198 Reformation Day: The Smaller Picture
198 Reformation Day: The Smaller Picture
”Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" ~ Psalm 46
The Smaller Picture
Mirror scrutinized his own reflection in the glass of the projection chamber. The sample’s behavior was beyond irrational. Impossibly suspicious. It had known. But how? More, to starve itself, rather than submit to gentle re-processing? Even to refuse the medicated meals? This was a pre-science surpassing its procedural qualifications. The winged body drooped. The cold, blue eyes blinked again, but they did not remain open. Mirror’s own eyes inspected the animal’s corpse, then washed it all away as he turned toward the staircase to the bridge. “The algorithm?” Sentinel’s voice reverberated from multiple comms. “I’m missing some element.” Mirror stepped past the pilot console, sun setting under painted clouds through the leaded glass of the foreportal. Two hulking frigates drifted, interstellar flotsam, within a cumulo-lava-drenched sea. Not all airships were as inspired as Sentinel. “You have chased this rabbit before.” “Then we are lost.” “That is not what you have sung.” “We have examined every order, and there are no more to trust. The keystone is a myth.” Sentinel shuddered under turbulence. Those cloudy pillars of sun dust held dark underbellies. “Sentinel?” “Already making course adjustments.” “That too.” Mirror’s soul stared deep into his own eyes among the budding energies of the storm. His reflection would not let him forget what he knew. Omens were just stories. “Run karmic capacity standard load, reinitialize the algorithm and compile for assimilation.” “You have yet to solve for the infinitive–valve deterioration loop.” “Time is the only god we have left to betray,” Mirror muttered. “The precedent did not compute. Are you confident you are well enough to drive?” Mirror was already at the console, overriding Sentinel’s security protocols. He ruffled swiftly through a latch-bound leather wrap of papers until he retrieved a singular note scrawled with a most oblong semblance of mixed hierorunics and glyphs. Whatever else might be hidden in their arcane tonalities, the old-Arabic 4-2-4-8-2-4-2 was legibly notated in the upper right corner. The storm surrounded Sentinel now, the day’s last light a memory in the rumbling darkness. Mirror did not have the authorization to compile a personal assimilation without protocols and backups via the vice-consulate of psalmic-retention and remanufacture. “Can we find the emberstar?” he asked. “Can we see the light?” Now in safe mode, Sentinel would only speak when directly invoked. Just a robot in the end, he contentedly feasted away on overclocked computations. In either case, the airship would certainly note the rhetorical question for the famous quotation that it was. Mirror hummed a lonely tune to himself as he leaned back at the console, making a slight adjustment to course and ensuring the defrag would fire on schedule. All the while, the old maxim pattered through his mind: To understand the bigger picture Is no picture at all. Sentinel rattled stem to stern, the friction in the air sending rivulets of grounding triggers flickering about the console circuits. “Sentinel, how long will the protocol take to implement?” “Minimum gametime, forty-two seconds.” Surprise was not an emotion Mirror often entertained. “That fast?” he croaked. “Affirmative.” “We always knew the impact would be dynamic,” he mused. A moment later, Sentinel said, “You will not remember the risk you took.” “Even with the backups?” “No,” Sentinel replied. “When you remove security protocols on inspiration, is not madness already thereby called for?” That got Mirror’s attention. Till angel cry and trumpet sound, The Mad Christian
Odds and Ends
Politics
After a turbulent week attempting to fill the empty House Speaker position, Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana will take up the gavel. Rep. Johnson received 220 out of 221 votes. A Southern Baptist, Johnson said if people want to know his worldview, they should pick up a Bible. Not a bad idea. (PJ Media, Daily Wire)
Congress’ job approval rating has dropped to 13%, according to Gallup. (Gallup)
For those who like to geek out contemplating the substrates of our republic, Joseph Postell, a Heritage Foundation fellow, has done a tidy job of summarizing the history of Congress through domination by Speakers, then Committees and now in its current chaotic form. While some are happy to see Congress gridlocked, hoping for bipartisan co-operation, Postell says that the very mechanisms created by founding fathers to prevent tyranny have lead in our day to an unaccountable administrative state, which thrives when there is no clear leadership in the House. (Heritage, Federalist Radio Hour)
