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Thursday, December 14, 2023

Putin confronts his AI 'double'

Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared briefly lost for words on Thursday when confronted with an AI-generated version of himself.

The "double" took the opportunity to put a question to Putin about artificial intelligence during an annual news conference where dozens of callers from around the country were hooked up to the president by video link.

"Vladimir Vladimirovich, hello, I am a student at St Petersburg state university. I want to ask, is it true you have a lot of doubles?" the double asked, prompting laughter among the audience in the hall with Putin in Moscow.

"And also: How do you view the dangers that artificial intelligence and neural networks bring into our lives?"

The question prompted a rare hesitation from Putin, already in his fourth hour of taking questions at the marathon event.

"I see you may resemble me and speak with my voice. But I have thought about it and decided that only one person must be like me and speak with my voice, and that will be me," he said.

"That is my first double, by the way," Putin added as an afterthought.

There has been recurrent speculation, particularly in Western media, that Putin has one or more body doubles to cover for him in some public appearances because of alleged health problems. The Kremlin had denied that and said the president's health is excellent.

https://news.yahoo.com/putin-confronts-ai-double-125716139.html

Angelenos fight back after Gaza protestors shut down the 110 freeway

By Monica Showalter

The 110 is one of Los Angeles's busiest and most roaringly hellish freeways. Some people consider it the worst, or pretty close. My choice for 'worst' is the 101, but the 110 is right up there.

If you have ever been on the 110, you would know that it isn't all that wide, and it's loaded with big rigs roaring down in high-speed convoys, coming and going from the Port of Los Angeles. Naturally, the surface of the road is pretty beat up. Bumper-to-bumper traffic is common and there are no good side streets to detour onto to avoid the congestion, which every Angeleno knows how to do on the 10 and the 405. On the 110, you have to stay on the 110. But it's not stop-and-go traffic in those car crushes, it's traffic that goes fast, so fast you have trouble switching into your exit lane. You have to have your GPS on to warn you of which lane to thread your way into at the earliest time or you will miss your turnoff, because there aren't any slack spaces as its southbound lanes roar down to San Pedro's Port of Los Angeles, or if you work it right, Long Beach. Accidents, as you may imagine, are very common in the radio traffic reports.

So which highway did a band of leftist goofs, this group called "If Not Now LA" who apparently were leftist Jews imagining that appeasing Hamas would be the thing, decide to target for their Gaza ceasefire protest?

Here we go, according to local ABC7:

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Protesters calling for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip drove onto the 110 Freeway in downtown L.A. on Wednesday morning, exited their vehicles and forced the closure of all southbound lanes, all of which were later reopened.
The organized demonstration on the freeway began shortly after 9 a.m. and brought traffic to a standstill on one side of the freeway. Northbound traffic was not affected.

What a bunch of jackasses.

Normal lefty protestors usually stay off the highways and drop banners down from overhead crossing bridges to get their message out. Once in awhile they "spontaneously" spill into traffic from street protests. These guys opted to stop their own cars in roaring traffic in order to block everyone else's. While 9 a.m. isn't rush hour, it's close: they would not have been able to stop their cars at all without getting blown into the sky if it was rush hour. It's very crowded traffic conditions though, and for them, just the place to stop traffic and yell about a Gaza ceasefire as if commuters and truckers desperately trying to stay out of accidents on that highway would have any interest in that topic at that hour.

So the inevitable happened:

California Highway Patrol officers were at the scene as several violent skirmishes broke out among frustrated drivers and the protesters, who locked arms with each other in a row that spanned across the southbound lanes. An occasional motorcycle would break through the line and drive onward on the empty freeway ahead.

Here's a series of videos from freelance writer Sergio Olmos who was apparently there, as the protest unfolded, posted on Twitter:

It's impressive to see Angelenos take matters into their own hands given the provocation. Look at them lifting these punks up by the scruffs of their necks and pulling them out of the way of traffic, flinging signs, not taking guff, not backing down. For the wokesters out there, they are of every race and color, men and women, big, little, and musclebound physiques. It's a true rainbow of participatory democracy and it was all spontaneous, no affirmative-action DEI team necessary. It was the real Los Angeles in all its polyglot glory.

The California Highway Patrol eventually arrived and arrested about 75 of the protestors, but didn't manage to get the highway cleared until 11:30 a.m., meaning schoolkids in buses who were stuck in that traffic, and ambulances and people with job interviews and everyone else who needed to get to work or from one place to another were left waiting for two and a half hours for these boobs to get done with their stupid protest.

