The tradeoffs we encounter during this transition to a world dominated by new technologies are daunting. Even as facial recognition helped authorities arrest a suspect in the Capitol riot, E.U. officials warned of the civil rights implications of the same technology.
It's the same dilemma all surveillance technologies pose -- the balance between our freedoms and privacy vs. the government's ability to catch criminals and thwart insurrections.
Traditionally, the political spectrum has been split between those concerned with protecting civil liberties and therefore opposed to surveillance (liberals), and those more inclined to support law enforcement and oppose efforts to destabilize the government (conservatives).
But in the age of Trump, the two have switched sides.
Meanwhile, everyone has a smart phone; most people may not realize yet just how much they reveal about our movements and actions, though reporters have been trying to warn us about this for a while now.
I wish I could offer some unique wisdom in how to achieve a new balance that protects our innate right to privacy (which is not mentioned in the Constitution) while allowing us to experience the potential benefits offered by robotics, facial recognition, and new techniques to (literally) read our minds.
But as the sages have warned down through the ages, powerful tools in the hands of despots will lead to oppression and the loss of freedoms we cherish.
How can we gain control over these technologies? This is the question that faces us at this juncture in our history.
***
So like everyone else, I'm dealing with the details of life as we emerge from the pandemic and wondering what's next. The last two members of my immediate family who were still unvaccinated-- my two youngest daughters -- have had their first vaccine shot now and will get the second on May 12th. The rest of us are set.
My first stimulus check arrived this week! I didn't qualify last year because my most recent tax return on file (2019) was from when I was employed, and my income was too high to get one of those checks that time around. But 2020 was a different story. For the first time since I was 11, I did not earn a single penny of income.
Although I didn't earn anything I sure spent a lot, mostly on hospitals, doctors, medicines and insurance. This government check will help take at least a small bite out of my accumulated medical bills, which as anyone who's been seriously ill knows, tend to mutate faster than the coronavirus.
I've also been trying to correct a major personal weakness, which is at times is an almost pathological lack of exercise. When it comes to our physical health, it's strictly 'use it or lose it' at this stage. Younger readers -- take heed! Therefore on Wednesday I walked with my daughter and granddaughter across town to school, a pretty good hike.
Overall, I feel like many of us are emerging back into the outside world blinking at the light, rather like that Bob Dylan song about his dream of World War III. We are looking around at each other with a small sense of wonder. What's next?
***
The headlines:
* A Global Tipping Point for Reining In Tech Has Arrived -- Never before have so many countries, including China, moved with such vigor at the same time to limit the power of a single industry. (NYT)
* Risky uses of artificial intelligence that threaten people’s safety or rights such as live facial scanning should be banned or tightly controlled, European Union officials said as they outlined an ambitious package of proposed regulations to rein in the rapidly expanding technology. (AP)
* Federal authorities arrested a suspect in the U.S. Capitol riot in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, on Tuesday after they used facial recognition programs to find an image of him on his girlfriend’s Instagram page. Stephen Chase Randolph is accused of assaulting Capitol Police officers. [HuffPost]
* Each year, police shoot and kill roughly 1,000 people. But from early 2005 to June 2019, only 104 non-federal law enforcement officers were arrested on murder or manslaughter charges related to an on-duty shooting, and only 35 were convicted of a crime. Chauvin's conviction was an anomaly. [HuffPost]
* The Death of George Floyd Reignited a Movement. What Happens Now? -- Calls for racial justice touched nearly every aspect of American life on a scale that historians say has not happened since the civil rights movement of the 1960s. (NYT)
* The Justice Department will investigate whether the Minneapolis police department has engaged in a pattern of unconstitutional policing, Attorney General Merrick Garland said, a day after a jury convicted former officer Derek Chauvin of murder in the death of George Floyd. (WSJ)
* Europe clinches deal on wide-ranging climate law to speed emissions cuts (Reuters)
* Governors Urge Biden To Order 100% Zero-Emission Car Sales By 2035 -- In a letter to the president, 12 governors asked that the White House order a ban on greenhouse gas-emitting cars and light trucks within 14 years. (NPR)
* Unaccompanied migrant children spend weeks in custody, even when their U.S.-based parents are eager to claim them (WaPo)
* Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is introducing legislation to make public colleges and universities tuition-free and debt-free for families making less than $125,000 a year, paid for with a tax on financial transactions. “The College for All Act,” is modeled after Biden’s own campaign promises. [HuffPost]
* Biden’s mammoth education agenda would expand the federal role from cradle to college (WaPo)
* Biden Is Pushing a Climate Agenda. Gina McCarthy Has to Make It Stick. -- Gina McCarthy, Barack Obama’s E.P.A. chief, could only watch as the Trump administration dismantled her climate work. Now, she’s back with another chance to build a lasting legacy. (NYT)
* A federal judge ordered Los Angeles to offer shelter to everyone on skid row by the fall. (LAT)
* Study: Vitamins May Reduce Covid-19 in Women -- Among the 372,000 UK participants, researchers found that women taking probiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, multivitamins or vitamin D had a lower risk of being infected with the virus that causes Covid-19 – with the effects ranging from 9% to 14% lower risk among those who took supplements. (Huff Post)
* India’s raging virus surge tops 200,000 new cases for seventh straight day (WaPo)
* Twitter Brings Hope to Patients in India Waiting for Covid Treatment (Reuters)
* Additional evidence in case against activists in India accused of terrorism was planted, forensic analysis finds (WaPo)
* Iran Nuclear Deal Talks Advance as U.S. Offers Sanctions Relief (WSJ)
* U.S.-backed Afghan peace meeting postponed as Taliban balk (AP)
* Ramadan is a huge boon to the date farmers of California's Coachella Valley. They see a sharp spike in sales as Muslims traditionally end a day of fasting with the sweet fruit. (Religion News Service)
* Harriet Tubman’s Family Home Unearthed In Maryland Wildlife Refuge (HuffPost)
* How Schools Can Help Kids Heal After A Year Of 'Crisis And Uncertainty' -- The pandemic has been stressful for millions of children. If that stress isn't buffered by caring adults, it can have lifelong consequences. There's a lot schools can do to keep that from happening. (NPR)
* There’s a Name for the Blah You’re Feeling: It’s Called Languishing -- The neglected middle child of mental health can dull your motivation and focus — and it may be the dominant emotion of 2021. (NYT)
* Strides Against HIV/AIDS In The U.S. Falter As Resources Diverted To Fight COVID-19 (Kaiser Health News/NPR)
* The Secret Mission To Unearth Part Of A 142-Year-Old Experiment -- Scientists in Michigan went out in the dead of night to dig up part of an unusual long-term experiment. It's a research study that started in 1879 and is handed from one generation to the next. (NPR)
* This Is the Hottest That Stephen Curry Has Ever Been -- Five years after he revolutionized basketball, the NBA’s best shooter is still getting better (WSJ)
* Elon Musk Unveils Urban Slingshot System Able To Move 6 Pedestrians Across Street Per Hour (The Onion)
Every move you make
Every bond you break
Every step you take
I'll be watching you
Every word you say
Every game you play
Every night you stay
I'll be watching you
You belong to me
How my poor heart aches
With every step you take
Every vow you break
Every smile you fake
Every claim you stake
I'll be watching you
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