@Steve: No, I wasn't aware of the Draka, but I'll definitely check it out, thanks.
@Barry: I am acutely aware of Elon Musk's significant character flaws and would not try to minimize them. It's important to note that Musk has publicly stated he has Asperger's syndrome, which can make social interactions particularly challenging. He often doesn't intuitively understand the impact of his actions on others, which makes it difficult for him to adjust his behavior accordingly. I can empathize with this because I experience a similar challenge, which makes me sympathetic towards him. Navigating life with these difficulties is no small feat. Despite his personal shortcomings, Musk's capacity to execute projects is remarkable. I don't share this trait, unfortunately, but I recognize its value. For example in my view, the world would be a much better place if we transitioned from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles, and Musk has significantly expedited this shift. And there are many more examples. Regarding free speech, I acknowledge its drawbacks, but what are the alternatives? During the Biden administration, there were allegations of pressure on media to promote a certain narrative, notably around the Hunter Biden laptop story where 51 former intelligence officials wrongly suggested it might be Russian disinformation to influence the 2020 election outcome. This incident illustrates the dangers of having moderators decide what is true if those moderators are not guaranteed to be objective and neutral. The debate on free speech versus moderated content is complex. While there are clear pros and cons, I believe that Elon Musk's approach to free speech on the X platform (formerly Twitter) is preferable to a system where moderation is evidently biased, as it was before Musk's acquisition of the platform. However, the effectiveness of his free speech policies is still a topic of debate among users, with some arguing that the platform's moderation has become less about curating content for truthfulness and more about enabling a broader, sometimes unchecked, range of opinions. On Tue, 21 Jan 2025 at 20:37, Barry MacKichan <barry.mackic...@mackichan.com> wrote: > Can we convince you guys to take Musk back? > > — Barry > > On 21 Jan 2025, at 1:04, Pieter Steenekamp wrote: > > > To my American friends, > > > > As your friendly South African observer, I've been watching the American > > political scene with great interest (and a bit of amusement). I couldn't > > help but notice how some describe Trump. Here in South Africa, we've had > > our share of colorful political figures, but I must say, America's latest > > "dictator" seems to be quite the character! > > > > It seems as though the ancient Chinese curse, "May you live in > interesting > > times," has indeed come to fruition in your part of the world. > > .- .-.. .-.. / ..-. --- --- - . .-. ... / .- .-. . / .-- .-. --- -. --. > / ... --- -- . / .- .-. . / ..- ... . ..-. ..- .-.. > > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > > Fridays 9a-12p Friday St. Johns Cafe / Thursdays 9a-12p Zoom > https://bit.ly/virtualfriam > > to (un)subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ > > archives: 5/2017 thru present > https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ > > 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ > > .- .-.. .-.. / ..-. --- --- - . .-. ... / .- .-. . / .-- .-. --- -. --. / > ... --- -- . / .- .-. . / ..- ... . ..-. ..- .-.. > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Fridays 9a-12p Friday St. Johns Cafe / Thursdays 9a-12p Zoom > https://bit.ly/virtualfriam > to (un)subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ > archives: 5/2017 thru present > https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ > 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ >
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