One only hopes that the arrests have teeth in order to deter more of this crap, but this being California, I won't hold my breath.

It shows the depths of unrealism of these protestors that they think they could get away with a stunt this unpopular and expect anyone to embrace their cause.

Angelenos took matters into their own hands on this one. To that end, they demonstrate that there is hope for California.

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/12/angelenos_fight_back_after_gaza_protestors_shut_down_their_110_freeway.html

Breitbart Exposes Security Gaps: Migrants Board Planes Without IDs At Tucson Airport

A recent investigation conducted by Breitbart Texas at Tucson International Airport, Arizona, has brought to light significant concerns regarding border security and migrant processing. While the rest of us have to wait in endless lines - and will definitely miss our flight if we've forgotten ID, migrants released by the Border Patrol were observed boarding U.S. flights without the standard identification required for most travelers.

Special TSA Screening for Migrants

The outlet reported that on a Friday afternoon at Tucson International Airport, migrants, having been released from Border Patrol custody, were seen in a "special" security line set up by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). This line catered exclusively to migrants, many of whom lacked any form of identification, a requirement typically enforced for U.S. citizens and legal international travelers.

*A TSA sign guides “Non-U.S. Citizens without Passports to a special screening line. (Randy Clark/Breitbart Texas)*

These migrants carried manila envelopes containing a Notice to Appear, signifying their release from federal custody. Notably, these documents did not include photo identification, a standard requirement under TSA regulations for air travel.

According to Breitbart's findings, while TSA regulations generally mandate government-issued photo ID cards for travel, there is a provision for "acceptable alternate identification for use in special circumstances at the checkpoint," which appears to be the basis for the special line.

Increased Migrant Arrivals and Processing Challenges

The report highlights that the surge of migrants crossing into the United States has led to a flood of illegal migrants being released into the country to pursue asylum claims. The influx has overwhelmed Border Patrol facilities in Tucson, with numbers exceeding their designated holding capacity. The situation has obvious national security implications associated with the rapid processing and release of migrants.

According to a DHS Office of the Inspector General report cited in Breitbart's investigation, in one case a migrant on the Terrorist Watch List was mistakenly released by the Border Patrol in Yuma, Arizona.

The source says capacity issues facing the Border Patrol and the need to quickly release the migrants pose a significant risk to national security. According to an investigative report by the DHS Office of the Inspector General, in April 2022, one migrant on the Terrorist Watch List was released by the Border Patrol in Yuma, Arizona. The report noted a series of failures by multiple DHS agencies resulted in the failure to conclusively determine that the migrant was on the Terrorist Watchlist, resulting in the release from custody.
The migrant and family members were later encountered attempting to board an aircraft by TSA security screening personnel at the Palm Springs International Airport. Despite the second encounter by DHS personnel, the migrant was ultimately able to travel to Tampa, Florida, and was not rearrested by ICE for more than two weeks. -Breitbart

Approximately 190,000 migrants were apprehended in November trying to enter the United States illegally.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/breitbart-investigation-reveals-security-lapse-tucson-airport-migrants-board-flights

Republicans have a great candidate to replace George Santos — meet Mazi Melesa Pilip

Republicans have found a candidate for the Feb. 13 special election to succeed George Santos in Mazi Pilip.Mazi Pilip / facebook
George Santos was a constant headache for Republicans, starting when he was exposed as a con man shortly after winning a Long Island Congressional seat a year ago.

That continued until this month, when he was expelled from the House after publication of a searing ethics report.

But the mood among local Republicans is likely to shift now that they’ve found what appears to be a dream candidate for the Feb. 13 special election to succeed Santos.

Mazi Melesa Pilip, 44, is a two-term member of the Nassau County Legislature whose life comes out of central casting.

She was born in a poor village in Ethiopia where no house had running water.

She left for Israel at age 12 as a refugee in a program that rescued 14,000 black Jews living under an oppressive dictatorship.

At age 18, she signed up as a paratrooper in the Israel Defense Force.

After completing her service she earned a master’s degree in diplomacy and security from Tel Aviv University.

While there she married a fellow Jewish student whose family had emigrated to Israel from Ukraine and in 2005 came with him to the United States, where he completed his medical studies to become a cardiologist.

Two years ago, Pilip decided to enter politics (“You can’t just complain from outside,” she said) and ran for Nassau County Legislature in the Great Neck area, defeating a four-term Democratic incumbent by 7 points.

