ChatGPT is Dumber Than I Thought

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Artificial Intelligence is biased. This has been true for as long as AI has been around. AI is programmed by biased humans, relies on biased sources, and has no independent, skeptical brain with which to judge the mass of data it accesses.

Lord knows, we want to believe artificial intelligence. It would be so much easier to ask one source that has scoured the web for information than to do the scouring ourselves. But I’ll describe one query I made today and you can judge the credibility of ChatGPT for yourself. 

Over the weekend, there were reports about Israeli soldiers firing into crowds at an aid distribution site and killing 31 civilians who had come to get food. That’s a horrific claim. If you are already anti-Israeli based on pictures of dead children in Gaza, you’ll likely believe this claim. But I find it hard to believe without a LOT of evidence simply because the IDF has no incentive to kill Gazan civilians. Israel’s PR problems could not be worse as it is; an incident such as this could only reinforce the anti-Israel voices around the world. 

So, this morning I began searching for information about this report. I was disappointed to find that ChatGPT considered the Hamas Health Ministry a credible source. (Remember that report that Israel fired on a hospital in Gaza and killed 500 people? Turned out to be a rocket fired by a jihadi group within Gaza that misfired and landed in a hospital parking lot killing no one. That report was from the Gaza Health Ministry.) My AI friend also considered UNRWA a credible source, and the UN in general, both of which are 100% biased against Israel. 

Israeli sources say that the IDF is investigating, and I’m confident that it is. An incident such as this, if it were true, would be a terrible setback for Israel’s efforts to find a way to distribute aid that bypasses Hamas. And bypassing Hamas is critical to finding a way out of this war.

I am worried. We have tools that could be immensely helpful to people who are trying to learn the truth about various reports that appear in the news or on the web. But the simple fact is that these new tools are simply expert at gathering and sharing biased reports that do not lead us to the truth. Where is the judgement that is essential in any search for truth? That judgement resides in us!

Remember the famine that occurred in Ukraine in the 1930s? The New York Times opted to believe a compromised reporter who accepted whatever the Kremlin said and did not report the story. Meanwhile, an independent journalist risked his life to find out the truth about Stalin’s cruelty. Decades later, serious scholars have unearthed the truth. Watch the movie, Mr. Jones, or read books by Anne Applebaum (Red Famine) or Timothy Snyder (Bloodlines) for more information.

We cannot wait decades for people to accept the truth about Hamas. It is not a credible source for information about Gaza. It is a terrorist organization that seeks the destruction of Israel.

Change Your View

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Change your view. Change your point of view. 

Sometimes moving is good for the soul. We are of an age when moving is a huge chore. We have not done the downsizing that anyone our age should have done by now. But we (I, at least) have committed to doing it now. And it actually feels OK. Sorry, mom, but I am parting with some of your things, finally. I wish your grandkids wanted some of these treasures. They don’t, but I’m keeping your favorite knife, and yes, it’s a good one.

Our past addresses include: Seattle: 723 Federal, 742 10th; the pool in Houston, Robinhood in Houston; somewhere in Bellevue; in Seattle: 13th Ave, a different address on Federal Ave, our first house, the duplex, the boat, 59th St apt, 59th St condo; then the Skagit house; back in Seattle: 6501 condo, 1120 Spring, 900 University; briefly Enumclaw; and now Olympia. Eighteen addresses in 58 years. That’s a lot of moving. Our first three apartments were furnished, so we just moved clothes and dishes. That doesn’t seem to be a thing today – furnished apartments, but it was good when we started out. 

Most of our moves had perceptible ambiguities from the outset. They would do for the moment, but there was no sense that they were final. Then we moved to a retirement community that we assumed would be our last and final address. But no. Seven years in, we both felt the need to leave. Part was the neighborhood that had changed so much during our time there. Part was just the realization that I was constrained in uncomfortable ways, part was the fact that it no longer worked for us when my husband gave up his driver’s license. We moved closer to recreation areas that we liked, but we knew it couldn’t be our last address.

It took less time than we expected for us to crave a walkable neighborhood. We had always opted to live in walkable neighborhoods, then we didn’t, and we soon realized that we’d made a mistake. So now, Olympia. And a very walkable neighborhood in Olympia. Across the street from the West Bay of Budd Inlet. Turn left to get to cafes, stores, a bakery,  and a grocery store; turn right to get to free concerts and the farmers’ market. Look south to the state Capitol, north to the Olympic mountains. Can’t drive? Buses are free and easy to access; Uber and Lyft are nearby; there are small stores, big stores, open space and forests and streams nearby. Could this be our last address? Yes, could be, but we’ve learned that we don’t really know for sure. 

