Issues that should be addressed in the election, but are being ignored

 

Coyote Blog has been published since 2004 by Warren Meyer, making it even older than this blog (which I began in January 2008).  It's been an interesting and thought-provoking read for most of that time.

In his latest article, Mr. Meyer addresses "Six Meta Problems That Should Be Issues in the Election, But Are Not".  It's a lengthy piece, but well worth the time for those interested in analyzing what our leaders should be addressing, but for various reasons are not.  He identifies these six issues:

1. The US Federal budget deficit, source of inflation, high mortgage rates, and even the trade deficit;
2. Federal Reserve Policy, which has created the recent K-shaped binodal prosperity profile;
3. K-5 public education, which has hurt everyone but particularly people of color;
4. Conflation of race with culture, which hinders discourse on everything from immigration to education;
5. Complete misunderstanding about how political power works;
6. Special Bonus Meta Issue: Wars of choice.

I can't possibly do an excerpt incorporating all of those elements, so I recommend (highly!) that you click over there to read them for yourselves.  To whet your appetite, here are the author's thoughts on public education.  Emphasis in bold print is mine.

If there is a true example of systemic racism in this country it is the crime against black children perpetrated by the public k-12 education system, and probably in K-5 (once kids get to 6th grade without reading or math they are likely never going to recover).  There has been no worse crime committed against African Americans in this country since Jim Crow.   And the craziest part is that some of the worst examples are in cities with all-black mayors, city council, and school board members.

Take the example of East St Louis.  Here is the school board in E. St Louis -- not many proud boys there.   East St Louis spends over $25,000 per student and has a 12:1 teacher ratio  (the national average is about $18,000 per pupil and 14:1).    Teachers earn beetween $70,000 and $80,000 a year before benefits for about 9 months a year of work.  The student body is 96% black and US News report that in E. St Louis  "4% of high school students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 7% tested at or above that level for math."  Well no surprise that Blacks are struggling when freaking 96% of them graduate from public school systems like this without being able to read.  This is a f*cking crime, and it has nothing to do with white leadership or funding.

This has to be fixed, but in large part the various governments in this country have focused on working hard to NOT fix it.  That is because every time there is a standardized test that points out this failure to educate black children well, it is first dumbed- down, and then made optional, and then eliminated.  Which is insane – its like deciding that the solution to too many cancer diagnoses in some particular area is to stop testing for cancer.

Politicians are often susceptible to cargo-cult thinking and nowhere is this more obvious than in education.  At some point years ago politicians looked at successful people and noticed that successful people typically had college degrees.  Most of us would have said, “Sure, that is because a college degree means they have gained some knowledge, demonstrated critical thinking, can write and do math at some minimum level, can be focused and complete tasks responsibly, and have dedicated themselves to achieving difficult goals over long periods of time.

But politicians don’t think this way – they are not very good at parsing cause and effect.  So if successful people have college degrees, they figured that if we handed out lots more college degrees then there will be more successful people.  But since the K-12 education system could not produce enough qualified people to get into college, then standards had to be lowered, testing requirements eliminated, and high school grades inflated.  To help unprepared folks graduate, new majors with absurdly low standards were invented, grades were inflated and use of AI was winked at.  Not surprisingly, none of this has helped black well-being very much.  All the college DEI and affirmative action in the world is not going to help most black kids because it is 10 years too late -- they were failed by the system way back in K-5.

To complete the sad irony, the very traits that contribute to prosperity and for which college degrees were a proxy – hard work, focus on long term goals, critical thinking, discipline, deferring gratification – have now been labeled by supposed “supporters” of the Black cause as representing whiteness and to be avoided as racist.  Had the KKK come up with a plan to screw the black race in this country, I don’t think they could have done a better job.

Unfortunately, change is difficult since the teacher's unions have an iron grip on public education and many blue state politicians who owe their elections to union cash and get-out-the-vote manpower.  All the extra money we have poured into public education over the last 20-30 years, and there has been billions of it, has mostly been captured by public school employees, both teachers and especially the growing cadre of administrators.  The only possible way is to break the monopoly -- a monopoly far more destructive than companies like Comcast Cable ever were -- is with school choice.  Parents have got to be empowered to move their kids out of the failing monopoly schools.  As a bonus, school choice would quiet the culture war in that parents who want their kids taught there are 53 genders or just 2 can find appropriate schools for their children.

There's much more at the link.

I don't always agree with Mr. Meyer on everything, but in this article, I think he's hit several home runs.  I doubt our current crop of ideologically blinkered politicians will benefit from it, but nevertheless, go read the whole thing.  If enough of us make enough noise about these things, perhaps we can begin to change the calcified channels of politics . . .

Peter

Listen for the still, small voice

 

As the mid-term elections draw near, the political turmoil around the world is being reflected in our own national politics.  There's order, counter-order and disorder;  there are threats and counter-threats;  there's propaganda and publicity material out the wazoo.  Sometimes it's hard to think straight, what with all the noise about the past, and the present, and the future.