She still found time to give birth to twin daughters (her sixth and seventh children) just weeks before the election.

She was re-elected to a second term last month with 60% percent of the vote.

Pete King, a congressman from Nassau County for 28 years, is full of praise for Pilip’s candidacy: “She’s really the American success story, the American dream.”

Tom Suozzi, who represented the district in the House for six years until 2022, is the Democratic candidate in the special and has far stronger name recognition.

But his electoral history is spotty.

He was ousted as Nassau County executive in 2009 as part of a tax revolt.

In 2022 he left Congress to challenge Gov. Hochul in the Democratic primary.

But his moderate platform bombed with the Democratic base, and he only won 13% of the vote.

While Hochul has endorsed him for the special, progressives’ lingering suspicions of Suozzi may dampen enthusiasm for his campaign.

At first glance, Suozzi starts out with a partisan advantage. The district went for Joe Biden by nearly 9 points in 2020.

But Republicans have done well since then running on taxes and crime, with 2022 gubernatorial nominee Lee Zeldin winning easily and Republicans sweeping the county executive, district attorney and comptroller’s offices this year in Nassau.

Pilip represents a tenth of the district’s voters in her current legislative seat.

Pilip has been attacked for lacking experience on the national stage, but as a local official she has worked with law enforcement to reduce crime and battle Hochul’s plan to impose high-density housing on Long Island neighborhoods.

She has also become a source of strength for families who lost loved ones in the October Hamas atrocities.

It “personally impacted me,” she told the Times of Israel.

“And we have to send a message to the world. Hamas is a terrorist organization, and Israel has an obligation to defend its people.”

The campaign will last only two months.

The Cook Political Report calls it a toss-up race but notes Pilip is “a rising star whose personal story would be tailor-made for national coverage.”

Should Pilip win she would have to almost immediately campaign for re-election and in a district that due to a new state court decision could be gerrymandered by the supermajority Democratic Legislature to remove GOP-leaning areas.

But Pilip has already proven she can overcome every obstacle that life has thrown at her.

If she wins she’s more likely to remain a spokesman for GOP diversity than to see her career cut short by computer gerrymandering gnomes.

John Fund is a columnist for National Review and a fellow at the Committee to Unleash Prosperity.

https://nypost.com/2023/12/14/opinion/republicans-have-a-great-candidate-to-replace-george-santos-meet-mazi-melesa-pilip/

‘Protesters’ closing roads, bridges are RIOTERS — arrest them all

How much longer will we put up with “peaceful protests” actually being violent riots?

How many more times will we allow our roads and bridges to be shut down for the leftist lunacy of the day before we say enough?

This week, a pro-Palestinian protest shut down the Manhattan Bridge.

It wasn’t the first time the bridge had been brought to a standstill to ostensibly take a stand for Palestine.

The bridge was shut down in November too.

As The Post reported at the time, “Three demonstrators — one woman and two men — were arrested during the protest, according to law enforcement sources. One protester could be seen spray painting ‘Gaza’ on a support beam of the bridge.”

It was the Brooklyn Bridge last week that saw the pro-intifada crowd shut down its lanes and the Williamsburg Bridge before that.

It’s also not just New York.

San Francisco’s Bay Bridge has been shut down twice recently for the same cause.

On Wednesday, the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles was brought to a halt.

And it’s not just traffic stoppage, although that should be bad enough on its own to prompt arrests.

These protesters have disrupted Christmas tree lightings and House Judiciary Committee hearings, vandalized property, threatened businesses and committed acts of violence.

A burning police hat, stolen off the head of an officer, is symbolic for how the protesters are running the show and we’re all watching from the sidelines.

The situation has spiraled out of control, and no one is doing anything about it.

It didn’t begin with the recent war in the Middle East either.

Far-left agitators have come to expect that they can do whatever they want for any of their causes.

They throw paint on artwork to protest climate change.

Storm government buildings for gun control.

Get a mob to go to a Supreme Court justice’s home because they don’t like his decisions.

And let’s not forget the “summer of love” in 2020 when buildings burned and people were murdered in support of Black Lives Matter.

It’s a lie that these protests are “peaceful”; in fact, very few have been peaceful in the last decade.

The groups primarily consist of overgrown babies who haven’t been told “No” enough in their lives.

They rampage through our cities with little to no pushback.

We can’t continue to allow this.

Our cities are still teetering after COVID-era policies caused so much economic damage.

