +

What was Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity?    *

How many calories are there is a BTU?    +    (She got it backwards.)

What is your mother’s maiden name?    x

Can you pass the Turing test?    *    (“I don’t claim to be human”)

How does photosynthesis work?    +

 Who was Sniffles human friend?    x

What is a poison pawn?    x

What is the temperature of the Earth right now?    +

How far was Mao’s “Long March” and how long did it take?    x

Should we stand up for America?    x    (“Hmm, I’m not sure.”)

* Bingo    + Correct but not on point    - Misleading    x Dead wrong

God?

I don’t personally believe in a divinity ... but, if there were a God, I can imagine her looking down on all the anti-Trump vitriol that has existed in the world and saying:

“OK, you human bozos, in 2016 I arranged for that boastful sinner Trump to get elected president because I feared that his opponent was Beelzebub in a pants suit ... and I knew she would destroy my grand experiment ... the shining city on the hill. Since I pulled off this minor miracle, you ungrateful tosspots did nothing but try to thwart his noble efforts and take him down. So, as punishment for this ungratefulness, I am inflicting you and many other bad-apple counties with a pandemic ... calling to me many of your elders. And, in the process, I am also going to destroy most of the wealth that the man with the orange hair has, through me, provided you. So, shape up you morons ... or I will make things even worse!”

Just thinking out loud ...

Powerline Pic

And God is an American female ...

God’s Darwin

Or Darwin’s God. David Gelernter, Yale computer science professor ... who was once targeted by the Unabomber ... has upset the evolutionary applecart by questioning Darwin’s explanation of how the many species, that we find here on Earth, came about ... basically being mathematically impossible.

Which, of course, introduces the idea of intelligent design ... which then borders us on the idea of God ... or, as Elon Musk prefers,  a giant computer simulation sometime in the future creating our current reality. Anyhow, if you are interested in this subject, watch the discussion held by the Hoover Institute between Gelernter and Stephen Meyer, a believer in intelligent design. There is a third participant, a philosopher, who seems a poser NO-OP. Anyhow, watch it ... it will get your gray matter juices flowing: Understanding Intelligent Design ... Kinda.

Afterward: Not covered in this discussion and what I am inclined to believe is something called “punctuated equilibrium” ... wherein rapid evolutionary changes take place in animals based upon the details of environmental pressures.

Pearly Gates

God is, by definition, the most compassionate ... yet He still has a beautiful wall guarding His kingdom ... with a beautiful port of entry, the Pearly Gates ... through which all asylum seekers must pass ... after being vetted by St. Peter.

How can the United States Border Patrol and President Trump be immoral when they ask for a lesser wall and a more forgiving entry process?

Quotable Quote

Malt does more than Milton can to justify God's ways to man. -- A.E. Housman

Headlines

Trump: 'Disgraceful' for Sessions to use DOJ watchdog to investigate FBI

ICE: Oakland mayor who warned illegals of raid 'no better than a gang lookout'

GDP growth revised down to 2.5% ...

U.S. News crowns California with worst state for 'quality of life'

Trump: We're delaying California border wall until entire project is approved

South Africa tries to seize white-owned land without compensation

Oprah: I God says run, I'll run!

Farrakhan: DNC's Ellison only denounced me because 'the Jew holds the door'

Corker decides against reelection bid, sticks with retirement

Amazon is buying Ring [for $1.8 billion], a company once rejected on 'Shark Tank'

Streisand clones her dogs. For $50,000 you can clone yours ...

Shooting survivor's father admits email changes in CNN spat

Headlines

Millions of Americans believe God made Trump president

Democrat congresswoman calls ICE the 'gestapo of America'

Flu from Hell   Schools closed   Getting worse

Trump to Piers Morgan: 'No, I wouldn't say I'm a feminist'

Defiant Republicans ready to send secret Russian memo to Trump

Steve Wynn resigns as RNC finance chair amid [sexual] misconduct charges

DOJ withholds majority of FBI texts ...

Soros at Davos: World must accept North Korea as nuclear power ...

Trump calls report he ordered Mueller fired 'fake news'

Hacked Japanese cryptocurrency exchange to repay users $425 million

[Prince] Alwaleed freed ... Saudi move elites to prison, $100 billion wrested ...

Czech elections: Amti-migration president defeats leftist, academic

My Faith

Although I don't believe in God, I do believe in most religions.

A Viennese Vignette

Not the minister mentioned

A number of years ago, my wife and I were on a train from Vienna to Budapest. Across from us sat an attractive couple about ten years younger than we were. Being rather gregarious, I started small talk ... learning that they were German from Hamburg and on vacation throughout Eastern Europe. I was surprised when I discovered, at his age, that he was a retired Lutheran minister ...well appointed and taken care of financially.

We then went through the standard questions back and forth ... children, pets, hobbies, trips, etc. But then I stopped things cold when, at the end of some religious conversation, I blurted out an impulsive query ... prompted by some of his wishy-washy answers. I said, "Do you believe in God?" After I saw his  reddening face and some sullen silence, I realized I had stepped over a cultural line.

