Unlike the media’s ‘experts, ‘ I am in a state of uncertainty, unable to predict how Trump’s conviction in New York will affect the November elections.
The only negative influence on Trump would be if he were sent to prison. That would eliminate his ability to use his effective campaign style to convince voters of his ability to handle the job.
Already, some polls state that conviction will play a limited role in the presidential outcome. But, of course, these are polls months before the actual vote and, therefore, are meaningless.
As one sage told me many years ago: “The only poll that counts is what happens when people go to the ballot box.”
What I do know is that the election will be decided on a variety of issues: the economy, immigration, abortion, and the apparent weakness of the United States in international matters, such as Afghanistan, Israel, and Ukraine.
The issue will fall flat if the Biden campaign focuses on Trump’s conviction.
Moreover, the election’s outcome will be heavily influenced by the usual key states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Nevada, and a few others. The sway of local issues and the uncertainty surrounding Robert Kennedy’s third-party candidacy could potentially tip the scales in favor of either Biden or Trump.
It’s challenging to gauge Kennedy’s strength other than as a protest vote against the major parties. Only George Wallace and Ross Perot made significant inroads in the presidential election.
The media will continue to focus on Trump’s conviction and the faults they see in his personality. However, the media’s influence in presidential elections has declined significantly in the past decade.
Artificial Intelligence, AI for short, is dangerous.
Musical instruments can be used to create beautiful and soul-stirring music, such as Beethoven’s 9th Symphony; they can also be abused to grind out aural rubbish such as Screaming Lord Sutch’s Lord Sutch and Heavy Friends, which a BBC poll found to be the worst album of all time.
Artificial intelligence can be twisted to produce ugliness, distortions, and lies.
On my smartphone, I asked Meta AI, thru Facebook, “Is Biden healthy?”
This is the answer I received:
President Joe Biden has generally been considered healthy for his age. In 2021, his physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, released a medical report stating that Biden was “healthy” and “vigorous” and that he was fit to serve as president.
However, like many people his age, Biden has had some health issues, including:
– A history of brain aneurysms (Successfully treated in 1988). – A pulmonary embolism (treated in 1988). – Atrial fibrillation (an irregular heartbeat). – High cholesterol. – Acid reflux. – A minor foot fracture in 2020. – COVID-19 in 2022 (mild symptoms).
Despite these issues, Biden has maintained an active schedule and has been cleared by his doctors to continue serving as president.
While I am not a doctor, but clearly the president is that the president is “an old 81” and at the very least, should submit to a full cognitive exam from a qualified and unbiased team of psychiatrists.
Meta AI doesn’t mention Biden’s frequent mental wanderings, the most recent of which was last month’s disastrous Biden press conference that was abruptly ended by Karine Jean-Pierre.
Let’s check into Meta AI’s opinion on the presumptive Republican nominee for president, Donald J. Trump.
“Is Trump healthy?”
Former President Donald Trump’s health has been a subject of interest and controversy. In 2019, his then-personal physician, Dr. Harold Bornstein, wrote a letter stating that Trump was in “excellent physical health” and that his lab results were “astonishingly excellent.” However, there have been some concerns and controversies surrounding Trump’s health, including:
– Obesity (he is reportedly 6’3″ and weighed 230 pounds in 2019). – High cholesterol. – A history of fast food consumption and poor diet. – Questions about his mental health and cognitive abilities. . – A bout of COVID-19 in 2020 (he was hospitalized for a few days). – A history of esophageal reflux and sleep apnea.
It’s important to note that Trump’s health records have not been fully disclosed, and some of his medical information has been disputed or controversial.
Shameful.
As the Washington Post says, “Democracy dies in darkness.” It can also choke to death from lies.
Yes, Trump’s diet sucks and he’s overweight. Yet one Meta AI distortion about Trump jumps out: “Questions about his mental health and cognitive abilities.” Trump’s political rallies are an exercise of streams of consciousness. No one ever questioned James Joyce’s cognitive abilities. The same goes for legendary baseball manager Casey Stengel. Trump’s mind is as sharp as a pin, while Biden can’t even make it through a brief speech in front of a teleprompter.
“Controversy” and “controversial” are used in Meta AI’s account of Trump’s health, but not in Biden’s health rundown.
I could go on and on, but two more things: I’ve always been skeptical about the established line that Biden’s “minor foot fracture” was the result of the then-president-elect playing with his dog. And while Meta AI while mentions that Trump suffers from sleep apnea, it’s been widely reported–but not by Meta AI–that Biden uses a CPAP machine to treat his sleep apnea.
If America ever collapses, an Edward Gibbon of the future will need to include a chapter or two about social media in that account of the decline and fall.
