Country: USA

Here’s a bit of truly significant news that seems to have gone unnoticed outside of defense-focused journals and outlets: The U.S. has deployed a third nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and strike group to the Middle East. It should reach its destination in 10 to 12 days.

So much for a short non-war war.

On Saturday, March 7th, the U.S. Navy Nimitz Class nuclear-powered supercarrier USS George H. W. Bush and its strike group ‘set sail’ across the Atlantic in order to add support to the USS Abraham Lincoln and the USS Gerald Ford, and to their extensive strike groups and airwings. The three, combined, add at least 20,000 personnel to the region.

Aboard the USS Bush is Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8), which typically includes 44 F/A-18E/F Super Hornet strike fighters, five EA-18G Growler electronic warfare jets, five E-2D Hawkeye airborne early-warning planes, and several C-2A Greyhound logistics planes and MH-60 Seahawk helicopters. 

Its strike group includes three to four Tomahawk-armed Arleigh Burke class destroyers, a Ticonderoga class cruiser, a supply ship, and a nuclear attack submarine.

Defense officials explain this deployment, following an in-depth assessment of the situation, as an adjustment to the required force posture, reinforcing U.S. leverage in order to “compel Tehran to return to negotiations and address U.S. security demands.”

LOL and WTF?!

Washington suddenly abandoned negotiations in order to join Israel in bombing Iran, and all that savagery, requiring more soldiers and war machines in the region, was unleashed in order to force negotiations???

These people are either complete idiots or think that we all are.

The Iranians had agreed to all of the U.S. nuclear-based demands; expecting them to fully disarm is just stupid.

As I’ve said: the U.S. and Israel just want to destroy the country, if they can't fully control it.

Military experts speculate that this deployment offers a quick fix to the armaments shortage in the region, and that this ship’s focus may be Yemen, in order to ‘take care of the Houthis’ should they also start attacking Israel and/or Saudi Arabia.

The DOW (formerly, the DoD; read in that what you will), states that this carrier strike group’s presence will ensure maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz, allowing for the safe passage of commercial ships.
I hope insurance companies are convinced. But I doubt it.

This tells me that Washington realized that they’re in for a much tougher and longer fight than anticipated, and that Tel-Aviv and other Gulf States, like Saudi Arabia, are begging Washington to send reinforcements.

Trump is caught in an escalation trap.

The Navy’s largest and newest supercarrier, the USS Gerald Ford, built in 2017, transited the Suez Canal and arrived in the Mediterranean Sea on 28-Feb, the same day that the U.S.-Israel attacks on Iran were launched.
The Ford has now been at sea for more than eight months, having left a Mediterranean deployment to shift to the Caribbean Sea and back again to the Mediterranean. Wonder how much that cost tax payers?

I’ve never believed that a regime change was the goal, and I still don’t; it’s a total state collapse. These are very different things.

I do believe that Trump was being honest when he said that he’s against long, extended wars. Still high on the “success” of the Venezuela op, he was hoping to achieve the same in Iran. Just a quick in-and-out, a few days of bombing… maybe one week, tops.

Clearly, he and his cronies underestimated Iran’s resolve and state of readiness; they may have killed the Ayatollah and other top leaders, but in no way did this render the government inoperable or create the desired void. Thus, more bombs are needed, maybe for three to four weeks… maybe more. Don't be a stupid media outlet and ask "How long?"

Washington and Tel Aviv couldn’t care less who’s now in charge of Iran, as long as the country is in chaos and its oil production and proxy networks are severely disrupted, they’re happy.

CIA and Pentagon analysts, Mossad's too, are dangerous ideologues, but they’re not idiots; they’re well aware that installing a pro-U.S. and pro-Israel government is a real long shot, especially now. They’re hoping that the many factions they’ve been arming and funding—which is why the recent protests had turned so destructive and bloody—will weaken national unity and totally fracture the country, rendering Iran’s institutions, military, and oil industry inoperable.

These anti-Shia/separatist terrorist/militant factions include Balochis, Kurds, Turkmen, as well as other Sunni groups, and, obviously, ISIS and al-Qaeda forces are in the mix.
Terrorists and right-wing extremist groups almost always link back to Washington, and evil dictators are only so when they won’t bend to U.S./Western demands.
Iran has always been an important force against ISIS and al-Qaeda… meanwhile, the U.S. has continually supported these organizations in some way. The bigger ‘backer’ of terrorists?
Doubt what I say? Look who the U.S. and Israel put in charge of Syria.

