Category Archives: Culture

The Broken Mirror

Culture, Media

Two events in the last 48 hours make it clear, the motto for the MAGA-verse should be, “Don’t watch what we say, watch what we say!”  (No, that is not a typo.)

Event #1:  A remote segment during Friday night’s edition of Jimmy Kimmel Live consisting of interviews with three South Carolina Trump supporters.  Here are excerpts from “Debate and Switch.”  The interview starts by asking each if they would mind if she asks them about things that Joe Biden has said or done.

Interviewer:  What did you think when Joe Biden suggested that Covid could be cured by shining a bright light inside the body?
Trumpster #1:  It is very sad that Joe Biden is clearly a dementia patient.
Interviewer:  I’m so sorry.  I got my notes mixed up.  Can we start all over?
Trumpster #1: Okay.
Interviewer:  What did you think when Donald Trump suggested that Covid could be cured by shining a bright light inside the body?
Trumpster #1:  It depends on what that technology is.

Interviewer:  There are accusations Joe Biden cheated on his wife with a porn star after his son was born, and there’s actually a paper trail showing he paid the sex worker $130,000 to keep quiet about it.
Trumpster #2:   Who did that?  Joe Biden?
Interviewer:  Joe Biden.
Trumpster #2:  And he was making less than $100,000 a year at that time as a senator.  How does he do that?
Interviewer: You tell me.  Would you vote for someone who did that?
Trumpster #2:  Of course not.
Interviewer.  So Trump did do that.
Trumpster #2:  Trump had a fling with Stormy Daniels.
Interviewer:  And paid her $130,000.
Trumpster #2:  And paid her hush money.
Interviewer:  Yes, and you’re voting for him.
Trumpster #2:  I am.  My father had affairs too and I still respect him.

Interviewer:  How do you feel about Joe Biden using bone spurs to dodge the Vietnam draft?
Trumpster #3:  Joe Biden has a problem.  He isn’t an American.  He isn’t a patriot.
Interviewer:  I’m sorry, I asked you about Biden but I meant Trump.  Can I ask you the question again?
Trumpster #3:  Yes you may.
Interviewer:  How do you feel about Donald Trump using his bone spurs to dodge the Vietnam draft?
Trumpster #3:  My brother-in-law had flat feet. I’m sure you cannot go into a military zone like Vietnam with bad feet.  You just can’t do the job.  And it actually impacts the other soldiers.

To be fair, the Kimmel staffer could have spent days working on this project in order to find these three “gems.”  As we know, there are also a few nuts in every box of Cracker Jacks, even ones who would give permission for this footage to be aired on late night television.  Posthumous kudos to Andy Warhol.  It’s amazing what people will do for one minute, much less 15 minutes of fame.

Event #2:  The South Carolina GOP Primary.  Surely, most Palmetto State Trump supporters could not be this unaware.  If only there was a way to prove it.  As legendary sports reporter Warner Wolf would say, “Let’s go to the video tape.”  In this case it is National Election Pool (NEP) exit polls from yesterday’s South Carolina GOP primary.  When voters were asked about the condition of the national economy, 16 percent said it was “Good,” and 84 percent said it was “Not Good.”  They were then asked about their “family’s financial situation.”  The envelope please.

Getting Ahead/22 percent
Holding Steady/60 percent
Falling Behind/16 percent

Really?  Eight-two percent of South Carolina GOP voters are doing okay or better and yet 84 percent think the national economy is in the proverbial dumpster.  Not to mention every indicator of national economic health is performing at a record pace or trending in that direction.

This morning, not a single major newspaper or media outlet reported anything about this case of cognitive dissonance from the NEP polls.  I had to go back to last night’s MSNBC’s election night coverage to find where it appeared once on the crawl at the bottom of the screen.  None of the MSNBC commentators mentioned it during the broadcast.

This does not happen by accident.  No one wakes up one morning and says, “You know, the economy sucks but my family situation is pretty good.”  Those conclusions come from different sources.  You understand your personal financial condition through everyday experiences.  You know when you can and cannot pay the bills, even if inflation is above the target set by the Federal Reserve Bank.