We are here: Poll shows 70% of Democrat voters and 68% Republican voters believe that the other party will inflict "lasting harm" on the country if elected. Supporters of both Trump and Biden were open to giving more power to government when asked about hot button issues, such as gun control, immigration, patriotism and free speech, with each side suggesting harsh laws were fine if they hurt the other side. (The Hill)
Former VP Mike Pence has suspended his presidential campaign, saying this is not his time. (Not The Bee)
The statue of Robert E. Lee, removed after 2017 riots in Charlottesville, was secretly melted down and the metal is being used to create an “inclusive” public artwork. (Blaze)
Economy
The trial of failed crypto king, Sam Bankman-Fried, revealed that his company, Alameda Research, used code to artificially inflate its bank balance and fool investors. (Molly White)
Bud Light is looking to make good with its customer base, becoming the official beer of the UFC. (CNN)
The United Auto Workers union has reached a tentative deal with Ford after six weeks of strike action. (CNBC)
A case against techno-optimism or reminder of humanity's fallen state? "Self-check out is failed experiment." The plan to get customers to replace cashiers may have resulted in less staff everywhere and lots of pilfering. (The Atlantic, Now I Know)
Oof. A clip of El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele has been making the rounds on the internet after he was interviewed by Tucker Carlson. Bukele lamented the remarkably speedy decay of some of America’s most beautiful cities, concluding that the US has done this to itself: “This has to be by design.” (Not the Bee)
Marriage, Sex and Family
A federal court has allowed Colorado pro-life clinics to continue giving abortion pill reversal treatments. (The Federalist)
Pro-life researchers have questioned the validity of a study which claimed abortions increased in America after Roe was overturned. (WNG)
Abortion providers are rebranding their ghastly product. (Axios)
A young woman who was placed on testosterone at 14 years-old after seeing her doctor for suicidal thoughts is now suing her doctor and also American Academy of Pediatrics. The lawsuit alleges AMA lied about the damage inflicted by their hellish policy of aggressively pushing for gender treatments. (Daily Wire)
Media
The Consortium for Independent Journalists is suing factchecker, Newsguard, for defamation. Newsguard styles itself as an arbiter of misinformation, but Consortium claims it was maliciously targeted when Newsguard placed warning labels on its content and disparaged its journalistic standards. (Reclaim the Net)
A deeper look at where corporate media got their facts in the Gaza hospital bombing story. (Hot Air)
Climate and the Natural World
A Texas farmer is taking his case to the US Supreme Court. Richie Devellier says his 900-acre cattle ranch farm never flooded until the installation of concrete highway barriers "created de facto storm-water storage sites on his property." The case will center on the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause and whether governments are accountable for damage they cause. (Ambrook)
There are reportedly not enough large animal vets which is placing the food supply in danger. (Ambrook)
Louisiana “superfog” caused a 160 car pile up. Eight people died with over 60 others injured. (AP)
Climate optimism? Monster oil company Chevron is buying another huge oil company, Hess for $53bn. (Fox)
The Arts and Sport
An unfinished song by the Beatles has been released, with AI helping to lift John Lennon's vocals from a demo tape. (Guardian)
Rushdie does it a lot. Hemingway? Not so much. (The Millions)
Messi mania means Inter Miami merch and pink shirts are flying off the shelves. (Yahoo)
Science
Heman Bekele, a 14 year-old student from Fairfax, Va. has won a young scientist award for his Melanoma Treating Soap. (MPR News)
Examination of bones of folks who died from Spanish flu has revealed that contrary to popular notion, the virus did not kill healthy people. Researchers concluded "that the mortality of 1918 was not different from other epidemics, which disproportionately harmed the vulnerable as well as the young and old." (Wired)
Technology
