Big Brother – Page 2 – The Burning Platform

A Video Exposition: Quantum Theory, Waves, and the Bulbous Bow of Confusion

By Doug “Uncola” Lynn via TheBurningPlatform.com

The “Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle” is a mathematical law of the universe involving “trade-offs”. In fact, it could be summarized as the law of having your cake but not being able to eat it too. Or, as applied for the sake of this article, it means either position or momentum can be measured at any given time, but not both simultaneously; at least not accurately.

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I, personally, favor the rows or columns example of the Uncertainty Principle because of its simplicity in explaining Quantum Mechanics intuitively; if that were possible. The point is when studying columns the definitions of the rows disappear, and when focusing on the rows the columns vanish.

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An Offer You Can’t Refuse

By Doug “Uncola” Lynn via TheBurningPlatform.com

We read to know we’re not alone.

Although that particular truism is often mistakenly attributed to the author C.S. Lewis, it was actually William Nicholson who wrote those words in his 1989 play “Shadowlands”, a story about C.S. Lewis.

Indeed. The power of words. And perhaps many of us out here in the interwebic blogosphere write to know we’re not alone as well.

Especially during times like these.

We use words to comfort and curse, to encourage, to promise, to teach, buy, sell, debate, learn, manipulate, lie, share, seduce, pray, preach, promote, warn, and even survive.

In the aforementioned play, “Shadowlands“, there is another quote that many now reading this may also find relevant to our times:

….pain is God’s megaphone to rouse a deaf world. Why must it be pain? Why can’t he rouse us more gently, with violins or laughter? Because the dream from which we must be wakened, is the dream that all is well.

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Technological Trends are Arrows Pointing Toward Inevitability

By Doug “Uncola” Lynn via TheBurningPlatform.com

In the movie “I, Robot” the actor Will Smith played a detective who distrusted robots. But all of the other characters in the film believed he was paranoid because, after all, what could possibly go wrong? And therein lies the irony of technology today: The human mind can conceive of the most imaginative ways to apply science while simultaneously ignoring the warnings from history and the pernicious potentialities of Pandora’s Box.

The fifth article I posted on my blog was dated three years ago today. It was titled “How to Transplant a Human Head” and remains, even now, as one of my favorites; perhaps because it so directly addressed the Pandora’s Box of my own fear. In that article, it was described as follows:

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DEMORALIZED, DEPRESSED, DETACHED & DEFIANT

I’ve now been running The Burning Platform blog for over ten years. It’s been over eleven years since I wrote my first article – Why We Need Ron Paul – in May 2008 during the Republican primaries. I really thought I could change enough minds through my writing to influence voters and help wake up people to the truth about our deteriorating financial situation. I would send op-eds to my local paper, and they would publish them. My articles on Seeking Alpha in 2008/2009 were the most read and commented on their site.

My assessment of the Wall Street banks, coming financial crisis and recession were accurate enough that I was being sought out by Glenn Beck on CNN, Neal Cavuto on Fox, and Maria Bartiromo on CNBC to be interviewed on their shows. I didn’t want that kind of attention, since it would likely have negatively impacted my day job – which actually supported my family.

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TECHNOLOGY: DISTRACTING, DISTURBING, DECEIVING & DELUDING OURSELVES TO DEATH

“What Huxley teaches is that in the age of advanced technology, spiritual devastation is more likely to come from an enemy with a smiling face than from one whose countenance exudes suspicion and hate. In the Huxleyan prophecy, Big Brother does not watch us, by his choice. We watch him, by ours. There is no need for wardens or gates or Ministries of Truth.

When a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people become an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; a culture-death is a clear possibility.” ― Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business

Something as mundane as using the restroom at work sometimes ends up triggering deeper thoughts about technology – its benefits, deficiencies and danger to our culture. I’ve been using the same restroom at work for the last twelve years. They remodeled the restroom a few years ago with the latest technology – automatic flushers, automatic soap dispensers, automatic spigots, and automatic towel dispenser. This technology is supposed to make things better, but from my perspective the technology just added complexity, glitches and unnecessary complications.

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Three (3) Reasons Why Elections Don’t Matter

By Doug “Uncola” Lynn via TheBurningPlatform.com

In so many ways, elections in America have become just another manifestation of bread and circuses; like watching a reality TV show when your house is on fire. It’s why this article was almost named:

“The Inevitableness of Reality Requires Honesty and Acceptance”

Of course, the 2018 Midterm Elections will be analyzed ad nauseam, with other writers and pundits parsing it better than this blogger. However, suffice it to say: There was no Blue Wave and Trump has now solidified leadership of his Republican Party; at least more so than during the last two years of his administration.

In a raucous press conference the day after, Trump claimed victory and said his party “defied history to expand our Senate majority”. The president also said his focus in the days prior to the election remained on the senate and pointed out that most of the candidates for whom he campaigned had won their respective races.

Now, with Never-Trump Republican senators like Bob Corker (R-TN) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ), along with Democrats Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), and Claire McCaskill (D-MO) all gone – Trump has solidified the senate so as to be in a much better position to navigate any cabinet and court appointments. Obviously, the bloodletting has already begun, starting with Mr. Magoo himself, Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

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TSA Confirms Biometrics, Facial Recognition To Be Condition For All Air Travelers

Authored by Edward Hasbrouck via Papers, Please! blog,

Today the US Transportation Security Administration released a detailed TSA Biometric Roadmap for Aviation Security & the Passenger Experience, making explicit the goal of requiring mug shots (to be used for automated facial recognition and image-based surveillance and control) as a condition of all domestic or international air travel.

This makes explicit the goal that has been apparent, but only implicit, in the activities and statements of both government agencies and airline and airport trade associations.

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