The Ayatollah wasn’t as oppressive and evil as Western media made him out to be; just a bit of research will establish that the clerical regime had, in fact, greatly loosened its grip on society, and that Iranians, including women, enjoyed more freedom than the vast majority of brown or black persons currently living in the U.S. Mainstream Western media put out a tremendous amount of propaganda and fed much hate and ignorance. Idiots like Sam Harris gulped it all up.

The U.S., with its constant meddling ops and brutal sanctions, is the true cause of Iran’s  troubles and economic woes.

I won’t go into the details, but I will say: the “massacre” that the state is accused of having carried out during the protests is Western propaganda that fails to offer a fair assessment of events.

Since events in Venezuela, it should have been clear that:

• This war was entirely expected, a key part of a larger plan.
• This wasn’t a last-minute decision, nor did the U.S. ‘join in’ because Netanyahu is really in charge and calling the shots.
• The order was important: before attacking Iran, the U.S. needed to be in control of Venezuela’s oil. (However, the Trump administration never thinks far ahead; controlling Venezuela’s oil isn’t enough to counter what’s to come, they needed to seriously develop its crude production first.)
• Iran is key to BRICS and it’s an important part of China’s Belt & Road initiative, and its oil, like Venezuela’s, provided options that diminished U.S.’ control over the globe.
• This is about Israel regional hegemony and U.S. global hegemony.
• What's happening in Iran is completely in line with what’s laid out in the National Security Strategy.

Therefore, the attack was formalized when Netanyahu last visited the White House in December, a few days before the attack on Venezuela. The huge arms buildup in the region establishes that the U.S. didn’t just happen to be sucked into “Israel’s war” because Tel Aviv decided it was gonna go ahead no matter what. One day before the attack, the Trump regime stated that the “politics are a lot better if Israel strikes Iran first” (see headlines and highlights in picture, above, or do a search with that phrase). The U.S. was giving Netanyahu the green light. Saying that Israel forced Washington's hand is just a weak justification.

Of course, this has nothing to do with Iran’s nuclear program or the country being an imminent threat to the U.S.

The way that the Trump admin avoids mentioning oil, which is of major geopolitical importance, should set off a few alarm bells.

The negotiations were pure BS. The demands kept shifting and were too outrageous to possibly lead to an agreement; Washington wanted a “no” in order to paint Iran as an unreasonable and steadfast threat.

Trump had pulled out of the JCPOA as elements in both the U.S. and in Israel were angling for a war with Iran, which the JCPOA made harder to justify. Biden never did complete the easy task of reinstating the agreement, due to donor and deep state, pro-Israel pressure. Although Obama did more than most Presidents to beef up Israel’s military, he hated Netanyahu and his brand of Zionism, hence why he introduced the JCPOA; to piss him off.

U.S. hawks and the deep state have been wanting this war for decades, delusional Trump desperately wants to be the one to finally pull it off.    

Follow up on a previous post: Israel Recognizes Somaliland.

Is there a link between the sudden rise in anti-Somali sentiments seen in the U.S. in recent months—all of it triggered by Trump who, while taking aim at Minnesota Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, categorized all Somalis as “garbage” people—with events unfurling in that part of Africa?

Even the recent, viral, alleged fraud case in Minnesota exploits this sudden hatred; it’s not about ‘fraudsters,’ it’s about ‘Somalian fraudsters’. Details? Proof? Who cares! Deport all Somalis!

The hate that’s suddenly expressed by a portion of United Staters on social media and elsewhere… Oh, my! You’d think that Somalis were responsible for all of U.S.’s woes, the targeted hatred voiced in a manner that suggests that ignorant right-wing racists have forgotten all about Mexicans and other Latino ‘brownies’.

This wasn’t an organic ‘happening’, and, habitually, that kind of governmentally-prompted public hate campaign heralds a nefarious move by Washington.

So, what to make of the fact that, in 2025 alone, the Trump administration carried out a record-breaking 127 airstrikes on Somalia, eclipsing Trump’s 2019 record of 63 strikes on Somalia. These strikes are said to have been carried out in order to “degrade” the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab ‘terror’ group, but, nonetheless, assuming this is true, why Somalia?

