iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

So sometimes I think that the US managed an imperfect but better trajectory from 50's until recently because the decisions were being made by people who had actually smelled the death camps.

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A number of years ago I spotted a video of my father's boss speaking at some community event after his retirement talking about his war years. (Can't find it anymore, alas.) When asked about what stuck in his memory... He paused and almost broke. "The smell" he said. "Sometimes I still smell it."

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My father worked for the military his whole career. One of his high level general bosses had been a young officer commanding a tank platoon that liberated one of the camps. He was a standard righty guy, in my memory of him Similar to my father, who also had similar experiences in the war.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Again. I don't feel I have a dog in this hunt. But I will say - processing power and decision trees (intelligence?) isn't my test. My test is more: Are these intelligences happening in a way similar to how millions of years of evolution weaved physical senses and emotions into the processes?

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As a walker in Copenhagen I frequently found myself squeezed into tiny tiny spaces so these bad design ideas could claim too much of the public-way width. I also found the bicyclist population often hyper-agressive towards peds.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

You are up high on a two wheeled balanced vehicle, potentially traveling at a high speed. Everybody should have a helmet. Europe also taxes at a cool percentage of GDP - But with a sickeningly insufficient level of progressivity. Don't celebrate what Europe gets dead wrong.

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As I stopped car in driveway and opened the door, she greeted me with snorts, smiles and a dancing wiggling butt. If I was at a bar, after third beer, and anybody tried to over-anthropomorphize AI more than I over-anthropomorphize my dog... Fisticuffs.

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Well. Maybe I should admit to a bit of a dog in this fight. I just drove up to my home and my dog was in the yard. She recognized the sound and model of my car as I approached from a distance and started zoomy running around the yard.

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In general, as a person without a dog in this fight, they seem to.

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For Halloween I’m dressing as a Stochastic Parrot to answer the door and hand out candy. The kids will love it.

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She also makes standard error of describing Gideon's loss as big. We have RCV. The vast majority of the votes to other candidates were to candidates left of Gideon. Therefore Collins margin of victory was really more like 1%, if 2nd 3rd choices had been counted.

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Overall vibe better characterized by polite applause and nodding at "kitchen table" and "affordability" issues - Wild applause twice - Once for Troy's "Ban ICE." Another for a person in audience who encouraged Troy and his campaign to highlight how much Maine loves its immigrant population.

The article is fair enough, I guess. I was at Gorham town hall mentioned. She gets the overall vibe wrong by highlighting a momentarily quieter crowd at Gaza answer that she characterizes as word salad. It was a measured reply that got a measured response on a very very difficult issue.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

So then, the headline writer doesn't have to read the article, apparently? The article is fair enough, I guess. I was at the Gorham town hall she mentioned and she gets the overall vibe wrong by highlighting a quieter crowd at Gaza answer that she characterizes as word salad.

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For Halloween I’m dressing as a Stochastic Parrot to answer the door and hand out candy. The kids will love it.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

This is the one post of yours I agree with. You are failing that test.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

I also suspect you might be underestimating the harm for close Senate races not in those state (Maine, NH) of voters there seeing an obvious green light given to these folks by national level (D) leadership.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

But also not helping, you say. So why go out of your way to go the amoral route? Unless you are amoral... Then you create the danger of a few of your supporters having that light bulb turn on before they vote (or don't.)

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

新世紀 Is sort of ‘chronicle of the new generation.’ Combine that with Evangelion that sounds like Evangelist… I do love the way Japanese and Chinese play games with their writing system.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

機動戦士 One of my retirement activities is relearning my Kanji from 40 years ago. I'm not sure why the translator uses "Mobile Suit" When "Mechanized Warrior" looks closer - and sure sound cooler in English.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Better my man. Now add "Be really really pro-trans" to this and we are on to something.

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Ken O'Brien @kob22225.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I don't think you are a bigot. I think you are standard crappy human who thinks stomping on certain vulnerable people in a way you think you can control once you have control, warrants stomping on them.

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I believe all data and outcomes of recent years say that unambiguous support of trans issues is part of being a winner this year.... EVERYWHERE. How about you try the same? I assume by your behavior that you do not agree. Say that. Then Parker Erin and you could have a substantive conversation.

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Also, if you spent 1/10 the energy you now spend brow-beating trans people who say they may withhold their vote, encouraging (D) candidates and voters EVERYWHERE to be more pro trans because that IS the moral and PRACTICAL winning behavior this cycle, you might not find yourself such a target.

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I think it is more important - to this end - for people like you to stop going out of your way to alienate large hunks of trans community. Recognize and acknowledge you don't live at the sharp end of this particular stick. Show some sympathy for the nature of their individual choice.

Your behavior and words have been as far from encouraging VBNMW by trans community as they can be. I assume you are up to something different here. Motivating what you see as the larger voting block of people who dis-like or are creeped out by trans people perhaps? Or just look-at-me performance?

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So you are going to wiggle out of calling it a cult a couple days ago -then blame me and others for somehow misinterpreting what you _really_ meant when you did that?

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My logical conclusion, watching the way you are handling this, is that you are performative trans-punching. Not that you are a transphobe. But that you are trying to shore up a vaguish (D) party effort that appeals to transphobes and fencing sitting near-transphobes.

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Not for the trans folk of my acquaintance.

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And this is just pissy baby stuff calling this "just a lie." Schumer did not and Jeffries didn't until 122 days after Mamdani won The-Democrati-Party-Primary and just days before general.

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Most recently, Talarico broke it out just Male/Female/genetic abnormalities. A number of others candidates have gone out of their way to use the phrase 'biological male' for trans women.

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It is not "completely false." Many on both sides are using talking points that imply or plainly state trans people don't exist. Minimizing the danger that kind of rhetoric represents for vulnerable people is not going to win you the friends you should want to win.

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Telling vulnerable people that their legitimate concerns about candidate statements makes them part of a cult - and minimizing the nature and implication of those statements by characterizing them as merely "flaky" wins you no friends... Or perhaps wins you a few friends you shouldn't want.

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As can I. Supporting trans folks loses little or nothing -anywhere. Making this part of a consistent values-based effort in the face of white supremacists , fascists, and hatefulness, motivates.

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I think all (D) candidates all over the country loudly supporting trans people is the route to stopping that. You do not, obviously. I wonder why?

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Holy shit. I'm clear. Supporting trans people is part of that. You are the one being obtuse by not saying that you don't think that LOUDLY supporting trans people should be part of that.

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And supporting trans folk with no ambiguity would be part of that.