Speaking as a Christian, I think it's very important for us to understand that the wisdom of God is not to be found in the midst of all this shouting and tumult.

The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

(1 Kings 19:11-13)

Ignore the political winds, and earthquakes, and fires.  For we who believe (and even for those who don't, for that matter), God is still in his heaven and is still in command of all that is.  It's his voice we need to heed, not the screeches and cacophony of those who love their own voices too much.

Peter

When "concealed" firearms carry isn't

 

Last weekend Tom's Hardware, a well-known information technology Web site, informed its readers that WiFi technology can now detect a concealed firearm, even if it isn't visible in any way.

The full system comprises a Wi-Fi transmitter, a Wi-Fi receiver, and the WiFireNet AI.

When ordinary Wi-Fi signals encounter an object in their path, they penetrate and bounce off in ways specific to that object, based on its shape, orientation, and material. This data, the channel state information, can be analyzed to identify the object with high accuracy. Security researchers previously disclosed a technique that lets ordinary Wi-Fi routers identify people with 99.5% accuracy.

. . .

After training, the final AI system, WiFireNet, could detect concealed handguns solely based on Wi-Fi CSI, with varying accuracy. In controlled trials tracking up to four moving individuals in a small indoor space, the system achieved an average handgun-detection precision of 72.5%. However, under stricter localization requirements, such as pinpointing the weapon’s exact location on the carrier, precision dropped to 53.8%. The neural network also struggles to perform accurately in unfamiliar, untested indoor layouts.

That said, the system is still experimental, with a roadmap of planned improvements.

There's more at the link.

There have been previous claims that other systems can do the same, but as far as I'm aware, none of them have been as rigorously tested as this new development.  We should assume that such systems are more likely than not to be deployed at any place where security requirements are likely to be high all, or some, of the time (e.g. law enforcement agency offices, arenas and other public performance centers where high-profile figures may be speaking or in attendance, etc.)  It's likely that as such systems become more affordable and more widespread, they'll be deployed at sports venues, cinemas, hotels and other sites as well.

We may find more and more regulations in public places, or in private venues that impose restrictions upon those using them, that if a concealed firearm is detected, we may be denied entrance unless we can demonstrate a good reason why we need to be armed there.  The Second Amendment and/or preparedness to defend ourselves against crime are not likely to be acceptable reasons.  If we advance them, we're likely to be labeled as right-wing extremists, kooks, or paranoid survivalists.

In that light, David Codrea asks:

With no reasonable expectation of privacy in public places, technologies employing CCTV cameras, facial recognition, license plate scanners and the like generally don’t cross a “plain view” legal threshold, although there’s movement to reconsider how much is allowable, especially when surveillance becomes prolonged for tracking purposes.

But what if it’s a real bad guy? Since when has requiring you and I to be disarmed done anything but give predators the advantage?

Naturally, those intent on controlling not just guns but  their fellow man, will be all for expanding the surveillance state if they can seize the power to do it. What laws to do that can we expect them to enact, and how will the courts react to challenges, especially if Democrats win the midterms , then take over in ’28, and start reshaping the Supreme Court to reverse Bruen, McDonald, Heller, and more?

Good questions!

I can see a market emerging for a sort of pouch or flat box, that can be carried inside a jacket or handbag.  It would be made out of, or lined with, X-ray-proof material, similar to the pouches made to protect exposed photographic film when traveling by air;  they prevent the undeveloped film from being blackened by security X-rays.  I presume that such material will also work against WiFi signals - can anyone confirm, please?  If not, one could add another layer of anti-static and/or or RFID-blocking material to the container.  Working together, they may protect what's inside against detection, offering a way to conceal a gun even in the face of such intrusive security measures.  It won't be ideal, being slower to get to than a simple holstered firearm, but it'll be a heck of a lot better than nothing for those of us who value our personal security and that of our families.

Peter

Why France's "progress" threatens to derail America

 

Brivael Le Pogam is a French entrepreneur and co-founder of a Paris-based artificial intelligence video generation platform.  He's in the middle of the social and cultural turmoil that's currently destabilizing France from within, and writes in two posts on X that it's a lesson from which we should learn.  I'm going to publish his remarks in full, as I think they're very relevant.

His first post describes how bad the situation in France really is.

I’m French. I want to talk to Americans who are about to vote Democrat. Not to insult you. To warn you.

I come from your future.

In France we did everything your progressive politicians promise. Free healthcare, free college, generous welfare, strong unions, heavy regulation, high taxes on the rich, a state that takes care of everything. Public spending close to 57% of GDP, one of the highest on the planet. On paper, it’s the dream.

Here’s what it looks like from the inside. France hasn’t passed a balanced budget since 1974. Our debt is above 3,300 billion euros. Interest on that debt is becoming one of the biggest items in the national budget. Our hospitals are collapsing despite record funding. Our schools rank lower every year. Young people with degrees can’t afford an apartment in the city they were born in. Our best engineers leave for London, Zurich and San Francisco. And the rich you wanted to tax? They left too, and took the jobs with them.

The promise was protection. The result is stagnation.