AFRICOM (U.S. African Command), in all of their related press releases, tells us that the aim is, “to take action to degrade ISIS-Somalia’s ability to plan and conduct attacks that threaten the U.S. homeland, our forces, and our citizens abroad.”

Really? 

That comes across as a very empty, proper PR excuse, not the truth, more so when considering that the official claims don’t always mesh with the on-the-ground reality reported by locals—Nigeria and “Christian genocide” being the most blatant recent example—and never mind the U.S.’s complex, hushed relationship with these terrorist groups.

With that, and now having looked deeper into the reasons as to why Israel would want to recognize Somaliland as a sovereign nation, I refuse to discard my view that both it and the U.S. are seeking to destabilize many parts of Africa, but I must now acknowledge a more practical reason: Israel is getting ready to forcibly displace Palestinians. And they need a place for them.

On 20-Mar-2025, Israel's Yeshiva World News reported:

“A senior Somaliland official has signaled openness to discussing the possible relocation of Gazans to the disputed African territory, but only under one condition—formal diplomatic recognition.

“In an interview with Israel’s Kan broadcaster, Abdirahman Dahir Adam Bakal, Somaliland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, responded to inquiries about reports that Israeli and U.S. officials have approached Somaliland, Sudan, and Somalia as potential destinations for displaced Gazans. While confirming Somaliland’s willingness to engage in talks, Bakal made it clear that only nations that officially recognize Somaliland’s sovereignty would be considered as negotiating partners."

Meanwhile, ‘Sudanese officials have explicitly rejected the possibility while Somali authorities are denying that such talks ever took place.’

On 31-May-2025, the Mogadishu-based Caasimada Online acknowledged the prospect whilst emphasizing that no formal plans had been put forth.   

"Although no official resettlement proposal has been made, President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi and senior refugee officials confirmed the breakaway republic is open to offering refuge to Palestinians—emphasizing the region’s history of hosting displaced communities.

“'The Palestinians are our brothers,' said Abdullahi in an interview with The Guardian . 'If they choose to come of their own will, we don’t mind. But there are no formal discussions underway with the Palestinians or with any other country.'”

Since then, was an agreement formalized?

Sources

Somaliland Open To Taking In Gazans—But Only If It’s Recognized As A Nation

https://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/general/2379667/somaliland-open-to-taking-in-gazans-but-only-if-its-recognized-as-a-nation.html

Somaliland offers to take in Gazans forced out by Israel

https://www.caasimada.net/somaliland-offers-to-take-in-gazans-forced-out-by-israel/

AFRICOM Press Releases

https://www.africom.mil/pressrelease/

Here's another Bill Frisell Trio concert that's definitely worth the listen, making every second spent on a re-listen priceless moments.

SInce hearing it for the first time yesterday—an event I can best describe if using the word "orgasm"—life is mostly priceless...

With two more years playing with bassist Thomas Morgan and drummer Rudy Royston since the 2021 Jazzaldia Frisell concert I had shared, and with a Fender rather than the Gibson, Frisell is delivering from a place of absolute comfort in this showing. And the world is better for it.

The energy bristles and snaps, peaks to its loudest through soft sentences and filled silences; it's infectious, coursing through listeners who are complicit, drawn into the exchange, hearing, reacting, electrified vigour having laken over when the distortion mounts and the reverb amps up... and where's the madman with 5 arms and 7 drum sticks? That dude looks way too chill...

The sound sculpting by Frisell on this one establishes why so many try so hard to emulate him, only managing to achieve it in an ephemeral manner that offers but a surface glimpse of the artist.

At the start of a concert I was at, John Scofield—a guitar great in his own right—had mentioned Frisell and the show he gave within the same festival, then went on to praise Frisell, saying, though I'm paraphrasing: "I also play with tone, and I can do loops, and I know how to use the same effects as Frisell, so, I figured I'd be able to do his stuff no problem, maybe even better... but, it turns out, Frisell does all three at the same time, and he adds emotion and passion on top... that, I can't do."

Rudy Royston... jeez, man! Like, holy crap! Some of the time changes he manages, inserting odd-beat oddities that fit right in, filling more space than one realised was there as he's continually accentuating, never simply setting time.

