iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Yes, Trump's an idiot. But you're misinterpreting his "weave". Reference to LA and SF was a toss-away line reaffirming his hatred of liberal cities/states that don't kiss his ring. Nothing more. He wasn't calling for their destruction. What I think he's actually claiming and some comments:

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Dark Money Hit a Record High of $1.9 Billion in 2024 Federal Races

I knew Trump got a 1/3rd of his direct & allied PAC campaign war-chest from billionaires...as opposed to only 6% for Harris. But new to me: Democrats put up about $1.2 billion in "dark money" to influence 2024 elections, nearly double that of Republicans. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

brennancenter.org

Spending by groups that do not disclose their donors has increased and become harder to trace.

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5/5 But all seem minor compared to the explosion of misinfo. pushed by biased media sources...esp. highly-personalized confirmation-bias bubbles created by social media algorithms. Still, edu. & literacy are not perfect indicators of critical thinking & gullibility 🔽. www.mpg.de/24132917/onl...

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4/5 And In the article below education and measures of literacy do appear correlated globally: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC... But IMO blaming Covid an overstatement. It affected literacy levels, but most strongly for younger children and early teens...many not old enough to vote in 2024.

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3/5 And let's knowledge where Trump pulled his most reliable supporters since 2020. I'd argue the 2 groups shown in the figure below. And his biggest gains prior to 2024 came from the newly minted "manosphere". www.npr.org/2024/11/12/n... I convinced Gemini of this...for what that's worth 🙄.

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2/5 However, before we simply claim billionaires bought the election for Trump by pushing him on uneducated, illiterate, gullible young people. Let's aknowledge that both sides use Dark Money. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

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1/5 I agree that Trump has fooled a huge number of people and his win was aided by lots of billionaire mega-donor support 🔽..including a few with media empires ⏬.

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Just because I may speak that way doesn't mean I want my President to speak that way. More mportant than off-color language is the implied admission that he only intends to serve only those that serve him. Wonder if any of the others verbally reneged on their promise in such a obscene manner?

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Lobbying is a form of free speech. It's just a form that's dangerous to democracy without criteria defining it and visibility in its funding stream. I wish we could do the same with dark money in campaigns. My false tradeoff was intended as sarcasm. Sorry if that wasn't clear.

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I think the white US-born group has a "low-literacy" rate about half the national average, yet it still accounts for the largest share of low-literacy adults. The meme appears to be leaning on the second fact and hiding the first. So critical thinking is important...even if you don't watch Fox.

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Of course, in many countries, free speech is also a criminal offense. The only reason we're able to separate lobbying from the free speech of citizens is because transparency was lacking. scholarship.law.nd.edu/cgi/viewcont... So should we end free speech, or just live without the transparency?

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Have the barriers to entry of competitors just become too high?

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

No, it just shows what an idiot he his. If he keeps showing this, surely those who voted for him and leaders who've kissed his ring will eventually spot the flaw. Won't they?

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

If all who like his policies, but know his morality related to sex & business is distorted and self-serving, chose not to vote for him, then I'm guessing he'd never have made it into office. Now we also know his morality related to public service & war are equally flawed. There's just no excuse.

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I don't know who orignally coined the term "TDS" but a "derangement" is is simply state of mental disorder or confusion. So the TDS moniker seems to apply best to those who blindly support Trump in spite of his his grift, power hunger, failed policy, and narcissism.

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I'm sorry. I did suggest a "multi-part" response would be fine. No rush. Hope your vacation is going well.

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Enjoy. Post some pics. BTW: I don't recall asking for long response, but I have no problem reading and considering one if the point(s) being demand it. I tend to be long myself...so justified or not, it seems hypocritical of me to complain about the length of a reply.

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Sam Gerb @gerb-sam.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Hopefully, courts will rule his latest selective restriction of press access to the White-House as unconstitutional. And the further we can keep an wanna-be autocrat away from certification of journalistic organizations, the better. Government generally should not be given that role.

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You seem to be conflating two different things: freedom to engage in journalism and permission to enter a particular restricted place.

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There are widely accepted standards...they are just not endorsed, assessed, or enforced by the US government. For me that's a necessary safeguard...and one I think the framers of the Constitution thought was necessary.

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When the press knowingly publishes false statement or shows reckless disregard for the truth and someone's reputation is harmed, they can be hauled into court. And if found liable, may be forced to pay damages.

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No. In general, regulation is a necessary for capitalism to work for citizens. But among a few other enumerated freedoms, a press that is free to operate without government approval of their legitimacy is a critical aspect of sustaining democracy. How does your proposal defend press freedom?