Information about the national economy is provided by outsiders.  And your outside sources are a matter of choice.  I am sure if you asked the 84 percent who think the economy is “not good” where they get their news, a significant majority would be Fox News and Fox Business viewers.  I do not expect the Murdoch media empire to address this “I’m fine but…” anomaly.  Surely, someone in the “liberal press” noticed South Carolina voters were speaking out of both sides of their mouths.  Yet, they said nothing.

Is this going to convert die-hard MAGA voters?  Of course not.  But 2024 is not just about saving America from Donald Trump.  It is also a campaign to expose the irrationality underpinning the MAGA movement.  Certainly, there is someone out there who saw the Kimmel segment and thought, “I’m not that crazy, am I?”  More importantly, they should not have to depend on a late night talk show host or a Sunday morning blogger to point this out.

POSTSCRIPT

I rarely defend Donald Trump.  But unlike MAGA world which believes Fox News, NewsMax and OANN can do no wrong, journalistic integrity is important no matter the source.  Last night, Lawrence O’Donnell, who should know better, echoed a story going around that Trump called his wife “Mercedes” during Saturday’s speech at CPAC.  To be fair, Trump was lying about how supportive Melania has been despite the fact she has not been with him in court or on the campaign trail.  Of course, the lemmings in the audience applauded loudly.  Then Trump turned slightly to his left and said, “Mercedes, how about that?”  Even I know that the wife of CPAC president Matt Schlapp and Trump’s second White House Director of Communications is (drum roll) “Mercedes Schlapp.”  And chances were pretty good she was sitting in the front row during Trump’s speech.

I have no doubt there will be a Trump or MAGA PAC ad in which they talk about “how desperate the liberal press is.”  And O’Donnell and others handed him the ammunition to credibly do exactly that. 

Never has this Nate Silver quote been more relevant.  “Distinguishing the signal from the noise requires both scientific knowledge and self-knowledge.”

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

OPENAIheimer

Culture, Random Thoughts

[NOTE: The best way NOT to get my thoughts on a subject is to identify a topic and say, “You need to write about this.”  In most cases, the seed of a specific post comes from a personal discussion with friend or former colleague.  Then, something that emerges during the course of that conversation suggests a need for a deeper dive into the subject matter.  Or, in the case of today’s topic, my reaction to the issue under consideration is, “Where have I seen or heard this before?”]

For the past couple of days, I had a totally unrelated conversation with a long time mentor and friend about the importance of the humanities as part of a well-rounded education.  He asked my thoughts about how the humanities program at his alma mater might engage students in the STEM disciplines with the goal of helping them appreciate the value of literature, art and philosophy and their relevance to their career aspirations.  Knowing his affinity for the “Socratic method” of teaching, I was reminded of a PBS program (1977-81) called, “Steve Allen’s Meeting of Minds.”  For each episode, Allen cast an ensemble of actors to portray famous figures from the past such as Plato, Marie Antoinette, Martin Luther, Charles Darwin, and Catherine the Great.  The content consisted of a largely scripted conversation in which each opined about a current topic from their own historical perspective.

I suggested the university might revive this format as part of a series of seminars open to all students regardless of major.  I then asked ChatGPT to create a sample of what the script my look like.  “Create a dialogue between Edmond Burke, Thomas Paine and Machiavelli.”  And it did with Burke setting the stage.

Good evening, gentlemen. What an intriguing gathering we have here: the advocate of conservatism, the champion of revolution, and the pragmatist of power.

My friend responded with the following email which focused more on my use of ChatGPT than the content it generated.

BEYOND BELIEF!
A real challenge going forward!

To which I replied:

It is no coincidence that the emergence of AI should come at the same time as “Oppenheimer.”  Hopefully, we learned a lesson about the benefits and risks of technology from Einstein and Oppenheimer.  Though I doubt it.