The worst part is that nobody in France voted for decline. Every single step sounded generous, compassionate, reasonable. One more program. One more regulation. One more tax to fund it. Each step alone makes sense. Fifty years of them, and you wake up in a country that can no longer build a nuclear plant on time or keep its streets safe.

I love America because it’s the one place on earth where people still believe they can build something from nothing. I came to Silicon Valley as a self-taught kid and it changed my life. That spirit is the most precious thing your country has.

Before you vote, ask yourself one question: is the program you’re voting for making America more like America, or more like France?

Trust me. You don’t want to be France.

He followed that 24 hours later with this review of how things got that bad.

My dear American friends, in my last post I gave you a snapshot of where France stands today. Now let me show you how we got here. I want you to see the whole movie before you buy the ticket.

After the war, France was a machine. We called it the Trente Glorieuses, thirty glorious years. We built Concorde, the most beautiful aircraft ever made. We built a fleet of nuclear reactors in about fifteen years and gave ourselves some of the cleanest, cheapest electricity in the world. We built Ariane and put Europe in space. We built the TGV, the fastest train on earth. We invented the Minitel, an online network in millions of homes before most of you had heard of the internet. We were not a museum. We were builders.

Then came 1981. François Mitterrand. Think of him as our Bernie Sanders, except he actually won. At his side, in the office next to his at the Élysée, sat a 37-year-old prodigy named Jacques Attali, his special adviser for the next ten years. The brightest minds of the left, convinced they could run an economy from a ministry.

Here's what they did. They governed with Communist ministers. In 1982 they nationalized dozens of banks and the biggest industrial groups in the country: Paribas, Suez, Saint-Gobain, Thomson, Pechiney, Rhône-Poulenc. They lowered the retirement age to 60. They cut the work week to 39 hours and added a fifth week of paid vacation. They created a wealth tax. They hired massively into the public sector.

Reality hit in less than two years. Capital fled, inflation ran wild, and the franc was devalued three times. In March 1983 Mitterrand had to slam on the brakes and impose austerity just to stay in the European monetary system.

But here's the trick: the brakes never reversed anything. They just slowed the ratchet. The so-called right came back with Jacques Chirac, and nothing was undone. Under Chirac's presidency, France passed the 35-hour work week. Left or right, every government added one more program, one more rule, one more tax, and nobody ever took one away.

At the same time, the political class did something even more destructive than bad economics. It turned the youth into a political instrument. Instead of teaching young people, including millions of children of immigrants, to love the country they lived in, it taught them a story of guilt and grievance: France as the oppressor, France as the thing to resent. You cannot integrate people into a country you've taught them to despise. We are living with the consequences of that narrative today, in our schools, our suburbs, our streets.

Then forty years of slow decline, all the way to Macron. And the story has a perfect ending. In 2007, Jacques Attali chaired a commission on how to unleash French growth. Its deputy rapporteur was a young civil servant named Emmanuel Macron. The commission proposed more than 300 reforms to free the economy. Almost none were ever implemented. Even the men who built the system knew it wasn't working, and even they couldn't undo it.

No balanced budget since 1974. Public spending around 57% of GDP. Debt above 3,300 billion euros. Growth stuck under 1%.

Now the number that should keep you up at night. In 1995, GDP per person in France was about $27,000. In America, about $29,000. We were neck and neck. Today France is around $49,000. America is around $90,000. You are now nearly twice as rich per person as we are.

What changed? Not our talent. Not our engineers. Not our schools of mathematics. The only thing that changed is that we went all in on socialism. The 35 hours, the endless regulation, the taxes that chase out anyone who builds, the belief that the state should do everything and the individual should ask permission for everything.

There's a line people love to attribute to Einstein: insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. We tried. For forty years, we tried. Every government promised that one more program, one more tax, one more regulation would finally fix things. You just saw where it got us.

So if you choose the Democratic Party, which is literally turning socialist in front of your eyes, you will deserve what comes next.

Let me tell you exactly what will happen if you go down that road. Nobody will vote for decline. Every single measure will sound generous, compassionate, reasonable. Your builders will slowly leave or stop building. Your state will grow every year and never shrink. Your debt will compound. And in thirty years, your kids will look at a chart like the one I just described and wonder when it all went wrong.

You still have something we lost. You have Elon Musk sending rockets to orbit and landing them on their tail. You have Palmer Luckey building the defense industry of the future. You have Jeff Bezos, Jensen Huang, and thousands of founders nobody has heard of yet, building in garages right now.

Trust your entrepreneurs. Don't trust your politicians.

I come from your future. Don't make it yours.

We can already see for ourselves what such standards will produce in our country.  Go and live in the inner city and poorer suburbs of Seattle, or Portland, or San Francisco, or New York City, or Detroit, or Chicago, and you'll be able to experience it for yourselves.  It's precisely what we don't want in our country as a whole, and what we should strive with might and main to drive out whenever and wherever possible.

I sincerely hope and pray that Americans will heed these warnings.

Peter

Memes that made me laugh 332

 

Gathered from around the Internet over the past week.  Click any image for a larger view.