So, we have changed our view. What about changing our point of view. Well, as in most places, the chatter I hear here is decidedly one-sided. Granted, I have only met a fraction of the residents here, and I gradually want to engage more of them in conversation. But Olympia, as a community, is perhaps bluer than even Seattle. (Is that possible?) So I might have trouble finding people who inhabit the “radical center,” which is where I position myself. Still, I practice “I Statements” in discussions to avoid making people who want to disagree feel uncomfortable. I suspect there are other centrists who are just too bashful to engage. 

What I always hope to find is someone who is well informed on an issue I know little about (or even on one I know more about) who can talk me out of my leanings, whether left or right, without being obnoxious! “I never thought of it that way,” is something I enjoy saying. Does that seem strange? 

So much about the setting we’re living in now is calming, restorative, just all around pleasant. Will the people be engaging and uplifting? I think so, but I value my online connections in case they’re not. 

Humpty Trumpty Sat on a Wall. Humpty Trumpty . . .

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Of all the craziness emanating from the White House this year, the one thing that has truly surprised me is the executive orders relating to big law firms. Trump has stripped security clearances from several firms, restricted their access to federal buildings, and ordered that no federal agency can do business with them. All of this because these targeted firms have worked on behalf of Democrats or others who have challenged Trump’s actions. 

Surely this is illegal? Isn’t it? I guess we will find out. Some of the firms have buckled under the pressure and made deals, generally involving a lot of pro bono work for clients Trump cares about. Frankly, I’m shocked that any law firm would hesitate to sue Trump. But I guess that if competitive firms and circling your partners and employees like vultures checking to see if they can pick off some of your best and brightest, if your treasured clients are hesitant to do business with you in the Trump era, then the illegality may not be your top concern.

Or maybe this isn’t illegal. Surely, everyone deserves a lawyer if you find yourself in court, but perhaps you’re not entitled to very high priced lawyers. And, honestly, how could I feel sorry for the most expensive lawyers in the country? Actually, I don’t. It’s just that if Trump can target these big, pricy law firms and get away with it, then why would any lawyer defend clients on any issue that might offend Trump? 

Many of Trump’s actions have prompted legal challenges; some challenges have merited restraining orders; some are on appeal. But it will take a while (months? years?) before we get final words of wisdom. Meanwhile, we live in a waiting game, just as we do with tariffs. Yes, tariffs have been announced, but not all have gone into effect. For many items, the impact will only be felt when new shipments of whatever arrive on our shores. Again with the waiting game. 

Trump’s decisive actions have not led to immediate changes except with regard to layoffs of federal employees. The people losing their jobs will feel the effect immediately. But again, when research contracts are terminated, only those in the midst of clinical trials will feel anything. I can’t imagine being part of a clinical trial and having it terminated just because The Doge said so! The rest of us will never know which research was never completed. 

My question: Will the effects of Trump 2.0 be felt convincingly by 2026 and 2028 so that we can vote our way out of this chaos?

Bad Tariff! Bad Tariff!

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You and I don’t understand tariffs. Sorry to be blunt, but our ignorance is making it impossible to have an informed discussion of tariffs, which is giving Trump the upper hand on this issue. Yes, of course, I dislike the bluster Trump spews on any issue, but, as usual, there is a grain of truth underlying some of his gripes. 

As it turns out, the very nice Canadians to our north have been levying tariffs on US products for years – to their advantage and our disadvantage. Take oranges. Oranges? Is Canada seriously protecting their orange groves in the Northwest Territories? Most of these tariffs are low, but American poultry and dairy farmers grumble about limited access to Canadian markets. Trade agreements keep tariffs low on most items, but there are strategies other than tariffs that countries use to limit imports.

Protecting domestic agriculture is important to most countries, so plant and animal products are often a target of tariffs. When there is pressure to lower tariffs, safety regulations can serve as a substitute. Is American beef safe to eat? Gee, I hope so. But foreign countries can often come up with some issue to justify excluding our products. 

And what about cars? Is Thailand a major producer of automobiles? No, yet they levy 80% tariffs on US made autos. Are all autos subject to the same tariffs? Or does Thailand levy lower tariffs on cars made in countries other than the US? Yes, but none of this is simple. 

And let’s say that it sounds like a good thing to encourage companies to manufacture cars in the US. So should we take jobs away from Canada and Mexico? Hmm. Try thinking ahead a step or two to consider repercussions of that decision. Back when most people were hating on NAFTA, I was wondering if building up manufacturing capacity in Mexico might be a good thing. Perhaps fewer Mexicans would want to immigrate illegally to the US. (I didn’t foresee the pressure that would result from violence in other Central American countries. Darn. It’s so hard to engineer paradise!) 