He's just at the edge of overstated and over-the-top at times but he never crosses that line, never going into "look at me," Steve Vai-styled gimmickry that easily wows publics but offers as much substance as a Big Mac.

Thomas Morgan, however, you kinda forget he's there at all, frankly, which, practically, makes his performance a "perfect" one if seen with the symbolic significance of a baseball pitcher throwing a perfect game.        

This version of "What The World Needs Now Is Love" is far superior than the Jazzaldia one, but, for one of the best, have a listen to the one in this 2017 Montreux Festival live show he did with his previous Tony Sherr, Kenny Wollesen trio.         

"You Only Live Twice" appears to now fill a spot in Frisell's changing repertoire of standards. While the Jazzaldia version had "wowed" me, this one solidified my "awe"; the three just make it groove, but do so by focusing on the melodic brilliance of the chart, not on its groovability potential.

On the other hand, 'Shenandoah" is one he seemed to have let go of for a bit, bringing it back for this live concert. 

Frisell recorded a version of the Americana trad-tune "Shenandoah" with Ry Cooder for his 1999 Good Dog, Happy Man album, and, although hearing two guitar masters with a love of Americana come together to cover it should provide the go-to reference for those wanting to hear Frisell's interpretation of this classic, it's the one I'm least likely to think of and to go to, the takes that managed to truly move me all coming out of his live trio performances. This version also now sits before his 'official' 1999, Cooder-collaborated cut.  

Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" is another that delivered an intimate, powerfully profound and moving Frisell reimagining that's no longer making a regular showing in his setlist. Eager to see this trio tackle it.

I'm actually glad he keeps altering as he also keeps on writing new charts, too, which is why he hasn't had anything I'd qualify as a stale period, nor the typical breakout-turned-stale career; always Friselling, he is! 

.

Setlist

Elements clicked and all became clear, and I suddenly found myself with a version of events that fits the narrative I've so far been able to substantiate while, finally, being able to account for the perplexing facets discussed below that, otherwise, may forever remain dark mysteries.

The one you're all thinking of right now involves women with penises and men in silk summer dresses, wearing Louboutin shoes. Wear what you want—just not in public—but we should all draw the line at adding and cutting and mismatching gender organs or suggesting that there's anything other than two, nevermind that whole "having sex for fun" thing, which leads to the Woke wing of hell no matter what, getting you there faster if any of that was with your own hand or not all with the same person. 

The Most Likely Explanation for Vigeland's Disgust of Hunter's Dick Pics

I think I've solved it, having finally made sense of all those Hunter Biden dick pics, the same ones that had managed to so thoroughly capture the imagination and attention of The Majority Report's Emma Vigeland, having reinvigorated within her that deep, penetrating passion for online Pole-eTickling that had once occupied most of her free time, that is, until she had found herself working for some Sam Seder, having hired her on the spot as, certain that she had said "politicking", he'd rarely seen anyone get that excited and blush so brightly at the mere mention of "politics".

The false impressions created by that misunderstanding would eventually take the pair down a path that's to lead to an awkwardly embarrassing moment when, on her second day, Seder had pointed to a framed picture of then still-unknown online-personalities Tim Pool and Mike Walsh, the two sitting on a picnic blanket and eating pink cake, their cheeks and chins covered with white frosting.

"Those two," said Seder. "I look forward to watching you letting them have it, and hard."

Vigeland squealed, thrilled to be given such a task despite her limited experience, hardcore on-air sex with a beanied person being among the many things she had always believed to lie just outside her reach... until now; she was sure to be moving up in the world, that is, so long as she went down on Pool and Walsh, Ben Shapiro, too, surely, but doing Steven Crowder, Vigeland had heard, is what's sure to fill Seder with the most joy.

"Thank you. You can count on me," Vigeland said softly before roaring out, ""I'll make sure I screw them real hard!"

The Most Likely Explanation for Why Candace Owens Accused Brigitte Macron of Being her Own Brother

Operation "Oh, God, I'm Coming" converts men into women in order to convert them into men with prosthetic penises that house a 10" nuclear missile.

It's the nuclear version of "Shock and Awe". Undercover dicks are able to infiltrate enemy lines, shooting off their payload in a manner that provides absolutely no reaction time, making it near-impossible for enemies to retaliate.

