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Sunday Morning Reading

Steering clear of politics (mostly) here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share.

It’s a tough weekend to put this Sunday Morning Reading column together in the wake of last week’s U.S. Presidential debate. I’ve never seen so many knees jerk so violently at once leading me to assume there are quite a few bruises caused from crashing them against computer desks. So, I’ll be avoiding politics this morning. Perhaps. Maybe. We’ll see.

Did you know that milk is the latest front in the culture wars dividing America? Tony Diver tells us how.

Yes, it’s political but no, it isn’t about recent events specifically, so once again I highly recommend you check out The Split by Steve Radlauer and Ellis Weiner. The Split, now up to Chapter 34, is a terrific serialization of all things political, social, and well… all things.

James B. Stewart and Benjamin Mullen take a long look at the future of streaming in The Future of Netflix, Amazon and Other Streaming Services. It’s a worth your time kind of read even though it takes awhile, but it more than hints that none of the titans of this industry has a clue.

The entertainment industry isn’t the only place run by folks without a clue. Check out The Federal Reserve’s Little Secret by Rogé Karma. Apparently those folks pulling the strings on interest rates don’t have much of one either.

And speaking of titans of industry and god-like powers David Todd McCarty thinks If Someone Asks If You’re A God, You say Yes.

On the Artificial Intelligence front Wired has been doing some good work lately reporting on on that front. Check out Lauren Goode and Tom Simonite’s This Viral AI Chatbot Will Lie and Say It’s Human.

Also check out Elizabeth Lopatto’s Perplexity’s Grand Theft AI. Sounds human to me.

Joan Westenberg has an interesting think piece on the misconstruing and appropriation of the message of George Orwell’s 1984 in “This Is Just Like 1984.” Great piece.

I said I’d avoid the political hot potato of the presidential debate. It’s not that I lied, or changed my mind, it’s that this piece is too good to not recommend. Check out Natasha MH’s view in The US Presidential Debate Reminded Me of My Divorce.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here. You can also find more of my writings on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.You can also find me on social networks under my own name.

EU Charges Apple with Violating DMA Rules

The EU charges Apple with violations of the DMA

The friction between Apple and the European Union just took another turn. The EU has charged Apple with DMA rules violations dropping the dubious distinction on Apple of being the first “gatekeeper” company to be so charged. It’s a preliminary ruling and Apple has until March 2025 to respond to this preliminary ruling.

If the charges stick, the potential remedy is for Apple to be fined up to 10 percent of its annual global revenue. quite a bite of the Apple.

This comes on the heels of last week’s pot-stirring announcement that Apple’s new, but yet unreleased and untested, Apple Intelligence features won’t be rolling out in the EU (and other markets) until next year. As I said then, this is all going to be one big negotiation with legal and political shots fired by both sides.

At the root of the charges is “steering,” which the EU sees as key to a competitive market. Bottom line, the EU wants gatekeeper companies to allow software developers to be able to “steer” potential customers to their products free from closed App Store and other gatekeeper restrictions. Apple joins Alphabet, Amazon, ByteDance, Meta and Microsoft in the EU”s list of gatekeepers.

The EU is also challenging Apple’s moves to come into compliance by charging a Core Technology Fee that most complain violates the intention to allow side loading of apps.

This will bounce back and forth over the next nine months and will probably become even more contentious given quotes like this from Thierry Breton, the EU internal market commissioner: “Apple’s new slogan should be ‘act different.’

Apple has released the following statement:

“Throughout the past several months, Apple has made a number of changes to comply with the DMA in response to feedback from developers and the European Commission. We are confident our plan complies with the law, and estimate more than 99% of developers would pay the same or less in fees to Apple under the new business terms we created. All developers doing business in the EU on the App Store have the opportunity to utilize the capabilities that we have introduced, including the ability to direct app users to the web to complete purchases at a very competitive rate. As we have done routinely, we will continue to listen and engage with the European Commission.”

The Financial Times seems to be the front lines where both the EU and Apple are waging this battle. The Verge also has a writeup on the news. I’m sure there will be more. Intelligent or not.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Apple and the EU Squabble Over Inclusion of Apple Intelligence and Other New Features

Apple and the EU squabbles continue now over new features.

It’s a Friday free-for-all between Apple and the European Union. Miffed at, or stymied by, the EU’s DMA regulations, Apple announced in the Financial Times that all of the ballyhooed (but still not seen in the real world) Apple Intelligence features along with a few others might not be coming to the EU when they launch in the U.S this fall or even this year.

