On Tue, 17 Feb 2026 19:15:03 +0100, occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
On 17/02/2026 04:38, Steve Hayes wrote:
On Mon, 16 Feb 2026 10:01:42 +0100, occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
You say that, but some very astute people believe in the existence of
aliens.
I wouldn't regard ICE as "very astute".
Steve, the article was pointing to a statement by Barak Obama. Not ICE.
But the job of ICE requires them to believe in the existence of
aliens, and to capture them.
But the job of ICE requires them to believe in the existence of
aliens, and to capture them.
They don't even have to _be_ aliens, just have the wrong complexion
and/or accent.
Den 18.02.2026 kl. 19.50 skrev Sam Plusnet:
But the job of ICE requires them to believe in the existence of
aliens, and to capture them.
They don't even have to _be_ aliens, just have the wrong complexion
and/or accent.
Isn't that the definition of alien?
On 18/02/2026 02:46, Steve Hayes wrote:
On Tue, 17 Feb 2026 22:41:41 +0100, occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
On 17/02/2026 22:06, J. J. Lodder wrote:
occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
On 17/02/2026 04:38, Steve Hayes wrote:A Whoosh. You refered to 'some very astute people',
On Mon, 16 Feb 2026 10:01:42 +0100, occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote: >>>>>>
You say that, but some very astute people believe in the existence of >>>>>>> aliens.
I wouldn't regard ICE as "very astute".
Steve, the article was pointing to a statement by Barak Obama. Not ICE. >>>>
instead of Obama,
Not a whoosh. Just bad comprehension on Steve's part (and yours). Did I
write all people who believe in the existence of aliens are astute? no,
some.
You can be forgiven, as your English is suspect. Steve is
an Anglophone.
I was merely emphasising the point that astuteness is not a
requirement for believing in the existence of aliens.
Again, my English sentence points out that at least one astute person
(Obama) believed in the existence of aliens. (He has since
back-paddled.) I said nothing about the entire set of people who
believe in aliens. I don't believe the intent behind your response (I >wouldn't regard ICE as "very astute") was a whoosh. Except in the mind
of one Dutchman wearing his Dutch cap.
On 18/02/2026 01:42, Steve Hayes wrote:
On Tue, 17 Feb 2026 19:15:03 +0100, occam wrote:
On 17/02/2026 04:38, Steve Hayes wrote:
On Mon, 16 Feb 2026 10:01:42 +0100, occam wrote:
You say that, but some very astute people believe in the existence of >>>>> aliens.
I wouldn't regard ICE as "very astute".
Steve, the article was pointing to a statement by Barak Obama. Not ICE.
But the job of ICE requires them to believe in the existence of
aliens, and to capture them.
They don't even have to _be_ aliens, just have the wrong complexion and/
or accent.
Le 18/02/2026 |a 18:50, Sam Plusnet a |-crit :
On 18/02/2026 01:42, Steve Hayes wrote:
On Tue, 17 Feb 2026 19:15:03 +0100, occam wrote:
On 17/02/2026 04:38, Steve Hayes wrote:
On Mon, 16 Feb 2026 10:01:42 +0100, occam wrote:
You say that, but some very astute people believe in the
existence of aliens.
I wouldn't regard ICE as "very astute".
Steve, the article was pointing to a statement by Barak Obama.
Not ICE.
But the job of ICE requires them to believe in the existence of
aliens, and to capture them.
They don't even have to _be_ aliens, just have the wrong complexion
and/ or accent.
Green skin is a giveaway, an adolescent's spots are more ambiguous.
Are ICE agents the new Men in Black?
that he's ony attacking states that don't have the
death penalty for treason.
As a long time SF fan, watching this artificially generated video of
Richard Feynman about the impossibility of interstellar travel really
pissed on my fire. <smile>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHTYiVFe7mI
NOTE: Despite the AI generated images and voice, the arguments (and
logic) are impeccable. However the videos are becoming more and more difficult to identify as 'AI generated'.
Trump has been more careful. He sends the military into states that
didn't vote for him, but he hasn't (yet) declared martial law. I have
the impression, too, that he's ony attacking states that don't have the
death penalty for treason.