Joe Biden sacrificed his sons for that program, Hunter willingly becoming a woman before he could become Hunter again. Brigitte Macron is really Hunter Biden without her prosthetic penis.

The Most Likely Explanation for Why They're Not Normal Dick Pics

To most untrained eyes, dick pics of Hunter Biden look like Hunter Biden dick pics, and nothing butt! But those are field-testing records, and those prostitutes are actually soldiers in the Marines Engineering Corps division, and those hotel rooms are blast proof chambers, and though they may look like they're having fun and fucking the brains out of one another, these brave people are doing God's work, risking their lives riding those dicks up and down in all sorts of holes and stress environments, making sure the design can stand a good beating without going off until ready to be fired.

Blessed be the Hunters and Bidens.

This proves it, yet again, the Republicans are Russian shills and Putin may be arming Trumps with a penis.

What?! It still makes more sense than a lot of the stuff I'm hearing.

Earlier today, Jeremy Boreing, co-CEO of The Daily Wire rightwing media network he co-founded with Ben Shapiro, offered the following X-tweet:

“Daily Wire and Candace Owens have ended their relationship.”

No official statement elucidating a clear cause for this sudden change has yet been provided by either party, but neither should this come as a surprise to many given the explosive 'talks' that had spilled out of the Daily Wire (DW) offices and onto the public sphere, these having to do with just one subject: Gaza.

Her anti-war stance on Ukraine, combined with her willingness to lay much of the blame on the West for any military action seen there, had already created a tense friction between Owens and the rest of the DW personalities, as well as many of the staffers, no doubt. However, things had taken a nasty turn for Owens immediately after the 7-Oct-2023 events, at which point her anti-Zionist rhetoric turned merciless and pointed, proving too much to bear for facts-over-feelings Shapiro, warrior of Free Speech?

The last isn't confirmed, but it is the supposition that all who are familiar with the situation are working off of.

Further, this decision appears to have come right after a statement made by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), in which they accused Owens of associating with Nick Fuentes, a well-known white supremacist and Holocaust denier, after he'd praised one of her comments on X.

The ADL, one has to admit, acts at times as if possessed by a perverse desire to call out anti-Semitism in anything and anyone, occasionally focusing on other hate groups and personalities, if politically motivated to do so, of course, perhaps with a donation, maybe with a Washington-flavoured favour. It's not a bad organisation per se, but it does delve in politics far more than such an organisation ever should. 

She took a lot of heat, and she handled it pretty gracefully for the most part—even in her comments to the Rabbi Shmuley loon about his hag daughter—and also did so with much more patience and respect than I could ever muster if finding myself dealing with the likes of a Rabbi Barclay and his insufferable, patronizing, and one-sided, antiquated rules book dictating proper Semitic terms and grammar for the world.

Personally, I hope that Owens draws the appropriate lessons out of these events, for though she was the victim in this particular situation, actions and statements she's made to push her politics have also imposed that sentiment on many an innocent person; I simply want her to remember this experience, recalling it when she finds herself indulging in certain types of commentary in order to assess her own behaviour in relation to what she underwent and felt as a result, curbing her attack and opting for a different course when relevant and appropriate.

Candace Owens isn't someone I like or have much respect for, but—though I've never admitted as much before—she's got tremendous talent, but, sadly, she places her efforts on superficialities expressed through attitudes and positions meant to stir some controversy through a rebellious spirit that's more theatrics than honest politics, her approach having been so far mostly designed around achieving a quick notoriety and financial gains.

As her recent appearance on Steven Bonnell's stream exemplified when they discussed schooling and student loans, she's still willing to offer empty lines and to jazz up any anecdote in order to push the political wants that are earning her a big paycheck, but it has been real nice to see how war managed to draw out a level of care on a topic that was deeply genuine, and for which no one can accuse her of doing any of the things that one can usually count on being able to accuse her of.

Will Daily Wire take a hard hit for what may be a clear case of "say, don't do; judge others but justify if us" as concerns free speech, Shapiro not willing to tolerate certain views on topics he's passionately devoted to, no matter what the truth may be?

There are also rumours that Owens wanted to leave ever since the heat was turned on her given her views on the Israel-Palestine situation; such an outcome being desirable to all, was an arrangement worked out, as I can't imagine there'd be any payout offered for breaching her contract if she quit?