Screenshot%202024 06 10%20at%2011.36.33%E2%80%AFAM.

John Gruber of Daring Fireball has the full statement from Apple as reproduced here:

Two weeks ago, Apple unveiled hundreds of new features that we are excited to bring to our users around the world. We are highly motivated to make these technologies accessible to all users. However, due to the regulatory uncertainties brought about by the Digital Markets Act (DMA), we do not believe that we will be able to roll out three of these features — iPhone Mirroring, SharePlay Screen Sharing enhancements, and Apple Intelligence — to our EU users this year.

Specifically, we are concerned that the interoperability requirements of the DMA could force us to compromise the integrity of our products in ways that risk user privacy and data security. We are committed to collaborating with the European Commission in an attempt to find a solution that would enable us to deliver these features to our EU customers without compromising their safety.

Apple PR is obviously hard at work here and I’m sure the EU’s PR operations will be following suit shortly. I’m particularly entertained by the phrase “we do not believe.” It’s also fascinating to watch the sideshow of reactions that might turn into something more: how Apple users on their respective sides of the pond are responding to this. Generally speaking from the early reactions I’ve seen the majority of American sympathies tend to lean towards Apple, while it’s just the opposite in Europe. But it’s early and it’s a Friday.

The timing of this suggests an opening salvo in further negotiations given that none of the features in question have been rolled out yet. However, according to Gruber a few of the non Apple Intelligence features (iPhone Mirroring and SharePlay Screen Sharing) are scheduled to roll out in the next betas to be released. iPhone Mirroring is one of the sexier features announced, so it will be interesting to see how that is handled with the next round of betas.

It is obvious that at some point down the road there will be some sort of compromise. Apple doesn’t want to lose the EU market no matter what those who suggest Apple should just pull out of the EU markets might say. And somehow I doubt EU Apple users will exert enough pressure to change any strong position the EU might cling to.

In the meantime the sideshow commentary in addition to the news will make for an interesting Summer beta season.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Apple Intelligence Crawling Under the Skin for Some

Apple Intelligence is the latest AI effort upsetting web publishers.

As we learn more about Apple Intelligence how Apple is training its AI efforts is crawling under the skin of some web publishers. Apple has been reasonably transparent about how it’s crawling the open web and using data it can grab for its efforts. Even so that’s not sitting well with everybody. But that’s been an uneasy road we’ve all been on with AI in a general sense since those gates were thrown open by OpenAI in 2022.

Screenshot%202024 06 10%20at%2011.36.33%E2%80%AFAM. This is a sticky wicket. Web publishers justifiably don’t feel great about having their content grabbed, regurgitated and spit back out without some consent or control. The other side of that coin is that the info is on the open web and by and large folks can access it through a variety of methods. There’s also the reality that the horse is already far from the barn because most of these AI models have been doing the same thing Apple is doing. AI has a been both a cash grab and a content grab from the get go, because without the content there’s diminishing returns on the cash.

There are methods to exclude a website from being crawled. Dan Moren at Six Colors has posted a good piece on how to do so and what that could mean here. Keep in mind any method used for this only excludes content and data going forward. Federico Viticci at MacStories has already stated that he’ll be excluding his website going forward.

Also keep in mind that this isn’t the only way Apple will be putting Apple Intelligence to work. Regardless, this is going to be an issue to follow as we continue to learn more about Apple Intelligence, which is just the latest in these Artificial Intelligence efforts that we all need to pay attention to. Like it or not it’s here and a fact of life. AND this isn’t the only issue getting under some folk’s skin since Apple made its announcement.

As a side note, my reading list on Apple Intelligence continues to grow with both punditry and technical info that I discover along the way. I imagine that list will just keep growing.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Terrific MKBHD Interview with TIm Cook

A relaxed Tim Cook talks Apple Intelligence with MKBHD

There are several Tim Cook interviews bouncing around the Internet while Apple’s WWDC is ongoing this week. They focus on all of what Apple has publicly announced, and it doesn’t take artificial intelligence to know a big part of the discussion is Apple Intelligence.

Prolific YouTuber Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) sat down with Tim Cook in one of the most relaxed interviews I’ve ever seen Apple’s CEO give. Given the promotional nature and pace during WWDC week, I think that’s a bit of a rarity. So credit to MKBHD.

Yes, the interview covers Apple Intelligence, but it’s fun to watch MKBHD challenge Cook to a blind ranking of Apple products. Cook doesn’t take the bait of picking favorites, but does talk about the five products MKBHD brings up and it is especially fun to watch Cook’s reaction as he spins a bit about the Magic Mouse.

