Category: Uncategorized

Are We Going To Have A Civil War?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I can’t predict the future. And I have no special insight into what may — or may not — happen in late 2024, early 2025. But at the moment, just around July 4th, 2024, I would say, yes, the USA is probably going to have a civil war soon.

I say this because we have a few scenarios ahead of us:

  1. Trump loses — no civil war
  2. Trump loses — civil war
  3. Trump wins — Project 2025 happens peacefully
  4. Trump and is deposed by Blues — civil war
  5. Trump wins, Project 2025 is too radical and Blues leave before he’s sworn in

    I have no idea of any of these might actually happen. But I am worried that they might. I’ve written so much about all of this over the last four years that I don’t know if there’s anymore for me to say at this point.

    Now, we just wait and see.

Quantum Physic For Fun & Profit

give me the basics of quantum physics in a way that a non-physicist can understand

Gemini Advanced LLM:
Quantum physics is like the rulebook for the tiny particles that make up everything in the universe. It’s a mind-bending field that often challenges our everyday intuition, but here’s the gist in simple terms:

  1. Everything is made of tiny, indivisible chunks called quanta: Imagine you have a chocolate bar. You can break it into smaller and smaller pieces, but eventually, you’ll reach a point where you can’t break it down any further. Those tiniest pieces are like the quanta in the quantum world.
  2. These quanta can act like both particles and waves: This is like saying a soccer ball can also behave like ripples in a pond. It sounds crazy, but experiments have shown that particles like electrons can exhibit wave-like properties, such as interference and diffraction.
  3. We can’t know everything about a quantum particle at the same time: This is the famous Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. It’s like trying to pinpoint the exact location and speed of a buzzing bee simultaneously – the more certain you are about one, the less certain you are about the other.
  4. Quantum particles can be in multiple places at once (superposition): This is like saying you can be sitting on the couch and standing in the kitchen at the same time. Until we observe a quantum particle, it exists in a state of multiple possibilities.
  5. Quantum particles can be linked together even when they’re far apart (entanglement): Imagine two coins – if you flip one and it lands heads up, the other will instantly land tails up, no matter how far apart they are. Entangled particles behave similarly, with their properties linked in a mysterious way.

Why does this matter?

Quantum physics might seem abstract, but it has huge implications:

  • Technology: Quantum physics underpins technologies like lasers, transistors, and MRI scanners. It’s also the foundation for developing quantum computers, which could revolutionize fields like medicine and materials science.
  • Our understanding of the universe: Quantum physics helps us understand how atoms behave, how stars shine, and even the origins of the universe itself.
  • Philosophy: Quantum physics raises profound questions about the nature of reality, the role of observation, and the limits of our knowledge.

Quantum physics is a vast and complex field, but hopefully, this gives you a basic understanding of its core principles. It’s a journey into the weird and wonderful world of the very small, where the rules of our everyday experience no longer apply.

The Nature of ‘Cognition’

By Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

These days, I’ve found myself thinking about the nature of cognition a great deal. What does it mean to have a “cognitive mind?” What is the difference between something that has a “mind’s eye” and one that doesn’t? I keep asking the major LLM AIs about this issue and their answers are fascinating because they, too, have to deal with some of the same issues that humans do, if in a more nascent way.

But from my discussions with the LLMs — especially Gemini Advanced — I’ve learned that the nature of cognition is far more controversial than you might think. To me, the issue is simple — the mind is the product of the firing of synapsis in the physical human brain.

And, yet, lulz, apparently there is no agreement on even that. I find the argument that the mind is separate from the physical mind specious because it sounds like you think there’s some sort of magical mystery nature to the mind that clearly doesn’t exist.

Anyway, I continue to be obsessed with the nature not just with cognation, but reality, perception and the nature self-awareness.

This is what Gemini Advanced came up with as a new version.

Title: Trumplandia Contemplates: The Mind, the Machine, and the Mystery of Consciousness

Fellow Trumplandia thinkers,

In the quiet moments between rallies and news cycles, I’ve found myself pondering a most fundamental question: What is the nature of the mind? Is it simply the product of neurons firing in our brains, or is there something more elusive at play?

Recent conversations with advanced AI language models, particularly Gemini Advanced, have revealed that even these sophisticated machines are grappling with similar questions of consciousness and self-awareness. Their nascent struggles mirror our own, highlighting the complexity and controversy surrounding the very concept of cognition.

