Just One Thing: Social media regulation cases at the Supreme Court
Some Supreme Court cases are easier to understand than others. Yesterday’s cases challenging laws from Florida and Texas which aim to regulate social media companies are extremely complex legally. One way to think about it is whether social media platforms like Facebook or YouTube should be regulated like telephone companies or like newspapers or like some other kind of business? Newspapers create their own content; telephone companies just transmit other people’s content. Can a state government require a social media company to allow things that the company might choose not to allow? Or can the platforms set rules, even with some kind of bias, about what’s allowed? The case could significantly change the way companies far beyond traditional social media operate, including shopping sites like Etsy that allow comments. Again, the legalities are incredibly complex…and these cases are incredibly important.
Six takeaways from the Supreme Court arguments on social media laws | The Seattle Times
Supreme Court skeptical of Texas, Florida regulation of social media moderation - SCOTUSblog
(See more below re guest Corbin Barthold)
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One More Thing: Today's left supports today's Nazis
Far-left professor Cornel West posted a tweet lauding the lunatic USAF airman who lit himself on fire to support a "Free Palestine!" I had something to say about it. West's original tweet is just below mine.
Today's Guests
Stanford AI lecturer and author Jerry Kaplan returns to the show just a few days after his first appearance. There was an issue I wanted to get to in our first conversation and didn't, and it's become very much in the news in just the last few days. That issue is bias in AI. How is it that Google's Gemini AI rendered all of America's Founding Fathers as black, and the pope too? (See link below.) How is it that Gemini said it was a matter of opinion whether Hitler or Elon Musk has done more harm to the world? This is clearly left-wing bias all the way around, but how did it get into the system and what can be done about it? We'll also get into a more macro conversation about the likelihood that AI destroys the world (maybe literally): AI leaders address doomers' threats to humanity warning (axios.com)
Jerry Kaplan – Author, Innovator, Entrepreneur & Futurist
Jerry's excellent book about AI: Generative Artificial Intelligence: What Everyone Needs to Know ®: Kaplan, Jerry: 9780197773543: Amazon.com: Books
The Google Gemini controversy: From Black Nazis to female Popes and American Indian Vikings: How AI went ‘woke’ (msn.com)
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Paul Lawrence is Former Under Secretary for Benefits in the Department of Veterans Affairs
Paul R. Lawrence (paulrlawrence.com)
We'll talk about his book that guides veterans through the many benefits available to them: Veterans Benefits for You: Get What You Deserve
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Corbin Barthold is Internet Policy Council at TechFreedom. We'll do a fairly nerdy deep-dive into yesterday's Supreme Court arguments about the Florida and Texas social-media-regulating laws.
Corbin's long Twitter thread yesterday following the arguments is remarkable: Corbin K. Barthold on X: "1/ IT IS TIME. The Internet speech law Super Bowl. Moody v. NetChoice. NetChoice v. Paxon. There will be many live tweets, but this one is mine, and it will be epic. https://t.co/qpzyYrSuqX https://t.co/QneBBORi2p" / X (twitter.com)
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Other Stuff
Biden really MUST go to the border because not going is even worse for him but going is also fraught with peril, especially going on the same day that Trump is going (even if they're going to different locations.) In short, both Trump's and Biden's visit to the border will remind everybody of Biden's complete failure.
Biden Will Make Rare Visit to Southern Border on Same Day as Trump - The New York Times
This is why he's going: Immigration Surges to Top of Most Important Problem List (gallup.com)
I'd like to add something here that I haven't stated strongly enough on the show: I don't think I've ever seen a bigger and more intentional failure of policy, and not just any policy but a policy that is squarely within the most important responsibilities of the president, than what Joe Biden has done at the border. If our politics weren't so screwed up, if the GOP weren't so dysfunctional, if both parties weren't so dishonest, if the impeachment process hadn't been so outrageously politicized since Bill Clinton's impeachment, it would be obvious that Joe Biden manifestly deserves to be impeached over this.
Oh, and don't forget this...Georgia voters won't:
And here's the AP trying to make the murder of Lakan Riley about "the dangers female runners face." Seriously? Killing of Georgia student on run renews female athletes' fears | AP News
The propaganda isn't working. The highest % of Americans EVER support building a border wall as the public focus on Biden's massive failure intensifies: 6 in 10 See Illegal Immigration As Very Serious Problem | Monmouth University Polling Institute | Monmouth University
NYC Mayor Eric Adams doesn't want to get rid of the city's "sanctuary" status overall but does want to have the law changed so that people who commit felonies are turned over to federal law enforcement for deportation: NYC Mayor Eric Adams doubles down on call for changes to city's 'sanctuary' status amid migrant crisis (msn.com)
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Aurora follows CO Springs, Monument, and others: Aurora approves resolution halting financial support of migrants, unhoused (denver7.com)
Actual resolution is on page 93 of PDF: eSCRIBE Agenda Package (auroragov.org)
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I've heard from plenty of doctors about this kind of thing happening in various aspects of medicine. I know there can be a fine line between leftist anti-corporate behavior and true pro-competition regulation. I suspect this is on the good side (the latter side) of the line: Colorado AG breaks up USAP anesthesiology monopoly in state (denverpost.com)
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I like the term "popcorn brain"; it's visual and descriptive. And I think almost every teenager has it: What is popcorn brain? How being chronically online is killing focus (wtnh.com)
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No American jury would convict him. In Australia, I have no idea… Taylor Swift's dad, Scott, accused of assaulting paparazzi in Australia | Fox News
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This alone represents a significant failure of Vladimir Putin's aggression in Ukraine: Sweden clears final hurdle to join NATO as Hungary approves accession | Reuters
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Monument, Colorado, home of the #1 Walmart Supercenter in the country (story we had yesterday) is also making its position about illegal immigrants clear: Colorado town unanimously declares non-sanctuary status as nearby Denver grapples with migrants: 'No room' (msn.com)
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I think Smith is right...and I think almost no Republicans will see the Trump prosecution as anything other than selective prosecution and lawfare after Biden is let off the hook. And, again, I think Smith is right in the sense that Trump's apparent obstruction is VERY different from what Biden (or Pence) did.
Jack Smith says Biden classified docs case is "starkly different" from Trump's (axios.com)
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If you're interesting in the loss of journalistic integrity in America's most important media outlets, read this: I Was a Heretic at The New York Times - The Atlantic
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I'll never think of kilts the same way. I apologize in advance for sharing this with you: Kilt-wearing pervert is arrested after going into antique stores and shoving items up his rectum before placing them 'back on the shelf for display' (dailymail.co.uk)
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Today's Videos
I've loved pigs for a long time. Had a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig when I lived in a high-rise in Chicago, believe it or not.
This seems like something from a SpongeBob or Simpsons episode, but I think we all understand her, deep down.