I played around the Meta AI a bit more, not every answer about Trump’s health was a biased as the one documented here, but perhaps Meta AI was getting wise to me.
I’m sure Meta AI has a file on me that includes the words “right-wing lunatic.”
John Ruberry regularly blogs, without the use of AI, at Marathon Pundit.
As the U.S. government muddles its way through the current crisis in Israel, I am reminded how American involvement in Middle East affairs usually turns out badly for almost everyone involved.
Here’s a quick review of past mistakes:
–In 1953, the CIA helped launch the overthrow of duly elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh and helped return the shah to power. Ultimately, the coup fueled religious discontent and led to the rule of mullahs in Teheran.
–In 1957, President Dwight Eisenhower launched a plan of economic and military aid to the Middle East. Lebanon was the only country to embrace the doctrine, which eventually led the U.S. Navy to send ships and troops to Beirut when the pro-Western regime was threatened. The Lebanese president, Camille Chamoun, was a Christian, and his critics were Muslims. The Christian-Muslim divide eventually broke out into a civil war in the 1970s, which continued for nearly two decades, with the United States seen as supporting the Christians over the Muslims.
–In 1982, the United States sent ‘peacekeeping forces” to Beirut after Israel invaded Lebanon. Again, the United States did not appear as a neutral play, leading Muslim extremists to launch attacks against American Marines, leaving more than 200 soldiers dead in 1983.
–In 1978-9, the Carter Administration helped create the Camp David Accords, intended to bring peace between Egypt and Israel. Ultimately, Egypt became isolated in the Arab world, leading to deeper divisions in the Middle East.
–In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the U.S. government launched several ill-advised policies. First, the United States provided weapons to Islamic groups fighting Soviet forces in Afghanistan. Eventually, these groups fought U.S. troops after the 2001 attacks. Second, the United States asked Egypt to supply weapons to Iraqi troops fighting Iran in the 1980s. That program encouraged Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who sent his troops to Kuwait in 1990. After that, the administration launched Operation Desert Storm to drive out the Iraqi military.
–More recently, the U.S. military invaded Iraq and Afghanistan, leading to more chaos and anti-American sentiment throughout the Middle East.
All told, the United States has an abysmal record in bringing stability to the region. So far, the Biden administration has vacillated between support for Israel and concern for the Palestinians in Gaza.
Given the U.S. government’s history of mistakes, I think we are unlikely to help resolve the current crisis.
Deep within the bowels of The New York Times website is a blueprint of why Joe Biden is in trouble.
It took me a long time to track the analysis down because it got virtually no play on the Times’ opening web page. Maybe that’s because it shows how badly Biden is doing in the eyes of voters throughout the country.
The Times Opinion focus group included 13 undecided, independent voters. “To a striking degree, most of the participants tilted toward Mr. Trump, even though they disliked his personality,” the analysis offered.
“Almost all the voters (who range in age from 22 to 64) were most worried about the economy and how their groceries and other bills were too costly. Some were also deeply troubled by the crisis at the southern border, and some were concerned about the Israel-Gaza war and disliked U.S. aid to other countries,” the report continued.
When asked to describe Biden, the participants seemed particularly worried about his age and competence, using words like “senile” and “unfit.”
“I keep hearing the government say that things are getting better. I’d like to know who they’re asking, because I don’t see the economy getting better. I see us spending more money in our households, in the government. Here in New Hampshire, it’s never been this bad, ever,” said Robin, a 59-year-old retiree from New Hampshire. “They’re spending billions and billions of dollars on stuff that I don’t understand. Where is that going?”
Natalie, a 22-year-old college student in New Jersey, agreed. “I wanted to get my master’s, but it’s like I’m never going to be able to afford it. Where is the government’s money going? It should be going toward stuff like education. I’m never going to see loan forgiveness. I just see myself in debt forever.”
Twelve of the 13 participants said they viewed the economy as the most important issue in the election, while one chose the crisis in Israel and Gaza.
But the focus group also underlined some fundamental issues that Biden faces, particularly among ethnic groups that traditionally support Democrats.
For example, Yalena, a 22-year-old stay-at-home mom in Alabama, described Biden as “disingenuous.” Yalena, a Latina, added: ”I don’t feel like I’m being told the truth. I don’t feel like I’m being told anything upfront. I was just so disappointed — with the ounce of hope I had left — when we just started pouring money into the Israel conflict.”
Although Henry, a 60-year-old black consultant from Georgia, said he plans to vote for Biden, the president is “not inspiring at all.”
Gary, a 64-year-old driving instructor in Michigan, said he plans to vote for Trump but had some advice for the former president: “Stay off Twitter.”
Although the general election is months off, I hope DaTimes continues taling to this set of people who seem to have a better grasp of the state of the country than all of the pundits and talking heads combined.
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