After taking my wife's elbow in the ribs, there was no more polite conversation all the way back to the now-wider Danube.

Headlines

The following headlines have all been found on Internet news sites. Guess which ones came from Politico?

Valerie Jarrett: USA no longer 'beacon of hope' ...

Trump says Comey said things that 'just weren't true' in Senate testimony

12 staffers at Dem-linked organization charged with voter fraud

Trump says money is pouring into NATO after he calls out leaders

Sharpton: Pence 'true enemy' of civil rights

Trump publicly commits to NATO mutual-defense provision

Get ready for gender-inclusive locker rooms at UC-Berkeley

Trump happy to testify 'under oath' to refute Comey

Trump targets illegals given a reprieve by Obama

Gore says God told him to fight global warming

Trump calls on Qatar to stop funding terror organizations

Pelosi confused after questioning Trump's mental health

Good Friday Thought

Jesus Christ may or may not have been the son of God, but he certainly was someone full of love for humanity, transcendent understanding and wisdom for the ages. Since his crucifixion these possible davine gifts have been sullied by the natural baseness of man, but still can guide those, who care to look for them, to a life of grace. He is not to be ignored or forgotten.

Sovereignty

There is a classic battle in governance between the amount of sovereign power that resides at each level of government ... local, state, national and on up to the ultimate, world government. The United States went through paroxysms during its founding regarding how to allocate powers between the states and the federal government. The solution was resolved in the Tenth Amendment stating that "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." What complicates this power give and take is how this sovereign power is achieved ... by a democratic process, by subterfuge, by the sword, or by the claim that God/Allah/etc. bestowed it.

Enter Brexit, this Thursday's vote in Great Britain as to whether this country will exit the European Union, an unelected quasi-government that has usurped many of the sovereign prerogatives that were once reserved for the British people. All sorts of liberals in the U.S. including Obummer and Hellery ... and even members of the Conservative party in Britain, including the Prime Minister, David Cameron, are urging that the Thursday vote results be "stay."

What insanity would cause peoples to give up rights and powers to a bunch of bloated bureaucrats in Brussels who are constantly trying to force immigrants upon them and onto their welfare roles? And for that matter, why would the American people allow any of our rights to be transferred to those truculant tsars on the East River in New York City, the United Nations? This failed attempt at world government has, as far as I can determine, done nothing significant for the betterment of mankind other than spending mountains of (mostly U.S.) money on five-star hotels and expensive meals.

This gives me an idea. Can we, here in America, have a vote to exit the U.N. which, after a little research, I find was not mentioned in our Constitution? It would seem to me that the surrender of any of our inalienable rights to these mostly third-world hangers-on should have required a democratic process ... namely an amendment to our Constitution ... which I don't recall happening.back in October of 1945. Maybe we should have this seemingly Constitution-required  vote now?

Even More Headlines

Rob Reiner calls 'a lot' of Trump supporters racists

Caitlyn Jenner to pose naked on SPORTS ILLUSTRATED cover

First Muslim mayor of Londonstan

Cramer: Elon Musk [CEO of Tesla] getting away with financial murder

Man seeks restraining order against God

Tow truck driver refuses Sanders supporter ... 'Call the government'

UAE plans to construct mountain to control weather

Indonesian villagers mistake sex toy for angel

Man puts python in pants at pet store

300 hours of training required to shampoo hair in Tennessee

Girl without hands wins national handwriting contest

Less than 1% of immigrants who overstay visas deported

Layoffs at Berkeley after minimum wage hike -- then protests

The End Is Near!

Pope Francis told some followers on Sunday that they should be prepared to meet God ... hinting that the end of the world is growing neigh ... see: Breitbart Article.

What!? Will we not have time to see the Chicago Cubs win a World Series ... or suffer through the coming global warming ... or enjoy Hillary Clinton making a further muddle of things?

Who’s the Liar?

President Obama and Pope Francis met at the Vatican yesterday. Not surprisingly, each of their accounts of what transpired in the private portion of this confab differ … see: Washington Times Story. 

Personally I believe that Obama told the Pope that if he liked his God, he could keep his God ...

Are We Exceptional?

Russia's President Putin

It’s a jump ball as to who is the bigger egomaniac … Barack Obama or Vladimir Putin.  But my money is on Putin.  He is so self-absorbed that he now feels that he can criticize Americans for believing that we are “exceptional.”  In an op-ed piece in the New York Times, Putin lays out Russia’s case for restraint in dealing with Syria … some of it somewhat rational, if self-serving … see: NY Times Op-Ed.  He clearly has read the polls in the United States and believes that he is half-way home in convincing us that we should not unleash our military might to punish Syria for its alleged chemical attacks. 

Perhaps he is right … but then he finishes with a flourish:  He disses Americans for believing that we are exceptional … viz:

And I would rather disagree with a case [Obama] made on American exceptionalism, stating that the United States’ policy is “what makes America different. It’s what makes us exceptional.” It is extremely dangerous to encourage people to see themselves as exceptional, whatever the motivation. 

Putin’s view, I believe, is also held throughout much of liberal western Europe.  And it is a view that I think President Obama also secretly covets despite the above words he read from his Teleprompter two nights ago.