Op 14/02/2026 om 9:49 schreef occam:
NOTE: Despite the AI generated images and voice, the arguments (andIndeed.
logic) are impeccable. However the videos are becoming more and more >>difficult to identify as 'AI generated'.
One could criticize:
lack of respiration and other mouthly sounds between long and fast
speech bits,
lack of moving the head or looking now and then a bit up/down/sideways,
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 20:39:10 +1100, Peter Moylan <peter@pmoylan.org>
wrote:
Trump has been more careful. He sends the military into states that
didn't vote for him, but he hasn't (yet) declared martial law. I have
the impression, too, that he's ony attacking states that don't have the >>death penalty for treason.
Trump doesn't "declare" things like martial law. He assumes them.
Hitler thought it necessary for the Reichstag to pass an Enabling Act;
for Trump it is sufficient to act enabled.
I wondered about dictator vs. tyrant, personally or by regime.
Google AI told me a main distinction is: Ff a dictator wants to
do something presently illegal, he will change the law before he does
it. From several queries, I gathered that the tyrant often may
have power that is less than the dictator's; also, the tyrant is apt
to disrespect and therefore disregard laws and legal procedures.
Thus, the tyrant will not hesitate to violate the law; he will look
for options only if that does not succeed or creates too much fuss.
Trump gives us dozens of examples of "acting the tyrant" by this
standard.
I don't agree with Google AI. To me, a dictator is someone who does as
he pleases, who is not answerable to anyone else. He doesn't have to be
bad; he may be benign and allow considerable freedom. A tyrant, on the
other hand, governs oppressively and is an enemy to freedom.
Is it practicable to be a benign dictator?
Den 20.02.2026 kl. 08.10 skrev Hibou:
Is it practicable to be a benign dictator?
Dictatorship is the most efficient kind of rule,
but very few people can
master that job without being corrupted. I would like to get the chance.
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 20:39:10 +1100, Peter Moylan <peter@pmoylan.org>
wrote:
Trump has been more careful. He sends the military into states that
didn't vote for him, but he hasn't (yet) declared martial law. I have
the impression, too, that he's ony attacking states that don't have the
death penalty for treason.
Trump doesn't "declare" things like martial law. He assumes them.
Hitler thought it necessary for the Reichstag to pass an Enabling Act;
for Trump it is sufficient to act enabled.
Dictatorship is the most efficient kind of rule,
Is that true?
currently working unpaid - again.
Den 20.02.2026 kl. 09.31 skrev Hibou:
Dictatorship is the most efficient kind of rule,
Is that true?
It has the shortest time span between thought and action.
I understand that many of Mr Trump's servants are
currently working unpaid - again.
If there are no thoughts, there are no actions.
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 20:39:10 +1100, Peter Moylan <peter@pmoylan.org>
wrote:
Trump has been more careful. He sends the military into states that
didn't vote for him, but he hasn't (yet) declared martial law. I have
the impression, too, that he's ony attacking states that don't have the
death penalty for treason.
Trump doesn't "declare" things like martial law. He assumes them.
Hitler thought it necessary for the Reichstag to pass an Enabling Act;
for Trump it is sufficient to act enabled.
On 2026-02-16 03:01, occam wrote:
On 14/02/2026 21:59, J. J. Lodder wrote:
occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
As a long time SF fan, watching this artificially generated video of
Richard Feynman about the impossibility of interstellar travel really
pissed on my fire. <smile>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHTYiVFe7mI
NOTE: Despite the AI generated images and voice, the arguments (and
logic) are impeccable.-a However the videos are becoming more and more >>>> difficult to identify as 'AI generated'.
Hardly news. As another SF author put it:
"Interstellar distances are God's quarantine regulations"
(John Brunner)
Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists
elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us.
-a-a ~ Bill Watterson
Reminds me of an archeological rivalry joke: the Germans and French had found copper and sth else I forget, evidence of ancient wiring. The
Belgians dug 100m deep and found nothing: evidence of wireless networks!
