TinkerMike

For sure Grok is enough reason to be on X. Putting much effort into posting often seems like pissing into the wind so I go in fits and spurts. One of the things that motivates me to put in the effort to engage is when I see posts that justify viewpoints by taking the Bible out of context.

I'm on X because @elonmusk bought it. Was on many years ago and they made my account go poof. Never came back until Elon bought it. Even then I didn't post for awhile. Seems the playing field has been leveled. Plus I'm retired now so I have more time for this silliness. 😁 So far no regrets and Grok is worth it alone.

Why are you on X?

@CynicalPublius @joekent16jan19 He isnt supporting Iranian mullahs having nuclear weapons he's surrendering to them having nuclear weapons. He says we have no interest in the region as if nothing that happens there will ever affect us. Whatever his fear is its clouding his judgment.

@joekent16jan19 First of all, he's already achieved amazingly positive outcomes. Second of all, why do you support radical Iranian mullahs having nuclear weapons?

POTUS is laying out two courses of action—a negotiated settlement, or a major escalation. There is a third option, and he should take it: recognize there is no way to force a positive outcome and simply leave. The region is not ours to fix. President Reagan chose this path in Lebanon in ‘84, withdrawing U.S. forces after the Beirut barracks bombing once it became clear the mission’s stabilization goals could not be met, effectively ending direct American military involvement and avoiding a deeper quagmire and long-term entrenchment in the region. A negotiated settlement is unlikely to work or be taken seriously by the Iranians unless we make concessions on the enrichment issue. As we saw yesterday in the SOH, the IRGC is empowered to act without the consent of the civilian leadership, so it’s likely they won’t honor any deal reached. A major escalation will lead to a very destructive outcome for Iran, the region, and eventually the U.S. If POTUS chooses brute force and targets civilian infrastructure, we will create another generation of radicalized Iranians who will rally around the regime and escalate the war by any means possible. If POTUS opts to strike the civilian infrastructure, declare victory, and then leave, we will only further erode our standing in the world, the petrodollar, and eventually our status as the world’s reserve currency holder. We need to get out now. Don’t double down on failure. Avoid the sunken cost trap, leave now, and put America’s interests first.

@fourboxesdiner @CynicalPublius It creates two tiers of Americans and its a trap.

I am of two minds on this. On the one hand, the more people who get to conceal carry nationwide, the better it is to show that this should be the norm. It’s also a good precedent for the SCOTUS to note. On the other hand, I agree it’s unfair that former and current government employees get to conceal carry nationwide and ordinary Americans don’t.

I really cannot believe an ostensibly pro-Second Amendment organization views this favorably. This is a primrose path towards denial of basic liberty. When you decide that only certain people are entitled to a Constitutional right, you inherently decide that other people are NOT entitled to that right. This is tyranny wrapped in a veneer of freedom. The Second Amendment states a basic human right of ALL Americans, not just a few. Shame on you, USACarry.

@CynicalPublius The New York State SAFE Act has a similar carve out for LEOs. It allowed them to retain banned guns creating what I called at the time a Pretorian Guard with rights other citizens didn't have.

What about the conclusion that the reason Iran doesn't have a nuclear weapon is that Israel (and the US) keeps diminishing their capability and if they hadn't we would have already been dealing with a nuclear Iran. Of course that conclusion could be wrong but at least you can understand why we (especially Israel) couldn't take the chance.

The list author claims the videos expose that people hate Israel. What the clips actually expose is a corrupt leader repeatedly trying to get another country to engage in military action on their behalf. If they want to declare war on their own, by all means. Leave the US out of it.

Always just months away. For 30+ years. youtube.com/watch?v=fiPfqV…

@alphafox @TheLoneWolfonX We need laws mandating some sort of digital watermark on AI content.

@TheLoneWolfonX It’s getting hard and harder to tell.

This deepfake is wild. They took the actual footage from his 2017 arrest and slapped fake AI audio over it, we’re pretty much cooked. Just an example why everything must be verified.

I don't know but it can't be Covid-19 vaccines because they are totally safe. And, by design, you'll never be able to prove otherwise.

@EndWokeness Elect a taker he'll come for the makers.

Today's sermon related to this. Utopian equity will lead to emptiness. It will eliminate opportunities for grace, for spiritual growth through needs not being met, and it will eliminate the opportunity to reach out to others in need. It will be totally dehumanizing and depressing.

AI robots meeting all of our human needs for free? I have questions: 1. Someone must pay money to build the AI robots that build/provide the "free" goods and services. Such someone will have control over the AI robots. Why will that someone allow those goods and services to be given away for "free"? That's not human nature (see my next question). 2. Goods and services are wealth. Wealth is power. Mankind craves power, always has and always will. Why would mankind give away wealth when it means giving away power? 3. What if the someone controlling the AI robots and the "free" goods and services is named Karen and if you don't adopt the woke political views that Karen demands you adopt, you get no goods, no food, no services, bupkis, no nothing, you starve? And if your answer to all of the above is "the AI robots will be autonomous," think about what you just said, Mr. John Connor. I just see this as a variation on the dangers of the lure of communism, except after the AI robots use us as human batteries in THEIR Five Year Plan, "We never have had REAL AI robots" will be cold comfort. Sorry for the negative waves, but I think this concept fails to account for human nature.