All in all it’s well worth watching and Cook’s answers to MKBHD’s questions do shed a bit more light on what Apple is thinking about Apple Intelligence and where that might take technology.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome. I can also be found on social media under my name as above.

Trump Guilty: Everything Changes Everything Remains The Same

A stench that will never fade.

Yesterday’s unanimous jury verdicts convicting former President, rapist, and con artist Donald Trump changed everything and changed nothing. Beyond the damage to the decaying orange turd’s branding (he should now always be introduced and referred to as “Convicted Felon”) the MAGA political world is still living in their own warped reality. It’s historic and full of histrionics.

We shouldn’t really be surprised. Some say it’s a fear of Trump’s wrath. For the compromised I’m sure that’s true. What’s more dangerous is the larger group who want to use Trump as a bludgeon to beat back and down what they definitiely fear more. They don’t like him, they just want to take advantage of his blustering bumbling to hang on to their plantation mindset. They fear their idea of an America is under threat by too many anyones who don’t look, act and think like them. Make no mistake. That fear is tangible.

It’s led to abandonment on some sort of cosmic political level and defies the laws of political gravity. They’ve abandoned any sense of the virtue that this country’s founders believed was the key ingredient to the idea of America. They’ve abandoned any sense of shame. They’ve abandoned any sense of good sense, common or calculating. They’ve twisted and turned themselves into enough knots that there’s no way to untangle the mess they’ve put us in without cutting off some piece of anatomy they might need later. I’d argue they need thoughts and prayers, but they’ve abandoned and defiled thinking and praying.

The verdict wasn’t predictable. They never are. The MAGA reaction to it was. It’s a script written for bad characters that that have crossed beyond the borders of caricature and cliché into some other definition that the human experience and literature hasn’t been able to label yet.

The bottom line in all of this is that on May 30, 2024 in a courtroom in New York City an asshole got his ass handed to him in a court of law and the reaction to that proves his ass wipers obviously enjoy the smell so much they will still stand in line and fall over themselves to be the first to wade deeper into his offal. It’s a stench that will never fade.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Things We Know

Life sucks when there are things we know and can’t change.

Things we know and it doesn’t appear we can do anything about.

Judge Cannon is on the take.

Our judicial system has been exposed as corrupt beyond repair, much like our political systems. Neither is going to save us from a deranged orange tinged rapist who is willing to blow anything and everything up. Regardless of how the election turns out.

Destroying musical instruments for advertising purposes is apparently a sin against nature.

There are bears in the woods.

There are no answers for the problems in the Middle East. Too many prayers. Not enough thoughts.

Streaming entertainment consolidation continues. Prices will go up, and we’ll see more of the same ads because there’s not enough advertising to go around.

At times Social Media can be anything but.

Moving sucks.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Why The Dems Need to Keep the Gavel in Mike Johnson’s Hand

The Dems need to help Mike Johnson hang onto his gavel

Politics has never been bean bag. But it’s also never been this stupid. Mike Johnson, the aw-shucks reluctant Speaker of the House is making a play for bills that should have passed the House of Representatives long ago. Because his predecessor caved to the crazies in his caucus and allowed any House member to file a motion to vacate the chair, Johnson is once again up against the wall, being threatened by some of his own members if he does.

Johnson-gavel-768x512 2.

This morning another Republcian vowed to support the Mouth from the South’s motion to vacate, upping the stakes a bit and certainly increasing the entertainment value, dubious as it is. Once you’ve watched The Three Stooges in reruns over and over again, the shtick more than fades.

Too many on the Democratic side of things lust to see Johnson toppled and the Republicans falter, hoping to regain the majority. while the former GOP continues swimming in a cesspool of their own making. Set aside that the bills in question are necessary for larger reasons. They are and need to pass.

The Democrats should have the votes with enough semi-sane Republicans to help pass the legislation and also allow Johnson to retain his Speakership, should he decide he’s got the moxie to move. I’m not sure which side will have to hold its nose more tightly to make that move, but take a deep breath, grab those nostrils, squeeze and do the smart thing.

Why should the Dems save Johnson’s skin? It’s simple. With this Congress and the ever narrowing and narrow-minded Republican majority in the House, not much is going to happen legislatively prior to the Labor Day recess. Moving legislation after that is practically an impossibility, even more so this year. Those who keep hoping for the Dem’s to quickly regain the gavel need to cool their jets and get smart.