'8 of the nicest kings in history' - <https://www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/nice-kings-too-monarch-rule-leader-charles-i-athelstan/>
:
"|athelstan [...] showed compassion and charity to all [...] and seems to have been genuinely popular with all who met him."
Etc..
'8 of the nicest kings in history' - <https://www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/nice-kings-too-monarch-rule-leader-charles-i-athelstan/>
:
"|athelstan [...] showed compassion and charity to all [...] and seems to have been genuinely popular with all who met him."
Etc..
On 27/02/2026 12:44 am, guido wugi wrote:
Reminds me of an archeological rivalry joke: the Germans and French had found copper and sth else I forget, evidence of ancient wiring. The Belgians dug 100m deep and found nothing: evidence of wireless networks!
Reminds me of a joke I was told by a Belgian
Q: How do you make copper wire?
A: Get two Dutchmen fighting over a cent.
Brian <fakel@us.com> wrote:
On 27/02/2026 12:44 am, guido wugi wrote:
Reminds me of an archeological rivalry joke: the Germans and French had found copper and sth else I forget, evidence of ancient wiring. The Belgians dug 100m deep and found nothing: evidence of wireless networks!
Reminds me of a joke I was told by a Belgian
Q: How do you make copper wire?
A: Get two Dutchmen fighting over a cent.
Sure, Belgians are to dumb to invent jokes for themselves,
(thats why there are so many dumb Belgian jokes)
so they copy English ones about Scots,
On 27/02/2026 12:44 am, guido wugi wrote:
Reminds me of an archeological rivalry joke: the Germans and French
had found copper and sth else I forget, evidence of ancient wiring.
The Belgians dug 100m deep and found nothing: evidence of wireless
networks!
Reminds me of a joke I was told by a Belgian
Q: How do you make copper wire?
A: Get two Dutchmen fighting over a cent.
J. J. Lodder <nospam@de-ster.demon.nl> wrote:
Brian <fakel@us.com> wrote:
On 27/02/2026 12:44 am, guido wugi wrote:
Reminds me of an archeological rivalry joke: the Germans and French had found copper and sth else I forget, evidence of ancient wiring. The Belgians dug 100m deep and found nothing: evidence of wireless networks!
Reminds me of a joke I was told by a Belgian
Q: How do you make copper wire?
A: Get two Dutchmen fighting over a cent.
Sure, Belgians are to dumb to invent jokes for themselves,
(thats why there are so many dumb Belgian jokes)
so they copy English ones about Scots,
I was told a Dutch joke about Belgians:
A large Belgian lorry crossing Europe comes to a low bridge with a sign "Maximum Headroom 2.5 metres". The lorry driver looks out of one window
and his mate looks out of the other "It's all right, there are no police around, we can go through".
When I heard it, it was:
Q: How was copper wire invented?
A: Two Scotsmen had a disagreement about the ownership of a penny.
Also...
Q: How was the Grand Canyon formed?
A: A Scotsman lost a penny down a gopher hole.
Den 28.02.2026 kl. 22.00 skrev lar3ryca:
When I heard it, it was:
Q: How was copper wire invented?
A: Two Scotsmen had a disagreement about the ownership of a penny.
Also...
Q: How was the Grand Canyon formed?
A: A Scotsman lost a penny down a gopher hole.
It's absolutely unfair to make such jokes about the Scots, so here's one more:
From a Scottish newspaper.
-a-a-a-a-a Road accident. Two taxis drove into each other.
-a-a-a-a-a 24 people were injuried.
Brian <fakel@us.com> wrote:
On 27/02/2026 12:44 am, guido wugi wrote:Sure, Belgians are to dumb to invent jokes for themselves,
Reminds me of a joke I was told by a Belgian
Reminds me of an archeological rivalry joke: the Germans and French had
found copper and sth else I forget, evidence of ancient wiring. The
Belgians dug 100m deep and found nothing: evidence of wireless networks! >>>
Q: How do you make copper wire?
A: Get two Dutchmen fighting over a cent.
(thats why there are so many dumb Belgian jokes)
so they copy English ones about Scots,
A: Two Scotsmen had a disagreement about the ownership of a penny.
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