Amen

@Matt_Pinner In a way. I started thinking about what its going to be like meeting Jesus and all the other believers when I turned 70.

When people get in their 50s and 60s and up, do you start thinking about how many years you have left? I’m curious

The Holy Spirit has NEVER and won’t EVER: · Anoint a female pastor · Lead anyone into adultery · Need money to unlock a blessing · Guarantee anyone health & wealth · Compel someone to speak gibberish · Do anything contrary to the Scriptures

@AltMarket1 @BudLightSadness That's not the whole picture. Oil is a global market. American oil exports should increase to help meet global demand. Production might eventually increase but the spike in demand is hurting us.

@BudLightSadness The US doesn't need ships to leave the strait. Only 7% of our foreign bought energy resources travel through it. Meanwhile ALL of Iran's exports need the strait, their entire economy depends on it and their ships are trapped.

Anything that exists within a certain distance of the United States Navy is kind of existing at the whim of the of the United States Navy

@DanBurmawy @Bridget07041969 That's one theory. The other is that the only Muslims who emigrate are the devout ones.

Muslims become more devout, more visibly Islamic, more committed to the cause, not in Mecca, but in Michigan, not in the Islamic countries, but in the West. Why? Because Islam in the Muslim world is a system of hollow rituals weighed down by guilt. You’re expected to follow endless rules, pray, fast, wash, repeat, and when you fail (and you will), Allah offers nothing but shame and punishment. No grace. No relationship. Just fear. Eventually, many Muslims give up. They go through the motions, because it’s all meaningless repetition in a society where everyone else is pretending too. But when a Muslim steps into the West, into enemy territory, everything changes. Now, the same rituals become weapons of loyalty. Now, obedience has strategic value. Now, every act of devotion is proof to Allah that you're on His side, surrounded by the infidels. Suddenly, praying in public is a badge. Wearing the hijab is a flag. Going to the mosque, spreading Islam, organizing protests, infiltrating institutions, all of it becomes a way to declare loyalty to Allah behind enemy lines. Because here, in the West, allah is not just demanding ritual, He’s demanding allegiance. And that allegiance feels powerful. Purposeful. Redemptive. It fills the void that guilt and hopelessness left behind in the Muslim world. Back home, they failed allah constantly and felt nothing but shame. But here, allah gives them a mission: Defend Me. Represent Me. Expand Me. And I will reward you. That’s why Muslims who were secular or indifferent in their own countries suddenly become zealous in the West. They start praying. They start veiling. They start preaching. They start targeting every non-Muslim for conversion. They organize. They march. They infiltrate. Because now, it all means something. They’re not lost in empty rituals anymore. They’re loyal soldiers in a foreign land. And every step they take toward Islam is, in their mind, a strike against the enemy and a point earned with allah. This is why Western freedom doesn’t soften Islam, it activates it. It gives Islamic obedience a battlefield. And loyalty, not guilt, becomes the engine.

@TheresaArueyin1 I try to emulate Christ.

Real question Are you actually following Jesus or just calling yourself a Christian?

@hashjenni Well he doesn't know me from Adam and my 401k is doing well too.

Trump. Is. Manipulating. The. Stock. Market. So. His. Billionaire. Friends. And. Himself. Can. Earn. A. Lot. Of. Money. Simple as that.

@mitchellvii I don't think so. To liberals everything is personal.

I often wonder if liberals on this platform are capable of replying to your post without making a personal insult? What do you think?

@sarahadams @graciejoen2021 I feel that way now.

It’s like the MN thing that local guy put in the work for well over a year and then everyone thinks it was done in a day when Nick Shirley showed up or people just listen to persons who do commentary where they guess about what’s happening. Good information is dying by the wayside unfortunately to meet algorithms and clickbait. Soon no one is going to have an accurate view on any topic.

Investigations aren’t built on viral clips or trending topics. They’re built on timelines, link analysis, human sources, and patterns most people never see. Social media rewards speed. Real investigations demand patience and facts that actually hold up. We’re heads down right now pushing to finish our latest work: ISIS: Know Thy Enemy. These finished assessments take time for a reason because lives are literally on the line. The smallest wording said wrong and you give the enemy leverage to stop your efforts. They win by controlling the narrative and stopping real information from actually getting out, when you undercut that it has effects. We need effects. If you actually want to understand how to separate signal from noise, start here: -Track timelines, not headlines. What happened before and after matters more than the clip going viral. 
-Watch for patterns. Networks don’t operate in isolation, they repeat behaviors.
 -Question the source. Who benefits from what you’re being shown?
 -Don’t confuse access with accuracy. Just because it’s loud doesn’t mean it’s true.
 -Be patient. The truth usually shows up after the noise dies down.

@bonchieredstate Don't lose sight of the fact that the progressive definition of Democracy probably doesn't match yours.

What exactly is Trump doing to threaten "democracy" in America?