There are also rumours that Tucker Carlson is aiming to take down DW and Shapiro, Owens potentially joining Carlson, seeing an opportunity, but keep in mind that this came out of Dave Rubin, which he offered on Patrick Bet-David's Valuetainment, P B-D rightfully challenging Rubin's take on the matter, in my opinion. 

There's been a major development, maybe, since I last mentioned the "Musk vs. Altman & Brockman et al." lawsuit, senior members of OpenAI firing back the next day with a blogpost aiming to deflate any perception of Elon Musk as a defender of humanity, the cohort convinced they held an indisputable trump card through a "yep" they revealed to the world after disclosing an email exchange.

Along with that came statements and exchanges that are offered to establish that Musk is merely sore and petty, and acting the bully, being upset that OpenAI gained such tremendous value, for which he's not getting a piece. Comments made by Musk belie his true intent, it being gaining control and limiting OpenAI's achievements to Tesla.

Vinod Khosla, who invested $50 million in OpenAI in 2019, accused Musk of "sour grapes" in an X-tweet, also saying: “Like they say if you can’t innovate, litigate and that’s what we have here. Elon of old would be building with us to hit the same goal.” 

There's lots that's been offered to affirm that the suit needs to be dismissed, these assurances coming from the OpenAI post authors and various sectors and groups, mostly from the internet, Musk-hate also being the only thought-out motivation for some of these segments. Otherwise, perhaps sign that, outside of Muskers, the general public isn't too sure what any of it really entails, but... Skynet. In robots or Teslas, it's all bad. Plus, isn't Musk that Neurolink guy?

I don't agree with calls for a dismissal and, though I'm no lawyer, I find those who promote this outcome highly irresponsible, especially if in media and with a large outlet.

In my opinion, no matter how much of an egoist and greedy a-hole Musk may be, and no matter to what degree these qualities may have motivated the lawsuit, he still has a very good case that absolutely deserves to be heard. This is a major precedent, and there won't be another like it; the name "singularity" signifies that.

And, despite myself and views of Musk, I don't believe that his interests and actions were, nor are now, entirely motivated by whatever negative interpretation one may assign to his side of things; he seems to have been fairly consistent on his views regarding AGI, and the risks this presents. 

But nor do I believe that "humanity" and "altruism" are all that lie behind Musk's motivation.

•       •       • 

It's still unclear whether AGI has officially been attained. Legal complexities over who gets to call whether it has been achieved. 

Lets not forget that strange Sam Altman firing that was readily annulled a few days later; no one knows what that was all about still, other than those involved, but there's plenty speculation over the fact that the Q* architecture established transformers as the key, and that AGI is merely limited by the time constraints relating to training, the system now able to generate the synthetic data it requires to train itself...

And, it seems that there's been a breakthrough, token prediction now being replaced by "planning".

A pause and a deep breath while the world considers the implications, that'd be good, I think.

Hopefully, the lawsuit will be used to lay bare much. 

•       •       •

According to WSJ, the UK, the EU, then the US "push[ed] for [the] legal scrutiny of OpenAI," and now, Musk is simply joining in?

What?!

Surely, all is in the reading of "legal scrutiny"; although Musk's qualifies as such, it's of a different shade entirely, is that it? Otherwise, given the links that exist between OpenAI, Microsoft, and key elements of the US establishment, it's hard to believe such scrutiny hasn't been done to their purpose, thus hard to see the logic in what's implied if one considers what's been accomplished on the regulatory front: zilch. Only India made a real effort to get the 'concrete' ball rolling up that hill whose slope is sure to become steeper the longer all wait to set firm global laws—or rules, if one prefers—and restrictions concerning AI developments and applicable spheres. 

Had our species become truly wise in any manner befitting the glorious gift of intelligence we've been granted but love to squander, we'd keep anything near attaining anything resembling AGI far away from the military, rendering such a connection a crime against humanity.

The closing paragraph of a Quartz piece tells us:

Meanwhile, OpenAI’s partnership with Microsoft has been under scrutiny from regulators over its potential threat to market competition in the UK and EU. The AI company is also reportedly being examined by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) about whether its investors were misled after Altman was fired by the company’s former board of directors in November.