The attorneys-general of 33 US states have launched a lawsuit against Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, alleging that "addictive features such as infinite news feeds and frequent notifications" are harming children. In addition, the AGs of 8 additional states are also suing Meta for misleading users while knowing their product was harmful. (CNN)
AI-generated summaries are creating new challenges for Google's search engine. News publishers say Google's new “Search Generative Experience” will reduce traffic to their sites. (Reuters)
Autonomous vehicle maker, Cruise, is no longer allowed to put driverless taxis on California’s streets. Cali’s DMV said the company withheld video footage pertinent to an ongoing investigation over public safety concerns. (Vice)
From the Mad☧Tank
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The Rug of Many Colours
War
Israel’s ground campaign has begun, with troops conducting raids in northern Gaza. (Axios)
Israel blocked visas for United Nations’ staff after UN Secretary-General António Guterres accused it of punishing Palestinians. Guterres also condemned the Hamas attack. Israel doesn't have a great relationship with the UN which passed more anti-Israel resolutions than those against the rest of the world, according to tally by UN Watch. (WNG, Times of Israel)
It has been revealed that two Hamas leaders have been living in London, laundering money and organizing mayhem. Also in London, a massive crowd turned out to protest Israel’s campaign in Gaza. (PJMedia, Not The Bee)
Elon Musk says he is happy for aid organizations in Gaza to use his Starlink network, but how do you stop Hamas from finding a way to hack it? (Hot Air)
The US has carried out strikes against multiple “Iranian proxy forces” inside Syria. A spokeswoman told Fox that the hits are retaliation for attacks on US bases and a warning for Iranian allies to back off. (Twitter)
Videos out of Russia purport to show Muslims searching for Jews, after a flight from Israel landed in Makhachkala, a city in the majority-Muslim southeastern region of Dagestan. (Just The News)
White House spokeswoman says anti-Semitism is not a serious threat, but that Muslims are experiencing “Islamphobia”. Commentary magazine's John Podhoretz disagrees, saying that Jews are being advised to hide. (Hot Air, New York Post)
Stories from Far Away
🇮🇸 Iceland's prime minister, Katrín Jakobsdóttir participated in a "women's day off" last week, to protest “gender pay gap”. (BBC)
🇲🇼 Students in Malawi have apparently chased away Planned Parenthood education officers and burned boxes of prophylactics. Nice work! (Christian Post)
🇲🇽 Hurricane Otis has made landfall on Mexico's west coast, killing at least 25 people. (WNG)
🇨🇳 China’s former prime minister Li Keqiang has died, reportedly from a heart attack. (Global Times)
🇫🇷 A French shoe store hired world-class sprinter as their security guard for a day. If you can beat him, you can keep the trainers. (Not the Bee)
Your favorite pixelated hero will return when EDH has returned from a well-earned rest..
John Michael Jones Gets a Life is produced for Mad⳩Mondays by E. Darwin Hartshorn. Episodes can also be found on Tuesday, along with previous episodes, on Bunny Trail Junction at bunny-trail.com.
Quick Hits for the Eyebuds
🔧 Time magazine’s list of best inventions of 2023
⏰ Most countries don’t practice daylight saving
😸 Funny wildlife photos
🇧🇷 Low water levels in the Amazon River reveal millennia-old rock carvings
🗣️ What ancient languages may have sounded like
🎃 Cornell University’s great pumpkin mystery remains unsolved, twenty years later
💰 Hackers believe they have the code for an encrypted USB drive holding $235m worth of Bitcoin. But the owner might not let them at it
🖊️ Spanish duke told he would have to minus some of the 25 names given to his new daughter if he wants to legally register her
🦏 Now we've seen everything: a rhinocerous drinks cabinet
A Good Word: Links from the Show Notes
This week’s edition of Stop the White Noise (YouTube, Rumble) was a cracker, with plenty of wisdom to ponder. Pursuing shalom not nirvana, following a “gentle way” and knowing that Jesus will save the world (not us!) were just some of the things discussed. One notable rec? In case you needed reminding, you have enemies! So pray Psalm 55.
Sweetness You May Have Missed
This Week Preached:
Podcast Release:
Let us pray. Almighty and gracious Lord, pour out Your Holy Spirit on Your faithful people. Keep us steadfast in Your grace and truth, protect and deliver us in times of temptation, defend us against all enemies, and grant to Your Church Your saving peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.