My friend is not one to let me off so easily.  He came back with:

Ironically, we (referring to himself and his wife) just watched it, ending just 10 minutes ago, with very interesting observations from her.
Neither of you were witness to VJ Day!
However, no use of nuclear weapons since that fateful day!

The debate was afoot.  The following is an edited, expanded version of my next email about the perceived connection between the emergence of readily available artificial intelligence in the form of Open AI and a movie about the birth of nuclear warfare.

First, I wanted to correct the record.  I wondered if my friend assumed that I thought the decision to use atomic weapons to bring a quicker end to World War II was a mistake.  If you have read my book on the creative process, you would know I believe there is no such thing as a bad decision.  The outcome and long-term consequences of the decision may not be what we hoped for,  but at the time and circumstances under which the decision was made, it was not wrong.

What I find hard to believe, in hindsight, is that nobody, even as the Enola Gay took off from North Field in the Mariana Islands, asked the question, “What do we need to do on day one after Japan surrendered to ensure that this threat to humanity is properly managed?”  Especially, since they had to know Russia or someone else would master the technology to create their own bomb.

You might argue winning the war was such a priority, no one had time to consider what comes next.  But another situation in the exact same time period tells us that did not have to be the case.  Consider the almost immediate response to stabilize Western Europe after Germany’s surrender.  In 1947, Secretary of State George C. Marshall outlined what would become known as the Marshall Plan, authorized with passage of the Economic Cooperation Act of 1948.  Economic distress in Europe post-World War I was a major factor in Hitler’s rise to power.  The United States was determined to make sure that environment was not recreated after the Nazi defeat.

What’s more, the Western allies recognized there needed to be a credible deterrent to discourage future efforts by Germany or the Soviet Union to annex territory as Hitler did in Austria and Czechoslovakia.  The groundwork was laid by Great Britain and France with the Treaty of Dunkirk in March 1947,  The March 1948 Treaty of Brussels expanded the mutual assistance pact to include the Benelux nations.  The February 1948 communist coup d’état in Czechoslovakia became the catalyst for the establishment of NATO with the U.S. and Canada as members in April 1949.

From watching the movie about his life, one could contend Robert Oppenheimer was a visionary in the same mold as Marshall.  He knew what he created and the long-term dangers of an arms race.  His warning went unheeded.  The U.S. and other nuclear powers waited until 1968, 23 years after the wartime use of atomic weapons, to sign a nuclear proliferation treaty.  By then the genie was already out of the bottle.  Introspection about the estimated civilians who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, even if justified from a military perspective, should have raised moral questions about “what next” to preempt or at least temper a multi-national nuclear arms race.

Should we not be asking those exact questions with the emergence of artificial intelligence?  Or, are we going to wait until AI produces some devastating outcome before we have mechanisms to manage its constructive use, potential benefits and unimagined dangers?

For what it’s worth.
Dr.  ESP

In Case You Forgot

Culture, Sports

Every Super Bowl has a back story.  Sometimes, that behind the scenes drama is so compelling, the event is referred to by a nickname.  When brothers Jim and John, head coaches of the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens, respectively, faced off in Super Bowl XLVII (2013) it was tagged “the Harbaugh Bowl.”  And each annual contest between the NFL’s best is memorialized in a single image.  Last night’s game was no exception.

Welcome to the “Nepo Baby Bowl.” For those unfamiliar with the term, it refers to celebrities who are born to famous parents with similar careers.  Among the most famous is Gwyneth Paltrow, daughter of actress Blythe Danner and director/producer Bruce Paltrow.  Or Martin Sheen’s sons, Charlie and Emilio Estevez.  The field during Super Bowl LVIII was littered (pun intended) with nepo babies.

  • Eventual MVP Patrick Mahomes is the offspring of former New York Mets pitcher Pat Mahomes.
  • 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey learned the game from his father Ed, who was an All-American receiver at Stanford University and spent 13 seasons in the NFL including three Super Bowl championships.
  • And of course, there is 49er head coach Kyle Shanahan who is following in his father Mike’s footsteps.  Among the storylines for Sunday’s game was, “Would this be the day when son Kyle joins his dad as head coach of a Super Bowl champion?”