Kindergarten political science calculations should tell anyone paying attention that going into the November elections with this House remaining under Republican control should make it easier for the Dems to regain the majoirty after the election by continuing to campaign against an easily recognizable ineffectual Republican majority full of looney tunes characters not legislators.

That’s not a sure thing, because it does indeed depend on the election. But it’s a better bet than if the Dem’s were suddenly placed in control in the run-up to the election, having to accept the responsibility for governing when there won’t be a chance in hell of getting anything done in the meantime. It also has a chance to diminish the power of the crazies a bit. It won’t stop the yelling and screaming, but it will continue to help magnify the stupidity which seems to know no bounds.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Forget Voting, Let’s Just Count The Cash

A Modest Proposal

There’s a part of me that thinks we should dispense with voting and just award the presidency to the candidate who raises the most money. Certainly that would be unfair to those with less money under our current system, but there might be ways to make it more transparent.

Campaign finance 1.

Big bucks donors have always felt this way. At least that’s what they have told themselves after stroking large checks to this or that PAC. It used to be for a chance to grab a government contract or two and that’s still the case. But after the 2016 election many got their quid-pro-quo with the Trump tax cuts. Some of which will expire at the end of 2025. Bettting on an extension or making those tax cuts permanent more aptly explains the current willingness to toss out good money after bad character.

That’s the point. As long as there’s a buck to be made, make the bet. Trump’s an edges-bent, easy to read wildcard, but big donors, like some criminals posing as world leaders, are counting on the chaos to save some tax scratch while also allowing them to do whatever the heck they want to do to keep the cash spigots open. They know what they’re betting on.

Regardless of party, politics has always been about who gets to ride the gravy train. With the Democrats some of it is actually about policy. With what used to be called the Republican Party it has always been about grift and graft. Mix in a little God and you can even roll the suckers when you pass the collection plates.

All of this gets dressed up in political debates about regulation, campaign financing, laws, and ethics. But those duds are as see through as the new Major League Baseball uniforms.

So here’s a modest proposal. Let folks donate as much as they want. But each donation only counts as one dollar towards the outcome regardless of the size of the donation. Do away with PACs and other three-card monte schemes that reward political operatives and lobbyists. Donate the money directly to the candidate. Only individuals can donate. None of this “corporations are people” bullshit. Tie the donations to social security numbers. It would still be about turnout, but you could only turn out your pockets once and make it count. Say goodbye to the Electoral College and Make Accounting Great Again.

Stupid? Probably. Candidates used to buy votes with a beer and a sandwich, now corporations and other governments buy candidates. I doubt this would change our genetic code that builds liars and cheaters, but it would at least be a stab at more honesty.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.

Collapsing Bridges and Bridging Analogies

This bridge collapse and the reaction to it seems analogous, yet in an almost incongruent way, to the slow motion collapse we’re living through of all of the guardrails we’ve built up in American society.

The images from the maritime disaster in Baltimore’s harbor this week certainly caused a collective gasp from everyone who saw it. The quantity and volume of gasps have continued in the relatively short time span since the Dali hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge. As we’ve heard how costly and much time it will take to demo the wreckage, reopen the harbor, and rebuild the bridge, the magnitude of the hard work needed to navigate the challenges ahead is hard to really grasp, but we know that those challenges can be overcome.

Even so, this bridge collapse and the reaction to it seems analogous, yet in an almost incongruent way, to the slow motion collapse we’re living through of all of the guardrails we’ve built up in American society.

Most of those guardrails already lie in a heap of debris and the rest seem to be hanging on by mere threads just waiting to unravel. Frankly, I waver back and forth wondering if it’s possible to rebuild those guardrails or not. Physcial things can be replaced. Societies built on common understandings, traditions, rules, and experiences, not so much. Once the keystones begin to decay the arches eventually fall.

Bringing back what we have already lost will require a rebuild as substantial, if not more so, than what needs to happen in the Baltimore harbor. And nothing rebuilt is ever the same as what it replaces. Society’s guardrails have been as forever crumpled as what remains of the Key Bridge.

As Rick Wilson is famously fond of saying, Everything Trump Touches Dies (ETTD) and the casualty list is long: the media, the justice system, Congress, political parties, civil discourse, social media, and on it goes. What isn’t dead has already been infected beyond cure. And watching those willingly accept their own demise is as twisted as is this sentence describing it.

We were far too complacent with those guardrails, far too passive when we first felt them begin to erode, and far too comfortable to push course corrections or implement further protections.

You never think about the ground underneath you until it collapses and takes you with it.

You can find more of my writings on a variety of topics on Medium at this link, including in the publications Ellemeno and Rome.