15 Comments
Apr 10, 2023Liked by Charles Johnson

Hello again, Charles Johnson! It is I, Ellie who is more fond of internal combustion automobile engines (for now) than lithium and other rare earth ore battery-powered electric cars.

This is a novel perspective on the cause of Bob Lee's tragic death. I say "tragic" because he died at such a young age, and due to violence. I think we are in agreement about San Francisco: Crime is so bad now that Bob Lee's death--and any others that you allude to happening in the near future--aren't likely to be investigated with the same diligence that a similar death in, say, Modesto or Omaha would. That is mostly due to the voting preferences of San Francisco residents who are U.S. citizens. (Recall that in NYC, one need not be a U.S. citizen to vote; SF is not that far gone yet.) I don't know if Peter Thiel and Brendan Eich (a kind, pleasant man; Mozilla has floundered since his banishment) are in favor of more strongly nurturing the Rule of Law in the City by The Bay.

I am familiar with Clearview technology. It has been in place (for optional use by travelers) since November 2020 in the Las Vegas, Nevada international airport. (McCallen? No, he was a Civil War general. MacArthur? No, that was Douglas in Norfolk, VA and Japan. McCarren! Yes, that's it.) I don't know what "genomic genealogy" is. Clearview is a technology that resembles those that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) utilize for authoritarian control over their people. Thus I am confused by your primary conclusion: If Silicon Valley venture capitalists were compromised by their deep ties to the CCP, then they would be MORE not LESS likely to invest in Clearview and such.

Next, I am hesitant to attribute Bob Lee's untimely death to degeneracy. He should have been safe to walk anywhere within a a 10 minute radius of Chinatown; also, he had sufficient wealth for bodyguards and friends if in doubt. You are correct about some luminaries of cryptocurrency being associated with unsavory and illegal activities, and even dyeing prematurely. Romanian Mircea Popescu comes to mind. He supposedly drowned while swimming. He wasn't even 40 years old. I mourn his passing. He was bright, as well as pleasant and sweet in all our online interactions. He taught me about directed acyclic graphs. He even told me with sincerity that I was "a nice girl" unlike most libprog American Jews, many of whom call me a fascist weasel and worse. I am an American Jew btw.

Going back to the theme of degeneracy: The despicable Scam Blankman Fraud (SBF of FTX). I do not like Sam. I do not like Sam's Stanford Law professor mom and dad. (I am a Stanford Engineering grad, and it pains me to say this.) I am outraged that Scam SBF is loose after posting merely $1 million or less despite his bail being set at $250 million. You said, "Lee liked drugs. Lee bought drugs. Lee also liked orgies. Lee liked crypto."

Yes, but that doesn't mean that Lee deserved to die. SBF liked prescription drugs and crypto too. Despite the stories of polygamy and such, I have yet to find any evidence of street drugs and orgies at SBF's Bahamas and Hong Kong hideaways. Instead, there is evidence of massive fraud, facilitated by the active involvement of two very intelligent Stanford Law professor parents, various political donors, and regulator capture.

Investing in law enforcement technologies is a technocratic approach for public safety in San Francisco and environs. I suspect that it is unnecessary and of questionable efficacy. San Francisco was a generally safe city during all the years between its last Republican mayor in the 1950s through the 1990s, maybe even 2010. There were no Chesa Boudin district attorneys then. There were other differences as well. I would look toward that first, before installing CCP type surveillance to keep order. Regardless, I found your post to be of interest, Charles. I'll be on the lookout, to determine whether your prognostications are born out.

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This is in incredibly poor taste. You should be ashamed of yourself.

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Jesus Christ you're a loon. Some guy dies and all you can think to do is talk your book. You should be on meds or something.

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"That’s why Bob Lee died. Your city banned facial recognition" A bit harsh Charles. Please explain how stabbing a person to death can be prevented from a camera? Clearview is about solving crime correct? The delusion comes from thinking a future tech that does not exist yet can prevent violence. What am I missing? I feel like you are onto something but I didn't follow this time.

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I don't see what all the outrage is about... lol. Everyone dies. Sounds like all he missed out on was a few orgies and coke lines. Marriages and family never last with his lifestyle. That was already gone.

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