Tag: dumb

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Populist uprising runs aground in New Jersey primary

Phill Murphy -Sara Medina del Castillo

By MATT FRIEDMAN

06/09/2017 05:03 AM EDT

Where were the Berniecrats? What about the populist uprising in the Republican ranks?

The anti-establishment mood that has taken hold in much of the country was nowhere to be seen in New Jersey on Tuesday night, when a former Goldman Sachs executive and the state’s current lieutenant governor easily prevailed in their respective primaries.

New Jersey Democrats were unbothered by the gilded resume of Phil Murphy, who made millions as a managing director at Goldman Sachs, delivering him 48 percent of the vote in a six-person race.

Kim Guadagno, a Republican who has served under Gov. Chris Christie for the last seven and a half years, did nearly as well in the GOP primary, winning 47 percent of the vote, to beat her nearest challenger by 16 points.

https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2017/06/08/populist-uprising-runs-aground-in-new-jersey-primary-112638

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Automation Makes Us Dumb

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Automation Makes Us Dumb

Human intelligence is withering as computers do more, but there’s a solution.

By NICHOLAS CARR
Nov. 21, 2014 12:02 p.m. ET

Artificial intelligence has arrived. Today’s computers are discerning and sharp. They can sense the environment, untangle knotty problems, make subtle judgments and learn from experience. They don’t think the way we think—they’re still as mindless as toothpicks—but they can replicate many of our most prized intellectual talents. Dazzled by our brilliant new machines, we’ve been rushing to hand them all sorts of sophisticated jobs that we used to do ourselves.

But our growing reliance on computer automation may be exacting a high price. Worrisome evidence suggests that our own intelligence is withering as we become more dependent on the artificial variety. Rather than lifting us up, smart software seems to be dumbing us down.

It has been a slow process. The first wave of automation rolled through U.S. industry after World War II, when manufacturers began installing electronically controlled equipment in their plants. The new machines made factories more efficient and companies more profitable. They were also heralded as emancipators. By relieving factory hands of routine chores, they would do more than boost productivity. They would elevate laborers, giving them more invigorating jobs and more valuable talents. The new technology would be ennobling.

Then, in the 1950s, a Harvard Business School professor named James Bright went into the field to study automation’s actual effects on a variety of industries, from heavy manufacturing to oil refining to bread baking. Factory conditions, he discovered, were anything but uplifting. More often than not, the new machines were leaving workers with drabber, less demanding jobs. An automated milling machine, for example, didn’t transform the metalworker into a more creative artisan; it turned him into a pusher of buttons.

https://online.wsj.com/articles/automation-makes-us-dumb-1416589342

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Federal Employees Union Says Obamacare Could ‘Hurt’ Members

 

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Dumb as a box of Rocks ,I believe the Union called it “Cadillac healthcare plans “

Federal Employees Union Says Obamacare Could ‘Hurt’ Members

12:05 PM, Aug 15, 2014 • By MICHAEL WARREN

The National Treasury Employees Union is an independent union representing, according to its own figures, “some 150,000” federal workers from many different agencies. The union claims to fight for the “dignity and respect” of its members, and it maintains a “legislative action center” to keep tabs on what Congress is up to.

With a Republican-controlled House of Representatives that was elected on a message of reining in federal spending, the NTEU’s been on alert for any and all legislation that proposes reducing pay and benefits for federal workers. In fact, on the union’s website, there’s a handy list of 13 active pieces of legislation (all sponsored by Republicans) that the NTEU says it wants to stop. “Warning!” reads the top of the fact sheet. “Which of these bills could hurt you? ALL OF THEM.”

Among the bills is H.R. 1780, sponsored by Michigan Republican Dave Camp. The NTEU says the bill could hurt workers because it would “require most federal employees to leave the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program…and instead join health plans established under the Affordable Care Act.”

Take a look at the flyer below:

https://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/federal-employees-union-says-obamacare-could-hurt-members_802995.html

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Senate Dems stage climate all-nighter want lawmakers to agree that climate change is a scientific fact.

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Washington  DC dumb as a box of rocks

Legislating fact : Senate Dems stage climate all-nighter  want lawmakers to agree that climate change is a scientific fact.
By Laura Barron-Lopez

At least 28 Senate Democrats are pulling an all-nighter on Monday to wake up “stubborn” climate change deniers in Congress.

With substantial climate change legislation all but dead in Congress, the senators involved in Monday’s climate-fest just want to get to a point where lawmakers can agree that climate change is a scientific fact.

And having the Senate Democratic leadership on their side doesn’t hurt, said Sen. Brian Schatz, (D-Hawaii), who helped spearhead the push for congressional action on climate change.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) will be among those participating in the talk-a-thon on the Senate floor, along with Sens. Dick Durbin (Ill.), Barbara Boxer (Calif.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), along with 22 others.

Notably absent from the marathon session will be the four most vulnerable Senate Democrats up for reelection this year: Sens. Mary Landrieu (La.), Kay Hagan (N.C.), Mark Pryor (Ark.) and Mark Begich (Alaska) are not scheduled to take part, according to a list of speakers.

However, they were invited, Schatz said, adding that their Republican colleagues were verbally invited as well. The response, Schatz admitted was far from enthusiastic.

Read more: https://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/200263-climate-change-all-nighter-in-congress#ixzz2vToIn8O9
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