My point is simply that trade is messy. Beyond specific tariffs, there are many other costs and policies that impact trade. Shipping is subject to port charges depending on where ships were built, which flag they fly, who owns them, and who crews them, AND not just port charges, but also cargo cuing preferences (putting some ships at the head of the line to load and unload). It’s mind boggling. 

Trump is so inarticulate that he doesn’t help regular people (you and me) understand why things might need to change. It’s all “America First!” “They’re taking advantage of us!!!” The result is that we support and oppose policies just on the basis of our political biases. I’m not here to advocate for any of the tariffs Trump is loudly trumpeting. I don’t have the knowledge to know if and when any of his specific tariffs might be good or bad. My bias is that Trump doesn’t know much more than I do which, of course, Is a concern. And I don’t trust his judgement when it comes to advisers. 

So I worry. I worry that the US is alienating almost every other country on earth, except Russia of course. I think friends and allies are a good thing, so that makes me sad.

I worry that the world is too complicated for mere mortals to comprehend. The complications of medicine, manufacturing, trade, communications, are such that there are infinite opportunities for scumbags to take advantage of one loophole or another. Lobbyists work hard to protect their employers’ access to loopholes. Meanwhile, policing it all is well nigh impossible.

I worry that democracy is not a workable form of government. I talk myself down from this thought with increasing difficulty. But, seriously, wouldn’t a benign dictator with a set of smart, compassionate advisers be comforting? And less work for all of us? I’ll post a job-opening on Indeed or ZipRecruiter right away.

The World We Knew Is Gone

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Yesterday, an installer came to replace a malfunctioning remote for our gas fireplace. He’s been here three times before, so I’ve come to appreciate his skill and personality. He’s self-employed and both professional and personable. We don’t chat much, but we’ve had pleasant exchanges. When he finished up for what I hope is the final time, I bravely asked him if he was “political.” He said he wasn’t actively political, but “had his beliefs.”

I took that to mean that he pays some attention to what going on in the world without it dominating his life. So, what did he think of the new administration, was he supportive? His thoughts: it will be disruptive, but the disruptions are for the best. Tariffs will work out for the best. We will end up in a better place. The government is bloated; we need to take care of our own people before sending money overseas.

I don’t have strong opinions about bloat and inefficiency in the government. Yes, there’s likely some amount of bloat, but I don’t expect government to be as efficient as a business. A business can decide not to serve some people when it is too expensive to do so. Think rural broadband, for example, Without subsidies of some sort, no cable company is going to extend their services to scattered homes on remote pieces of land. That’s a money losing proposition. But rural broadband has become as essential as rural electricity, so what are we to do? Government subsidies of one sort or another. Is that bloat? Hmm.

But what about “taking care of our own people before helping people abroad?” My installer suggested helping homeless people first. OK, but I’ve never heard a word of support for homeless people coming from this administration. Will our leaner, meaner government fund more housing programs for low income people? More services for people addicted to drugs or alcohol, more services for people with serious mental illnesses? I’m not seeing plans to shift money from other programs to these services.

I asked about Ukraine. For sure my thoughtful, gentle installer would not spend a dime on Ukraine. He sounded much like JD Vance at his worst, but in a gentle voice. “We don’t owe the Ukrainians anything.” On this point, I think he’s just uninformed. Yes, I think we do owe Ukrainians a lot. Putin is a thug. The US, for all its faults, has the ability to keep thugs like Putin in check. We have a horrid track record with thugs, but this is one we could contain if we choose to do so. Biden constrained Ukraine so much that Trump now says Ukraine cannot win this war and must be “brought to heel.”

I will trust you, dear readers, to know that Trump envies Putin and despises Zelensky. Without rehashing that history, let’s just say that I support Zelensky and despise Putin. To see us abruptly end weapons support to Ukraine is gut wrenching. To see us terminate information sharing? This is where the world I’ve known comes to an end. Putin immediately sent rockets to slaughter civilians. Their blood is on our hands. I am ill thinking of it. I am not in position to attend protests as I once did. (Are there any?) But I write blog posts and support candidates who support Ukraine.

My view is that the chaos being wrought by Elon Musk will only bring the inability of government agencies to perform their various duties. I don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Saddest of all, is that I blame Democrats for going off the rails on culture war issues to the point that many people I know online could not support them last fall. Nothing is as it should be. The world is upside down, inside out, no rainbows in sight. I’m glad I’m 80 and not 40.