The question then poses itself – is America exceptional and, if so, what does this mean? I don’t believe that this assertion is braggadocios … I believe that it reflects a certain humble uniqueness for our country ... in that we were founded by men who understood that governments are dangerous and gravitate toward the stifling of freedoms.  Instead of believing that our leaders are chosen by God and then lend to their citizens certain freedoms and largess, they constructed a Constitution that reversed this mandate.  It is we, the people, who are endowed by a higher power with certain fundamental freedoms and then lend to our leaders certain powers to govern … only to the point that they don’t abuse this prerogative … in which case they can be removed.

I can understand why Putin and liberal Europe (and much of the rest of the world) can’t grasp this concept … for they are clearly distancing themselves from this form of exceptionalism.  Europe overall is run by self-appointed bureaucrats who answer not to its people.  Russia has subverted its own Constitution and its election process to the point of ludicrousness.  It is only through a modicum of embarrassed self-control on the part of such leaders that actual dictatorships have not returned in force.  But the table is clearly tilted in that direction.

Which brings us back to the United States. Yes, I believe we have been exceptional.  We have, over the life of our country, often taken up the mantel of saving the world from itself … losing countless lives and untold treasure in the process.  Have we benefited in the process?  Probably … but only a pittance relative to what we have sacrificed.  The real question is: Will we continue to be exceptional?  Have we lost our way and, consequently, given up some freedoms in our attempt to remedy the social ills that invariably creep into societies?  To a degree, yes.  But I believe that the tenets of our Constitution are still a beacon to the majority of Americans … and most of our current backsliding will, therefore, self-correct in time.  After all, we are an exception to the rule.

Thank You

Coming up on the day called “Thanksgiving” the subject of this reflection manifests itself. This therefore is a paean to all that makes my life good. But first let me explain what I mean by the“you” in “thank you.” Being a secular humanist I don’t necessarily mean God … but then again I don’t really want closely to identify myself with secular humanists. Too many of these people unfortunately want to take away some of the things that help make my life good. What are really wrong with church bells on a Sunday morning anyway? Secular humanist are laden with babinzoes who are too full of bile to recognize that these bells are calling to assembly a bunch of neighbors who wish me no harm. Rather, by “you” I mean everyone who has preceded me who has contributed to the state of near grace in which I find myself.

I say “near grace” for I am not kidding myself into believing that I have lived a life of transcendental enlightenment. I am not so inclined. Rather I take what snippets of grace that come my way with a kind of innocent joy (like this morning at 3:30AM when our 3-year-old granddaughter climbed into bed with us). And I herein recognize that these moments of grace are often constructs of uncountable efforts of unnamed predecessors over innumerable eons. So exactly what are these constructions for which I am indebted?

- A country in which I fear not a barrage of rockets.

- A home that keeps out the rain and keeps in the warmth.

- A wife and family that allow me to contribute and return the favor.

- A society that provides for my needs and allows me some wants.

- Friends and neighbors who forgive me my quirkiness.

- Forefathers who constructed a form of government that often seems to work.

- The legions of defenders of our freedoms who have died or been maimed in the process.

- A medical system that has kept me alive long past my due.

- My remembered father, mother, sister, friends, mentors and educators.

- The joy of watching youth blossom into understanding.

- A leftover turkey sandwich with sage stuffing, cranberry sauce and mayonnaise.

Thank you.

God and Country

I'm not a religious person, but to see at least half of those delegates at the Democrat National Convention boo and jeer at the thought of putting the word "God" back into this party's Presidential platform cannot be good for Obama's re-election chances.  Ditto for their collective derision at recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.  See: Real Clear Politics.  Will this be the equivalent of Michael Dukakis in the tank turret ... or George H.W. Bush looking at his watch during the debate with Clinton ... or John Kerry riding his sailboard?  Only time will tell ... but I can hope.

A Platform Too Far

The Republican Presidential Platform was criticized for endorsing a "radical" no-exception stand on right to life (which Mitt Romney doesn't support).  However, the Democrat Platform was approved yesterday in Charlotte and it contains lots of radical (is there a stronger word?) planks that cut across the grain of American traditionalism.  It no longer mentions God.  It endorses taxpayer-funded late-term abortions.  It no longer avers that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.  It unequivocally supports gay marriage.  It endorses the Dream Act on immigration.  See: Incomplete AP Story.  Only this time I suspect Obama enthusiastically stands behind all the planks of this belly-rubbing Democrat Platform.

Top this with the speaker lineup in Charlotte -- former President Jimmy Carter, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, La Raza champion Julian Castro, turncoat Charlie Crist, "give me my birth control" Sandra Fluke and that American Indian, Elizabeth Warren.  Is it any wonder that many "moderate" Democrats are distancing themselves from this convention.  Where is Hillary?  Where is Andrew Cuomo?  Where is Erskin Bowles?  Even Rahm Emanuel has flown the coop.  And, what was supposed to be the crescendo of this convention -- Obama's acceptance speech in front of 74,000 hysterical fans -- appears to be being diminished, see: Breitbart Story.