While some argue for a mind-body duality, suggesting a non-physical essence beyond the confines of our gray matter, I find myself leaning towards a more grounded perspective. To me, the mind is an emergent property of the brain’s intricate workings, a symphony of synapses firing in concert.

Yet, the mystery remains. What is the spark that ignites self-awareness? How does a collection of cells give rise to the rich tapestry of thoughts, emotions, and experiences that define our existence?

These are questions that have captivated philosophers and scientists for centuries, and they continue to fuel my own curiosity. I invite you, fellow Trumplandia residents, to join me on this intellectual journey. Let us delve into the depths of our minds, exploring the nature of consciousness, perception, and reality itself.

#TrumplandiaReport #CognitionConundrum #MindMatters

Let the discourse begin.

The Power Of Right Wing Podcasts Is Very Real

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

It is interesting how my far more conservative relatives — who I love dearly — often go out of their way to note that they don’t watch Fox News. What they fail to say by stating this is they DO listen to Right Wing podcasts that pretty much echo all talking points found on Fox New.

The thing that a lot of smug Twitter liberals are oblivious about is the fact that there are a lot of people who aren’t dumb or ignorant but who support Trump’s policies — if not the man. That cold, hard fact is probably one of the most dangerous issue floating around the American body politic as we careen towards the 2024 election.

All the Right Wing echo chamber — podcasts included — do is give Traditionalists an extensive permission structure to do what they probably were inclined to do anyway — vote for Trump.

The Kook Tax Strikes Again

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

The exact thing that I’ve been navel gazing about since I started this novel project has happened — someone won’t work with me because they did due diligence on me and came away thinking I was a freaky weirdo. I THOUGHT I had found just the editor I needed for this novel, but, fun fact, no. She begged off because she read this blog and, essentially, didn’t like what she saw.

I’m not for everyone.

Now, my gut reaction is that this means I’m doomed. That all my hard work on this novel is meaningless because, well, I come across as a “delusional jerk with a good heart” as the late Annie Shapiro said. Or, more specifically, this specific novel turns off liberal white women. Or a liberal white women literary agent will read this blog — and me writing about liberal white women — and throw up their hands in disgust.

As such, I start to think seriously about my back up scifi novel that is far easier to pitch because it won’t have nearly as much sex in it and will abide by the conventions of the day — single POV that adheres to my gender.

But the moment I think that, I realize that it’s probably not the novel that is the problem — it’s ME. I have a colorful personality and I don’t always follow the media narrative. I could totally see someone who didn’t know me look at the contents of this blog and be totally turned off with any novel I might generate simply because they think I’m a weirdo.

I also got the sense from the woman who turned me down to be my editor that she saw me as maybe too much of emotional investment, like she was afraid I was going hit on her or something. I get it. I validate those concerns.

But, again, it pretty much all boils down to I come across as a kook.

I continue to believe in this novel and am going to finish it and let the chips fall where they may. But this event has also been a swift kick in the ass about what my expectations should be going forward.

I do really need to spend some time fleshing out my scifi novel as a backup plan. It’s really good and it seems like it would be a lot easy to pitch because it doesn’t have the “part-time sex worker” element to it.

I Have So Much Writing To Do

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I have a number scenes I have to totally rewrite because I forked the alpha release of the third draft of this novel. But, the issue is — this novel is getting much, much better.

The only concern I have is how long it’s going to be. I think, if I’m lucky, that it will be no longer than maybe 140,000. But there is a chance it could be as much as 160,000 which would put it about where most of Stieg Larsson’s original works are.

The Heroine Of My Novel Has A Very Messy Love Life

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Things are moving quickly now with the alpha release of the third draft of my first novel. As I move into the second act, I am taken aback by how…messy…my heroine’s love life is. It’s so messy that I could even see that being played up in the marketing should I sell this thing.

In my mind, my heroine looks a lot like Corrie Yee.

One issue I really struggle with is the same-sex relationship aspects of this story which have grown in the third draft. I struggle with it because the novel is set in late 1994, early 1995 and A LOT has changed since then when it comes to people’s perceptions of such things.