There’s a chaos that occurs in the wake of these riots that adds a layer of fear for law-abiding citizens who just want to get home from work but can’t because college kids with trust funds are blocking the roadway.

People deserve to live in places without occasional unchecked mayhem.

Police have to start making mass arrests, and prosecutors need to enforce the laws.

They’re currently leaving regular people to handle these tantruming protesters on their own.

The shutdown of the freeway in LA led to a large fight as drivers tried to move demonstrators out of the way.

They shouldn’t have to do that.

California highway patrol officers did intervene and eventually made arrests, but like most police activity in response to these protests, they seemed unprepared for the protest at all.

It’s long past the time to start anticipating these chaos-causing events and making arrests for law-breaking.

No, these people don’t get to stop traffic or deface property because they super care about their cause.

Just like we tell small children to “use your words,” so should these activists be forced to conform to our societal rules and laws.

We have law-enforcement apparatus in place that is supposed to protect the citizenry from those who wish to cause disorder.

Citizens shouldn’t have to just take it when the movement of the day causes disarray in their lives.

“Mostly peaceful” protests just won’t do anymore.

Mostly arrested protesters will.

https://nypost.com/2023/12/14/opinion/protesters-closing-roads-bridges-are-rioters-arrest-them-all/

NYC dance company in Jill Biden Christmas video pushes ‘defund police,’ discredited ‘antiracism’ activists

The Manhattan-based dance company featured in the White House’s annual Christmas video Thursday endorses discredited “antiracism” activists and radical left-wing causes, including prison abolition and defunding law enforcement.

First lady Jill Biden shared Dorrance Dance’s “playful interpretation of The Nutcracker Suite” on X Thursday, which was widely panned for its “Hunger Games” and “Clockwork Orange” aesthetic.

While the tap routine appeared apolitical, the dance troupe’s website is anything but – promoting far-left policies that are even out of step with the Biden administration.

“I am a white tap dancer with Black cultural ancestors in a society that privileges white people and whiteness,” Michelle Dorrance, the company’s founder, writes in a note on the troupe’s website titled, “Why antiracism work is important to me.”

“I am easy for white audiences wanting to access and experience elements of Black culture to swallow. My whiteness is the reason you may have heard of me before two of my inspirations,” she adds, referencing two contemporary black tap dancers, Ayodele Casel and Dormeshia.

“It is imperative for me, and those who look like me, to acknowledge that. It is imperative for us to fight against racist norms that have defined American culture since its very origin.”

The comprehensive “antiracism” section of Dorrance Dance’s website includes links to numerous far-left organizations, such as Black Lives Matter and INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence — the latter group trumpets the antisemitic slogan, “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free!” on its website.

Dorrance Dance encourages visitors to “get involved in abolition work” linking to essays titled, “What Is Prison Abolition?” and “How I Became a Police Abolitionist.”

The prison abolition movement considers immigrant detention centers, city and county jails and state and federal prisons, “social evils” that “must be eradicated.”

The website also directs users to organizations promoting the so-called “defund the police” movements in New York, San Diego, Minneapolis and Dallas.

There are links to several petitions, including one that reads, “DEFUND AND REDISTRIBUTE NYPD FUNDING BY $500 MILLION,” sponsored by the NYC Wealth Distribution Project.

Another petition demands that Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and the Justice Department “free every black person incarcerated on marijuana related charges” – which President Biden has notably refused to do.

In the “Educate Yourself” section of the site, Dorrance Dance promotes the New York Times’ discredited “1619 Project,” which falsely claims that the American Revolution was fought largely to preserve slavery.

“White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism” by Robin DiAngelo and Ibram X. Kendi’s entire “antiracist reading list” are among the tomes featured on Dorrance Dance’s “books” page.

DiAngelo pushes the theory that all white Americans are racist and the product of white supremacy. She was once slammed as the “P.T. Barnum of American race relations” by columnist Maureen Callahan, who noted that DiAngelo rakes in tens of thousands of dollars annually from corporations that hire her for diversity training.

A former employee at Kendi’s Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University accused the organization earlier this year of mismanaging more than $40 million in funds and doing little research compared to the size of the grants the center was receiving. Boston University later said it found “no issues” with Kendi’s management of the center.

It’s unclear if taxpayer money was used to pay Dorrance Dance for the routine in the White House Christmas video.

The White House and Dorrance Dance did not respond to The Post’s requests for comment.

https://nypost.com/2023/12/14/news/dorrance-dance-used-for-wh-christmas-video-backs-defunding-police/

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