•       •       • 

Tying research efforts under one roof to formalise an open, non-profit, for-the-good-of-humankind approach, Musk officially cofounded OpenAI with Altman in 2015; I wasn't aware until recently: Musk came up with the OpenAI name.

He left in 2018 "over a conflict of interest with the company’s development. The lawsuit claims a breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and unfair business practices." 

Musk launched xAI in July of 2023. The company was said to be "independent from X Corp, but will work with Musk’s other companies: X, formerly Twitter, and Tesla."

Keep in mind that any AI developed within the context of Tesla automatically sets a different approach than the one OpenAI is exploring, Tesla demanding a "real-world" case that can be sandboxed, making AGI something not worth any worry... though all those cars communicating... hmmm.

"Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman late Thursday (Feb. 29), alleging the ChatGPT-maker’s partnership with Microsoft betrays its founding commitment to benefiting humanity over generating profit."

Here's the lawsuit 

Here are some very important passages contained within it (image below).

I agree that the code should not be "open source" beyond a certain point, but I wholeheartedly believe that OpenAI should offer complete transparency as concerns milestones and implications, and that profit should never be allowed to dominate over this sphere, certainly not during this phase, at least.

Just with what's below, Microsoft's maneuvering and decision to go private rather than encourage a global consortium of sorts to partake in this contradicts any claims made by the relevant corporate heads in regard to their desire to see a "global regulatory body" or "global government" ruling over such matters. 

Here's one of my all-time favourite songs, which is also the name of Murray Head's 1975 album, Say It Ain't So, Joe.

That, combined with the sentiment it captures and expresses and our current times, never mind the "Joe" part, is why I share it. I was gonna say something about it similar to what's below, but the song's artist beat me to it, I guess?

The Wikipedia entry for the song offers:

According to Head, he wrote the song about fallen heroes. He wrote the following comment in the liner notes when he re-released the song in 1995 on the album When You're in Love:

"Say It Ain't So, Joe" was provoked by a seventies documentary on Richard Nixon prior to his resignation. The presenter was asking the editor of a small town newspaper outside Washington, how, in the face of conclusive evidence and proof, his readers could still show such undying support for the president they elected. The editor likens the situation to a scandal in the twenties, when Joe Jackson, the famous baseball player, was rumoured to have taken a bribe to sink his team in the final of the World series. His fans hung around the stadium chanting "Say it ain't so Joe".

The song is about heroes and their "Clay feet". It is also a plea from myself to the kind of 'Joe Public' who in fear of losing face, refuse to relinquish their faith in a fallen idol.

The song is on an album which has sold over a million copies and was produced by Paul Samwell-Smith, who recently decided to re-record the song. Shortly afterwards I was watching another documentary on the O.J. Simpson case and they showed a note pinned to his gate on which was written "Say it ain't so Joe". Two days later a friend, just returned from L.A., rang me to tell me they'd seen placards with that same old phrase. The occasion seemed apt for a re-release.

- Murray Head, 1994

I suggest giving "When I'm Yours" a listen as well, which is another superb tune on that album.

On a more positive note, here's "Everything's Alright" featuring Yvonne Elliman, Murray Head, and Ian Gillan, lead singer of the significant hard-rock vehicle, Deep Purple ("Child in Time"... wow).

It's from Jesus Christ Superstar, the only Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice rock-opera I can fully stomach, perhaps because it was initially conceived as a concept album rather than a Broadway fanfare. Some really great tracks off of the 1970 album, which is the only version I can listen to.

Guitarist Bill Frisell in concert with bassist Thomas Morgan and drummer Rudy Royston.

I'm a huge fan of Frisell's music and ingenuity, his careful phrasings, and improvisational skills; his live looping techniques and solo works are entirely responsible for my guitar hobby. He's also opened up a tonal dynamic previously not expanded on through plectrum instruments, and creates rich tapestries and atmospheres that make it equally valid to describe him as a sonic sculptor, but all's done gimmick free. Pure self expression, heartfelt and honest.

Times have changed, and digital led to an oversaturation, but those in the know will be hard pressed to disagree: Frisell is our time's Miles Davis, his contribution to the world of music is immense, having inspired countless musicians (Eddy Vedder of Pearl Jam names him as his greatest influence, for one) and a slew of emulators. But there's only one Frisell.

He's also the musician that's most in demand; you've probably heard him play on one album or another without being aware.  

