The Case Against Reality – Prof. Donald Hoffman on Conscious Agent Theory
January 9th, 2020Book: The Case Against Reality: How Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes by Donald D. Hoffman
Via: Zubin Damania:
American Dystopia: San Francisco in Decline
January 7th, 2020Via: Fox:
Iran Fires Rockets at Iraqi Bases Hosting American Soldiers
January 7th, 2020Update: Trump Says No U.S. Troops Hurt in Iran Strikes
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It might be a good idea to check your preparations for any interruptions in critical infrastructures, food and fuel delivery, or other emergencies.
While Iran is unable to directly engage the U.S. military in any substantial way, asymmetric warfare is another matter entirely. Electricity and Internet infrastructures in the U.S. are both delicate and undefended. Also, Iran could cause serious disruption to the transportation of oil and gas shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
Hang on…
Via: Reuters:
Iran launched a missile attack on U.S.-led forces in Iraq in the early hours of Wednesday, hours after the funeral of an Iranian commander whose killing in a U.S. drone strike has raised fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
Tehran fired more than a dozen ballistic missiles from Iranian territory against at least two Iraqi military bases hosting U.S.-led coalition personnel, the U.S. military said on Tuesday.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards confirmed that they fired the rockets in retaliation for last week’s killing of Qassem Soleimani, according to state TV.
“We are working on initial battle damage assessments,” Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement, adding that the bases targeted were al-Asad air base and another in Erbil, Iraq.
Sacramento: McDonald’s Blasts Bag Pipe Music in Attempt to Drive Homeless People Away
January 6th, 2020Via: CBS Sacramento:
People living in Midtown Sacramento are getting an earful from a nearby McDonald’s that’s blasting nonstop bagpipe music.
It’s supposed to keep the homeless away, but residents say it’s driving them crazy.
This story is not about music to the ears. CBS13 asked three managers about the bagpipe music blaring from loudspeakers and they replied, “What bagpipes?” The fast-food restaurant at Broadway and 24th is open 24/7, and some neighbors were moved to complain about the sound coming from its walls.
“The first couple of days they had it on 24/7. If we wouldn’t have said anything or reported it to the police, they would have had that thing going on still,” Arnold Phillips said.
Phillips lives across the street and says it’s making him crazy.
Military Contractors Raytheon, Lockheed Martin See Stock Prices Soar Amid Iran Crisis
January 6th, 2020Related: They Made a Killing: The Use of Knowledge of Covert Operations in the Stock Market
Via: Mint Press:
War. Motown singer Edwin Starr claimed it was nothing but a heartbreaker and good news only for the undertaker. But another group rubbing their hands at increased tensions with Iran are military contractors, who saw their stock prices soar at the increased chance of conflict.
Lockheed Martin, famous for its fighter planes, helicopters and missiles, saw its stock price spike to over $416, a jump of seven percent almost overnight. Other defense corporations like Raytheon and General Dynamics saw similar increases in their companies’ value. Meanwhile, Northrop Grumman saw a nine percent rise in its share price, as the stock market rushed to buy a piece of a highly profitable company.
Tonight’s Successful Starlink Mission Makes SpaceX the World’s Largest Satellite Operator, Was First U.S. Space Force Launch
January 6th, 2020I’ve recently come to think that Starlink’s core functionality is closely tied to U.S. intelligence and war fighting capabilities.
In case there was any doubt about this…
With regard to tonight’s successful Starlink launch, SpaceX not only became the world’s largest satellite operator, but the launch was the first to happen under the auspices of the U.S. Space Force:
The launch is the first sponsored under the new U.S. Space Force, which was signed into existence on Dec. 20 by President Donald Trump as the sixth branch of the armed forces.
Make sure to check out the first official launch of the U.S. Space Force! The live webcast will be available 15 minutes before liftoff! https://t.co/VIPDibtqkM
— United States Space Force (@SpaceForceDoD) January 7, 2020
Tomorrow at 9:19 p.m., the @SpaceX #Starlink launch is slated to become the 1st official launch of the @SpaceForceDoD!