But, as Arlo Guthrie would say, that’s not what I came here to talk about.  Instead, I want to go back to the defining image during last night’s broadcast.  If the game itself was of primary interest, the outcome might be captured by one of three photographs.  For some, it was the moment Chiefs linebacker Leo Chenal blocked Jake Moody’s extra point.  Or when a punt inadvertently struck 49er Darrel Luter’s foot which led to a Chiefs touchdown on the next play. Or Mahomes’ three-yard touchdown pass in overtime to relatively unknown Mecole Hardman which sealed the Chiefs’ victory.

Maybe you tuned in for the entertainment provided by a host of performers before the game and culminating in Usher’s halftime performance, a soul and rap montage, reminiscent of an earlier time when Dick Clark would tour the United States with his “Caravan of Stars.”  For the record, I find the halftime extravaganza, regardless who headlines the performance, a great opportunity to start solving the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle.  To the chagrin of 49er fans, once again, the extended mid-game break turned out to be a momentum changer.

Finally, no discussion of Super Bowl LVIII would be complete without a reference to Tay-Tay and Kel-Kel.  For those who bet on the over/under, during the game, Taylor Swift appeared on-screen 12 times for a total of 53 seconds.  But the main event was the couple’s on-field reunion after the trophy ceremony.

Even Joe Biden’s deep state could not have pulled off such a complete American experience, though he trolled the MAGA/QAnon snowflakes with the Tweet, “Just like we drew it up.”  But the moment and image that truly represented the America we so often think is in the rearview mirror occurred before the kickoff.  It was a brief shot of Chief’s defensive tackle Chris Jones during Reba McIntyre’s rendition of The Star Spangled Banner (below).

Jones is no “nepo baby.”  He was born in Houston, Mississippi, the son of a furniture factory worker.  According to his profile on the Chiefs’ website, when Jones was in the fourth grade, his father was jailed for nearly a decade after a DUI arrest.  Despite the odds, Jones proved his football credentials first at Houston High School, then Mississippi State University and as a second-round draft choice of the Kansas City Chiefs.

One can only imagine the pent-up emotions which produced that tear.  Having made his mother and father proud.  Gratitude to those who contributed to his development as a football player and a selfless member of his community.  Remembering the bedroom at his grandmother’s home he shared with 10 other family members while he was in high school.  Or the physical contrast between Allegiant Stadium and his humble surroundings as a child.

At a time when so many Americans question whether the United States is still the land of opportunity, ask Chris Jones.  Recalling his own journey, he would likely echo comedian Yakov Smirnoff’s tag line, “Is this a great country or what?”

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

 

Deprog101 Challenge #1

Culture

[Blogger’s NOTE:  The latest Quinnipiac poll, in which Joe Biden jumped to a six point lead (50-44) is evidence Donald Trump is stuck at a ceiling in the mid-40s while Biden’s previous lows were a floor.  Additionally, Trump’s behavior in and out of the courtroom has alienated women and independents increasing Biden’s margin among these all important constituencies.  Based on this trend, I thought it might be time to take a break and explore the less serious side of the current political discourse.]

Back in the days of young adult mystery series such as Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, there were also the tales of an adventurous young scientist whose stories involved space ships, ray guns and other futuristic inventions.  An endearing feature of the Tom Swift novels was author Victor Appleton’s use of adverbs or synonyms for the word “said” to enhance the characters’ dialogue.  A terse response might include the phrase, “Tom said quickly.”  Or when he hesitated, Appleton would add, “Tom stammered.”

In response, fans of Appleton’s work created a parlor game which became known as “Tom Swifties.”  The goal was to emulate the author’s style with the addition of a pun.  The following is the oft-cited classic example.

“If you want me, I shall be in the attic,” Tom said loftily.

Tom Swifties gained popularity following a May 13, 1963 article in Time magazine which included a contest where readers were encouraged to share their own creations.  Below are a couple of my all-time favorites.