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No, I think the org's reputation is more important that the individual journalists that they hire. And ideally, journalists that clearly violate the org's published standards are fired. Another good sign for any who care to check: www.nytimes.com/section/corr... www.npr.org/corrections/

nytimes.com

Corrections

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But you don't have a plan for ensuring the press only publishes facts...only that government has a monopoly on the right to label who we should trust. Gov't power needs limits so you can muddle through even when you disagree with whoever is in power.

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And you want to entrust the gov't with yet more control?

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Credentials to access sensitive areas or fill limited seats is very different that having gov't weigh in directly on the legitimacy of any organization publishing news.

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2/2 So what does changing the Constitution to allow for oversight of a government agency do...except possibly make people question the validity of that oversight? I wondered if SPJ would like to see gov't enforce the ethical code they maintain...so I asked Gemini and ChatGPT to speculate:

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Do journalists have ethics? Yes! What does that mean?

1/2 Ethical journalistic organizations already publish the standards they intend to follow. They print retractions and corrections where readers veryify when they get a story wrong. Many even let independent organizations check their adherance to appropriate standards. www.spj.org/journalism-e...

spj.org

Society of Professional Journalists, improving and protecting journalism since 1909

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Do you engage with people on the Right often? Those I know think most media is hopelessly Leftist..."Fake News" as Trump calls them. If a government agency told a Right leaning media source they couldn't call themselves "news", Trumpers would see it as "the swamp" simply trying to silence truth.

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I’m in favor of more progressive tax rates...even beyond what closing loopholes alone would accomplish. But in '61, US tax code operated relatively closed sandbox. Capital & talent were less internationally mobile & higher rates less likely to erode the tax base. Today, the sandbox has fewer walls.

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Who Will Pay No Federal Individual Income Tax in 2025?

Not that I feel sorry for any billionaire, but a high net worth does not guarantee you have an extra $1M of liquid cash available. And some people with a net worth > $100,000 can have an adjusted gross income below the standard deduction, causing them to owe $0 in federal income taxes.

taxpolicycenter.org

In 2025, according to the latest Tax Policy Center estimates, 40 percent of households, or about 76 million “tax units,” will pay no federal individual income tax.

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Unlike the 1st Amendment which specifically addresses freedom of the press…

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But there is still a Fox...and it's influence would continue even if on some obscure government database it is made abundantly clear why they are no longer permitted to call themselves a "news" organization. I think for practical purposes this has been adjudicated...at least in the public sphere:

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No. IMO, smart regulation is critical for capitalism to work. But regulating the label of "news" is granting new gov't authority...at a time when many people are skeptical of gov't👇. And in my estimation, it would provide little real payoff in terms of what people will read/watch and trust.

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I'm reading them. I just disagree. If circling pointlessly, we can give this topic a rest. For me it's a minor concern...I just like researching the relevant landscape and I find that interesting. I'm guessing we agree on many things. My research is just more easily prompted when we disagree.

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Given tech: What people see is tailored to whatever keeps them engaged...often reinforcing what they already want to hear. Most Americans get news from social media at least sometimes, often from sources with no pretense of journalistic integrity. I disagree on equivalence to professional cert.

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So your fix is to make whatever politician wins the election (perhaps one who lies through their teeth) to have control over what is labeled as fact?

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Do you have a reliable way to separate political speech from other forms of speech. I don't. If I did, I'd attack Citizens United rather than go after a free press. If your issue boils down to gov't adjudication of facts...not just adherence to journalistic standards...that's a 1A problem.

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And now we're all appalled.

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Thanks for sharing Dr. Ruth:

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CNN seems to have adopted some FOX-like programming...just entertainment focused on the Left. So I guess neither could call themselves a news outlet?

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If a "news" organization printed articles declaring election fraud at the level Trump insists...sufficient to overturn a presidential election...doesn't exist, what would keep the overseeing agency from deciding that was excessive editorializing and start to levy fines...unless they agree to comply?

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Good to hear...nobody should view KIrk's death as a victory for their side. WWJD?...I'm no expert there...but I understand he lived a simple, itinerant life, explicitly teaching against the accumulation of worldly riches. So what valuables would he have to sell in the first place?

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When scar tissues becomes thick, dense, and constricted, moves, changes shape, or causes pain, I'm not sure the affected patients are "oblivious". A spiral can start because they try to correct these issues with still more surgery. But I agree, prospective patients should read the fine print.

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