April 3, 2026

SOCIALISM IN ONE LESSON:

Posted at 6:42 pm by Stephen Green

HISTORY LESSON:

Posted at 6:24 pm by Glenn Reynolds

HMM: NTSB Takes Aim at Level 2 Semi-Autonomous Driving Systems After Fatal Crashes Involving Ford BlueCruise. An over-reliance on semi-autonomous software is making drivers complacent, NTSB chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said.

My last car had semi-autonomous mode and the only time I had a problem was on the Interstate in Chattanooga when I came over a hill and there was dead-stopped traffic in both lanes ahead of me. The system couldn’t see cars that weren’t moving against the background, so it didn’t stop. I waited a second to see if it would and then had to brake pretty hard. If I hadn’t been paying attention, I would have rear-ended someone. I assume the separate electronic-crumple-zone braking would have kicked in before a collision but didn’t give it a chance.

My new car doesn’t have as many bells and whistles, and I don’t really miss them. But long drives were less tiring with the semi-autonomy.

Posted at 6:00 pm by Glenn Reynolds

HEY, BIG SPENDER: Tech Media Propaganda Operation Makes It Official, Goes In-House At OpenAI. “On Thursday, OpenAI announced that it had acquired the Technology Business Programming Network (TBPN) show. The Financial Times reports that the recently de-Sorafied AI giant paid somewhere in the “low hundreds of millions of dollars” for the purchase. The deal immediately prompted a great deal of online handwringing about a nominal media operation selling out to one of the biggest companies in Silicon Valley, which is understandable but unwarranted. Nothing will have to change, as even the independent version of TBPN was already so dedicated to cheerleading for the rich and powerful people in tech as to have been indistinguishable from marketing.”

Maybe not all the interesting in itself, but OpenAI is expected to lose between $111 billion and $143 billion between 2024 and 2029 (OpenAI claims the lower figure, Deutsche Bank the higher one), and TBPN is believed to break even at the very best.

But what’s a few more hundred million between friends?

Posted at 4:54 pm by Stephen Green

THIS LOOKS LIKE A JOB FOR AN A-10:

Posted at 4:38 pm by Stephen Green

VAMPIRES REACT TO CROSS:

See also, the left’s reaction after October 7th to posters of Israelis kidnapped by Hamas: Why Can’t They Just Leave The Jewish Hostage Posters Alone?

Posted at 4:30 pm by Ed Driscoll

FLORIDA MAN FRIDAY [VIP]: He Tried to Steal… an Election? “It’s time for your much-needed break from the serious news, and this week, we’ll learn the importance of leaving the scene of the crime, the stupidest way to save money on gas, and how to party like a shark in the Bahamas.”

Posted at 4:23 pm by Stephen Green

LAYERS AND LAYERS OF FACT CHECKERS AND EDITORS:

Live look at the New York Times bullpen:

Posted at 4:14 pm by Ed Driscoll

TRUST THE EXPERTS:

Posted at 4:00 pm by Glenn Reynolds

DISPATCHES FROM THE BLUE ZONES: Naked bike ride organizer slapped with child sex crime charges in WA.

Zachary Elisha Robertson, 42, of Bellingham, was taken into custody on March 10 on two felony counts of possession of child pornography. Investigators located approximately 25 nude images of prepubescent and pubescent girls on his laptop upon the execution of a search warrant. He later allegedly confessed to downloading nude images of girls between the ages of 5 and 7 years old, according to court documents.

Robertson, a nudist and homesteader, was reported to authorities by his wife, who allegedly walked in on Robertson pleasuring himself to the images on his laptop on March 6. Police obtained a search warrant and arrested Robertson at his home days later. He was quickly released from jail on $2,500 bail, records show.

The defendant is the author and illustrator of the children’s book Norma Normal, which centers on a little girl who “lives naked” in the outdoors. Roberston alleged to investigators that the pornographic images of kids on his laptop served as references for his 2020 book; however, detectives rejected his claim, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Good lord.

Posted at 3:52 pm by Stephen Green

NOTHING TO SEE HERE, MOVE ALONG:

Posted at 3:32 pm by Stephen Green

TRUMP HAS BROKEN THE MAN WHO HAS PLAYED THE GODFATHER, JAKE LA MOTTA, AND AL CAPONE:

Tweet continues, “DeNiro thinks there should be a body of elites who bar people from running for office, including someone who went on to win the popular vote. What’s sad is that DeNiro is obviously experiencing immense, totalizing pain, genuine psychic distress at the outcome of an election. So much of their hatred of Trump is just an attempt to evade recognizing that democracy—their neighbors getting what they want when they vote in greater numbers—causes them searing psychic pain.”

Posted at 2:34 pm by Ed Driscoll

THE NOT SO FINAL COUNTDOWN:

Barack Obama has only four years to save the world. That is the stark assessment of Nasa scientist and leading climate expert Jim Hansen who last week warned only urgent action by the new president could halt the devastating climate change that now threatens Earth. Crucially, that action will have to be taken within Obama’s first administration, he added.

— President ‘has four years to save Earth,’ the London Guardian, January 17, 2009.

For AOC in 2019, we had 12 years to go: AOC: No, Seriously, We Only Have 12 Years Left.

For Bernie, the following year, it was six or seven years:

Tweet continues, “Bernie doesn’t talk as much about climate change as he used to. Now he fundraises off of ‘Fight the Oligarchy.'”

To be fair, Bernie has been “fighting the oligarchy” during many presidential administrations:

But for those proclaiming the end of the world is nigh, maybe just stick with 57 years on the sandwich board to be safe:

 

Posted at 2:22 pm by Ed Driscoll