“What our team needs is a home run hitter,” Tom said ruthlessly.

“We just struck oil,” Tom gushed.

Based on the GOP’s obsession with another Swift, I wondered if it might be time to revive the pastime, this time under the banner “Taylor Swifties.”  Consider the following examples.

“I think it’s time to put Senator Grassley from Iowa out to pasture,” Taylor chuckled.

“I’ll take my fans over his supporters any day of the year,” Taylor trumpeted.

“I’m pretty sure there is a deep state conspiracy behind the Chiefs’ Super Bowl run, although I have no evidence,” PizzaGate theorist Jack Posbiec  fumbled.

To enter the Deprog101 Challenge #1, submit your “Taylor Swifties” as comments to this post.  “The winner will receive a free life-time subscription to this blog,” Dr. ESP said frugally.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

Patriot Games

Culture

Wake up, Maggie, I think I got somethin’ to say to youIt’s late September and I really should be back at school.

~Rod Steward/”Maggie May”

Following the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by election deniers, there has been a push for civics to be taught at every education level from kindergarten to college.  Ironically, the movement has been led by some of the same people who supported efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.  As reported by the New York Times last November, the governors of Florida, South Dakota and Virginia are at the forefront of this movement.  Implementation of their stated goal is even more problematic.  Though supporters of the new standards claim they hope to make instruction less ideological, the Times reports the curriculum reflects conservative positions and values.

Though I often write about things I know little about, I do believe my three degrees in American Government (B.A. from UVA) and Political Science (M.A. and Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins) afford me the right to weigh in on this topic.  The curriculum at both universities focused on process.  What authority does the Constitution give each branch of government?  Which decisions are reserved for the federal government and which for the states?  How have Supreme Court decisions from Marbury v. Madison to Nixon (1803) v. United States (1974) added flesh to the framework adopted in 1789?  And finally, in times of crisis, how has that framework ensured preservation of the founders’ vision and ideals for America and when has it failed?

Implementation of Florida’s newly adopted curriculum appears to be going in a different direction.  The state Department of Education turned to two conservative entities to develop the workshop in which Florida teachers are trained to deliver the revised standards.  Hillsdale College, a private conservative liberal arts college in Michigan whose general counsel Ian Norton helped plan the fake electors scheme in his home state.  And the Bill of Rights Institute founder by major Republican donor Charles Koch.  One example of the their impact on the curriculum is promoting an “originalist” view of the U.S. constitution with no mention of the opposing philosophy of a “living constitution” which argues the document must evolve in response to societal change.

Whenever Governor Ron DeSantis talks about the need for civics education he uses the word “patriots” instead of “citizens.”  Interesting, because the Constitution defines who is and who is not a citizen under the 14th Amendment, Section 1.1.2 referred to as the “Citizenship Clause Doctrine.”  The words “patriot” and “patriotism” do not appear anywhere in the original document or any of the amendments.  Why?  Because patriotism is subjective, as we learned on January 6, 2021.  For some the patriots that day where law enforcement officers who ensured Congress could carry out its responsibility to count the electoral vote.  For others, the “patriots” were those who breached the Capitol walls in an attempt to overturn a free and fair election.

But let me end on a positive note.  In the previous blog “The Lady Doth Protest Too Much,” I described my own experience attending segregated schools in Richmond, Virginia.  At the time, Black students could only attend Maggie L. Walker High School, named for the first African-American woman to found and serve as president of a United States chartered bank.  Founded in 1937, the school closed in 1990.  The renovated building reopened in 2001 as the Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies devoted to a mission that:

…will develop life-long learners who embrace the responsibility of citizenship, the value of ethical leadership, and the richness of diverse cultures.

A picture of the current student population suggests American education can promote both solid citizenship and diversity.

In August 2014, Maggie Walker Governor’s School was ranked by Newsweek as the 12th best public high school in the U.S.  In 2023, their position rose to #8.  In 2022, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin supported legislation that would prohibit admissions policies used to promote diversity at Maggie Walker and other Governor’s Schools across the state.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP