Love and hate - politically speaking

Timeline for James Comey. There are two emotional threads. Love and hate and then hate and love.

July 5, 2016. Comey condemns Clinton for mishandling classified information. But then say we will not indict. Dems love it. Reps hate it.

October 28, 2016. Comey’s wait a minute moment. We reopen the investigation, found new emails with classified info on Anthony Weiner’s laptop. Oops. Reps love it. Dems hate it.

Interim. Both sides generally disdain Comey basically because he seems beyond the control of anyone. Reps hate Comey; Dems hate Comey. Especially, Hillary hates Comey, blaming his “re-opening letter” as a primary cause for her loss.

May 9, 2017. Trump fires Comey. Reps claim it was appropriate; Dems also, probably. However, because Trump did the deed, Dems hate it; Reps love it. Even the Nixonian metaphor has been issued – within an hour of the termination letter! But it’s OK since it was made by an aging Senator.

“Never let a crisis go to waste,” Rahm Emmanuel advises us. On the one hand, “kill the king.” On the other, “rule of law.”

It seems clear that both sides are secretly delighted that Comey is gone. But is Hillary? This makes her situation tenuous, and possibly available for another review.

One interesting thing about Trump is that he may have a deeply considered plan, which allows bifurcated pathways to proceed. It gives the pundits on both sides endless opportunities for conjecture. They love it and hate it.

Truly, we are in the era of post-truth, where emotion reigns over analysis and logic.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-truth_politics)

Comments

UNCERTAINTY IS CERTAIN

Uncertainty is Certain G. Donald Allen 12/12/2024 1. Introduction . This short essay is about uncertainty in people from both secular and nonsecular viewpoints. One point that will emerge is that randomly based uncertainty can be a driver for religious structure. Many groups facing uncertainty about their future are deeply religious or rely on faith as a source of comfort, resilience, and guidance. The intersection of uncertainty and religiosity often stems from the human need to find meaning, hope, and stability in the face of unpredictable or challenging circumstances. We first take up the connections of uncertainty to religion for the first real profession, farming, noting that hunting has many similar uncertainties. Below are groups that commonly lean on religious beliefs amidst uncertainty. This short essay is a follow-up to a previous piece on certainty (https://used-ideas.blogspot.com/2024/12/certainty-is-also-emotion.html). U...

Principles of Insufficiency and Sufficiency

The principles we use but don't know it. 1. Introduction . Every field, scientific or otherwise, rests on foundational principles—think buoyancy, behavior, or democracy. Here, we explore a unique subset: principles modified by "insufficiency" and "sufficiency." While you may never have heard of them, you use them often. These terms frame principles that blend theory, practicality, and aspiration, by offering distinct perspectives. Insufficiency often implies inaction unless justified, while sufficiency suggests something exists or must be done. We’ll examine key examples and introduce a new principle with potential significance. As a principle of principles of these is that something or some action is not done enough while others may be done too much. The first six (§2-6) of our principles are in the literature, and you can easily search them online. The others are relatively new, but fit the concepts in the real world. At times, these pri...

Where is AI (Artificial Intelligence) Going?

How to view Artificial Intelligence (AI). Imagine you go to the store to buy a TV, but all they have are 1950s models, black and white, circular screens, picture rolls, and picture imperfect, no remote. You’d say no thanks. Back in the day, they sold wildly. The TV was a must-have for everyone with $250 to spend* (about $3000 today). Compared to where AI is today, this is more or less where TVs were 70 years ago. In only a few decades AI will be advanced beyond comprehension, just like TVs today are from the 50s viewpoint. Just like we could not imagine where the video concept was going back then, we cannot really imagine where AI is going. Buckle up. But it will be spectacular. *Back then minimum wage was $0.75/hr. Thus, a TV cost more than eight weeks' wages. -------------------------

First Blog

Search This Blog