The 45 WS has identified the cumulus cloud rule as the primary concern for the launch, however the probability of violating launch weather constraints is <10%! pic.twitter.com/kIlafhF3Yk
— 45th Space Wing (@45thSpaceWing) January 6, 2020
Wallbox Quasar Bidirectional Home DC Charger Will Turn EVs Into a Huge Tesla Powerwall
January 6th, 2020It’s absolutely bizarre that this didn’t happen years ago. Nissan was doing it in Japan on a limited basis, but it never took off. This Quasar unit is so much smaller than Nissan’s; maybe that will increase interest/demand.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t yet work with Tesla vehicles.
Via: Electrek:
Letter Written by U.S. Marine General Indicated American Forces Were About to Leave Iraq
January 6th, 2020What the hell is going on?
Via: Daily Mail:
Reports Monday that the U.S. would soon withdraw all its forces from Iraq were turned on their heads minutes later when U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper told reporters there were no plans to pull up stakes.
‘There’s been no decision whatsoever to leave Iraq, period,’ Esper said, adding that he and his staff were ‘trying to figure out’ the meaning of a letter signed by a brigadier general that suggested the opposite.
‘There are no plans to leave,’ he emphasized, suggesting discussion of a massive troop movement could be merely a signal that forces are being repositioned inside Iraq’s borders.
Separately, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley told reporters that the letter was ‘a draft. It was a mistake. It was unsigned. It should not have been released.’
The draft was ‘poorly worded’ and ‘implies withdrawal. That is not what’s happening,’ Milley declared.
The U.S. military had appeared to inform Baghdad that it was preparing for ‘movement out of Iraq,’ a day after the Iraqi parliament urged the government in a non-binding resolution to oust foreign troops.
The head of the Pentagon task force in Iraq, Brigadier General William Seely, sent a draft letter to the head of Iraq’s joint operations command.
‘Sir, in deference to the sovereignty of the Republic of Iraq, and as requested by the Iraqi Parliament and the Prime Minister, [the coalition] will be repositioning forces over the course of the coming days and weeks to prepare for onward movement,’ Seely wrote. He added: ‘We respect your sovereign decision to order our departure.’
President Donald Trump said Sunday aboard Air Force One that troops would not leave Iraq unless the country compensated the U.S. for the costs associated with building and maintaining military facilities there.
‘We have a very extraordinarily expensive air base that’s there. It cost billions of dollars to build. Long before my time,’ he said. ‘We’re not leaving unless they pay us back for it.’
Trump also said he would punish Baghdad economically if U.S. troops were evicted.
‘We will charge them sanctions like they’ve never seen before ever. It’ll make Iranian sanctions look somewhat tame,’ he warned.
Workplace Lockdown and Surveillance with Biometric Technologies
January 6th, 2020Via: Wall Street Journal:
Plastic cards may soon give way to biometric systems, microchip implants, gait recognition and other technologies that aim to improve security, generate health data and monitor workers.
For Tech-Weary Midwest Farmers, 40-Year-Old Tractors Now a Hot Commodity
January 6th, 2020Via: Star Tribune:
Kris Folland grows corn, wheat and soybeans and raises cattle on 2,000 acres near Halma in the northwest corner of Minnesota, so his operation is far from small. But when he last bought a new tractor, he opted for an old one — a 1979 John Deere 4440.
He retrofitted it with automatic steering guided by satellite, and he and his kids can use the tractor to feed cows, plant fields and run a grain auger. The best thing? The tractor cost $18,000, compared to upward of $150,000 for a new tractor. And Folland doesn’t need a computer to repair it.
“This is still a really good tractor,” said Folland, who owns two other tractors built before 1982.
“They cost a fraction of the price, and then the operating costs are much less because they’re so much easier to fix,” he said.
Tractors manufactured in the late 1970s and 1980s are some of the hottest items in farm auctions across the Midwest these days — and it’s not because they’re antiques.
Cost-conscious farmers are looking for bargains, and tractors from that era are well-built and totally functional, and aren’t as complicated or expensive to repair as more recent models that run on sophisticated software.