I never tire of hearing him play. I've been following his career for 30 years now, had the pleasure of seeing him live nine times, and with 118 albums with him as leader (studio and live recordings) or on which he's featured, he's actually in second place for the artist I've the most albums of (John Zorn comes first, Fred Frith third; there's a fair bit of overlap between the three, though, Zorn's wildly avant-garde, quick-change Naked City, along with Wayne Horvitz and Joey Baron being my entry point to these musicians).        

He has a knack for surrounding himself with superbly expressive musicians that just "get" his music, whether his own compositions, of which there are many, or the various covers he's made a part of his 'standards', this being true across the various ensemble sizes he leads.

I was deeply disappointed when he moved away from his original trio with Kermit Driscoll and Joey Baron (what became of Driscoll is sad; wonder if he's still in jail), but Tony Scherr and Kenny Wolleson brought a different dimension that saw me being disappointed to see a gradual transition toward Morgan and Royston. But they, too, bring a different dimension. Royston—his snare work is something else—brings Baron's angular accents to Wollesen's lyricism.

And no matter how many versions of the same tune I've heard Frisell and band play, each one offers a unique experience. That's because Frisell, along with those he includes in his projects, all seem to excel in one area, this being what makes all the difference: listening. He doesn't force musicians to play his music, his way; the charts played merely serve as common ground for the musical exchange and conversation taking place, personalities and moods, the musicians' and crowd's, all factoring in.

Listened to this concert four times already; probably will listen to it again. Felt like sharing it.

The second half is sure to be more interesting if not a jazz fan, in which case I'd recommend starting at around 48 mins, and to then expand your listening range, moving away from that electronic-drenched, pop garbage.

His take of Burt Bacharach's "What the World Needs Now is Love" (near end) is simply gorgeous. And the "You Only Live Twice" Bond theme encore managed to surprise me.

Hope you enjoy.

News of Gonzalo Lira has finally been received after he'd disappeared roughly three months ago, following his arrest by Ukraine's SBU.

Lira posted three brief videos and Tweeted a cryptic status update that alluded to an escape out of Ukraine, seeking political asylum in Hungary; he was roughly five kilometres from the Hungarian border when he'd filmed his first video, doing so to offer a record of events should things not quite play out the way Lira was betting on, for he'd now be an escapee rather than a refugee, but he was working under the assumption that his "escape" was the unstated conclusion that Kyiv was, in fact, hoping for.

Surprisingly, probably due to some pressure having been applied by citizens, the US State Dept did involve itself in Lira's case, but, from what we can deduce, only doing so by 'going through the motions', doing the bare minimum paper shuffling to avoid reproach while claiming they were doing their best. Still, this is more than many had anticipated.  However, this could have been resolved with a call to Kyiv, not Moscow, so, please, one phone call is absolutely all that this case should have needed to have Lira freed, Ukraine booting him out the country permanently, putting him on a plane back home.  

On the other hand, having dual US-Chile citizenships, the Chilean ministry is said to have "tried to move heaven and earth" to get Lira released.

Lira claims having undergone torture and asserts having been blackmailed into making certain admissions; the Kyiv regime has charged him with a list of crimes that equate publicly opining on known aspects of the Russo-Ukraine war as being particularly treasonous and anti-Ukrainian given that his views weren't—you guessed it—favourable to Kyiv.

In an odd turn that saw Lira test his chance as he hoped he'd understood the unstated, he hopped on his motorcycle and headed for the border...

Nope. The 'escape' part didn't include breaking out of jail. Lira was released on bail, but the Ukrainians sorta goofed on the monitoring bracelet and, oops, sorta gave him his passports back... but he better be there at his trial in a few days so he can face the big trouble he's in.

Either this is Kyiv's way of "getting rid" of him due to some pressure—he's not worth the trouble—though without actually releasing him, or they're setting him up, counting on Lira wanting to leave the country ASAP. Hence why he's hoping to receive political asylum from Hungary, rather than another European country, as Kyiv is bound to make trouble for him so long as there's an "escapee" status hanging over his head.

I wonder what's happening with his wife and kids?

Rumour is that Victoria Nuland may have helped direct the SBU's attention toward Lira, perhaps motivating an arrest, if not having hindered his speedy release; this is pure speculation, this conclusion, advanced by some, is based on a comment made by Lira.