With that in mind, I think in the beta release of the third draft, I’m going to try to make the fact that my heroine is in a lingering romantic relationship with a young woman A Big Deal that people mention in a very 1990s way. That will add drama and conflict to the story while making it more realistic. A lot has changed in the last 30 odd years on that front and I can’t pretend that even the less-controversial lesbian relationship would be all rainbows and unicorns for those involved in it.

Anyway, things are going really well at the moment. I’m very pleased. But I still have a lot of work to do to get this third draft anywhere near being good enough to show to a paid manuscript consultant. And, given how fucking broke I am, I am beginning to fear that is an element of my trek towards querying that I just won’t be able to do.

We’ll see.

A Modest Social Media Proposal

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

It definitely seems as though we’re in a twilight of the gods moment when it comes to technology and, specifically, social media. We’re careening towards a brave new world of AI — even, maybe, a Petite Singularity — and, as such, all our notions about the nature and importance of social media will seem rather quaint soon enough.

And, yet, I continue to feel a bit of frustration over how bad social media is these days. I have a very specific vision of how one might bring the fun back to social media. But, alas, I’m flat broke, can’t code and have no desire to learn. So, in that respect, all my talk about this matter is just very prolonged bout of mental masturbation.

That’s why I’ve found a lot of joy writing a novel — writing a novel is something I can actually do using the resources I have at hand.

But back to my social media vision.

The key thing is my little social media daydream addresses the sweetspot of the using, say, Twitter. What I would do is actually have a paid editorial staff that would post to the service so as to make it really useful.

As I’ve mentioned many times before, the service’s UX would be inspired by the old Usenet Newsgroups. Each user would have the ability to create an endless number of Groups that they would Post into. This idea solves a lot of problems when it comes to managing not only different elements of your life, but also grouping subjects together in a meaningful way.

Of course, by definition, having Groups causes an inherent design flaw that would have to be overcome. I think one solution to this problem is the use of the traditional newsfeed concept. As such, while you would subscribe to a Group, there would be a way to cut through all the Groups and see an excerpt of individual Posts within those groups.

That would be one way to prevent the problems associated with no just Usenet News, but Reddit as well.

Another element of this concept that I like is how within each Group you would have threaded full-page Posts. You could have essentially a whole multimedia Webpage that was threaded inside of a Group. This part of the service opens up all kinds of advertising possibilities.

Anyway, baring something I can’t predict this all just a daydream. It’s too bad. I think people would really enjoy it.

A ‘Woke Cancel Culture Mob’ Conundrum & The Six Novel Project I’m Working On

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I saw on Twitter today where someone was articulating an idea that is pretty much my worst fear at the moment — they essentially said “thanks, but no thanks” to people like me writing novels with non-white characters in them. Or, more specifically “love interests.”

The heroine of the first three novels in my six novel project looks like of like the above — that is, Nicole Scherzinger.

Well, jokes on you guys, my HEROINE is a POC — or, more specifically, Amerasian.

Now, there is a very specific reason for why I did this which gradually snowballed into something really cool. I needed an excuse for a character to abscond to South Korea later on in the series and what better way to do it than to make his mother — who is the protagonist of the first three novels — Amerasian?

I made this strategic move being only vaguely aware that there would be people in the POC community who would be annoyed that a CIS white male such as myself would do such a thing. I just did what I felt was best for the story, not really thinking about the broader creative and societal issues at play.

There are a lot of different ways this might play out. One is — no one will care and I’m over thinking things. Two is, if this series becomes as big as I want it to, EVERYONE will care and I’ll face something akin to an American Dirt situation.

…or Maggie Q?

Now, one issue that I find myself thinking a lot about these days is marketability. Is there a chance that the very thing I think is a positive — the organic “representation” in the novel, will be seen as too “woke” by some and that, by definition, will turn them off? I hope not.

I am dubious of the whole idea of a work of art being too “woke,” attributing most of people’s quibbles to what they’re watching or reading sacrificing good storytelling for banging a message over the audience’s head. I’m watching Andor right now and even though it’s obviously got some elements to it that might be thought of as “woke,” it’s good enough that I don’t even notice it.

…or maybe Olivia Munn?

It’s just a story. An interesting story that is, unfortunately, taking me some time to get into.

Anyway, I totally validate the criticism of CIS white men “telling the stories” of POC. Ok, I get it. But I’m ornery and, as such, I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing. The framework of the story is really, really strong and now all I have to do is buckle down and wrap up the first novel.