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Hordes of Dog-Biting Men! -or- Lessons Learned About News Bias and Disinformation From a Fight for my Honor

I was a teenager when the knock sounded. We weren’t expecting anyone. I answered. Two kids were in my front yard on their bikes. I was immediately suspicious. I knew them from High School. I wasn’t friends with them, but I didn’t like them. I didn’t hate them or consider them enemies, but they were enemy-adjacent: friends with other kids I actively disliked. We’ll refer to them as Messenger and Assistant. “Martin is talking crap about you,” Messenger said.  Martin was another kid from high school, in the same category… Read More »Hordes of Dog-Biting Men! -or- Lessons Learned About News Bias and Disinformation From a Fight for my Honor

Book Review: Excellent Sheep

As a proud college dropout, I was excited to read this. I also like the author, William Deresiewicz. I’ve enjoyed listening to him as a guest on podcasts and admired his analyses. Like myself, he has a deep love of learning. Unlike myself, he puts too much faith in the institution of college and that error haunts this book. I don’t like to be condescending, but at several points I wanted to ask, “How clueless are you, bro?” From my experience, if “The Academy” ever meant something, whatever noble values… Read More »Book Review: Excellent Sheep

Annoyed rabbit wearing shades refusing to take questions at a press conference

Influencer Canceled in Record Time!

The Epic True Tale of How I Became an Amazon Influencer and Was Canceled In the Span of a Week. Chapter 1: A Delightful Surprise Congratulations, Amazon Reviewer! You have posted so many reviews and earned so many helpful votes that we are going to promote you to Vine Voices: Silver Tier. What is that? It’s an Amazon program for our best reviewers! You order items that interest you at not cost! Shipping is free. You only need pay taxes on the item as appropriate for your region. In exchange,… Read More »Influencer Canceled in Record Time!

yawning bored man

Boring People Don’t Exist — No One Is “Basic”

“You’re boring,” he said. The comment took me by surprise. It happened decades ago. I was an intern at a chemical lab. A coworker – an adult, I was still a teen — came into the lab and began working at a different station. We each were concentrating on our own tasks in silence for several minutes when suddenly he said, “You’re boring.” “What?” I answered. It felt like an insult, but I wasn’t sure. Plus, I wanted to buy time. How should I respond? “You never talk,” he said.… Read More »Boring People Don’t Exist — No One Is “Basic”

Cute tiny little robots are working in a futuristic soap factory

How To Use Generative AI to be More Human

Early in my writing career, I had a debate with an editor after I told him my strategy to avoid clichés. It’s a simple trick: If I’ve heard the phrase before, I take it out. He considered the idea then rendered his judgment.  “I agree mostly,” he said. “But I don’t think you should limit yourself.” We left it at that. Decades ago. I’ve since come over to his view a little. Sometimes a cliché is the right move. When someone is grieving the death of a loved one, the… Read More »How To Use Generative AI to be More Human