Let's decode the propaganda for AI, robots and UBI

You may be led to think, reading many arguments on social media, that AI (artificial intelligence) will improve the lives of humans, that AI is harmless, that AI can be regulated, that algorithms decidind for us is a good thing, that everything will be alright, and yet... we know it will not. :)

That's why we see an insistent propaganda for AI and robots on social media. 
This propaganda is based on reports with scientific projections (probably built by algorithms).
Humans being replaced by robots, humans-humans interaction being replaced by humans-machines interaction, algorithms deciding for humans, chip implants, GPS, control.

That's why this insistent propaganda is related to the UBI (universal basic income). I bet the UBI was also built using algorithms. :)
UBI is not a generous offer, "free money just for being alive". "Robots take your jobs and that's a good thing, you can live without working, do whatever you wish, you don't have to earn it, it's free."

Let's decode this message and expose the culture that lies behind: It's not for a better future, it's only for profit. It's the same old megalomania of money and power.

First, define "free money". I have a good definition. 
Free money = tax evasion money, money from undeserved benefits, money given by governments to the big banks and big corporations that destroy economies, illegal business money, etc.
Just try to calculate the billions that have been stolen from ordinary citizens.

So, UBI is not free, on the contrary, it's the price you pay for being irrelevant. 
This is how the monetary economy works. It's not a transparent and fair game. 

And the argument "the inevitability of progress = you can't stop the future" is not acceptable either.
There are many possibilities for the future of humans. AI and robots replacing us in all tasks and deciding for us is not the best future for humans.

We, humans, should choose our own future.

The culture of excellence is not the only model

1979, the turning point

There is a part of american culture that resisted the Reaganism, the materialistic culture, the wild financial globalization, the return to the past, the illusion of heroic power, the male world. :)

Mike Mills set the turning point in 1979, in Carter's speech.

Those who resisted managed to bridge the gap between the late 1970's and the 21st century.

Spring readers and the post about unconditional love

It Happens every Spring is the only blog I write in english. Despite reading articles and watching videos in english, writing is a challenge. I see it as an exercise to improve communication with my readers. You've guessed: 65% are americans. And as you know, english is the universal language of the internet.

Today I'd like to share with you an interesting fact: the most read post is The importance of unconditional love, with 67% of total visits. What does this tell you?
Do we wish to be loved unconditionally?
My answer is: yes, we do, even if we don't say it. We miss that kind of love that accepts us as we are. It's like coming home.
Who loves unconditionally?
My first answer is: only dogs and mothers (not all mothers) love unconditionally :)
My second answer is more careful and thoughtful: unconditional love is similar to adult love, is related to maturity, the ability to move from "me" to "us" without self-limiting or dissolving.

Twitter: a tool of cultural innovation

Twitter is the most interesting tool to share information, communicate, work together, start a movement (civil rights), ask for help (humanitarian crisis), disclose, spread, draw attention to priority issues.

Twitter is fast, agile, flexible, permeable to change, with no obstacles as ads :) Is this the reason for not being profitable? 
Well, in today economic and financial system, ads are part of the game, but many users are trying to find a constructive and innovative way of making it sustainable.

We live in a materialistic world that only values things.
And yet, we see valuable human resources (new strategies, creative communities) being shared in this beautiful net. Every day, hour, minute, second.

Twitter is the most democratic interaction on internet. You don't need to have thousands of followers to get the attention of someone who has. You belong to a great community: its users across the planet.

#WeareTwitter and #BuyTwitter are trying to avoid losing this innovative tool to big companies that will make it profitable in the monetized and financial system. 
If users lose it, Twitter will no longer be Twitter as we know it. 

The Eurovision song that melted our hearts

Portuguese people fell in love with the song that will represent the country in Kiev. This song reminds us that we are a country of poets. Yes, this song melted our hearts.

The lyrics are very simple: a boy is asking his beloved to return to him, not to be afraid of loving or suffering but to try to learn to love again. He tells her that his heart can love for both. Amar pelos dois = love for both of us.

Salvador Sobral was very moved by the way people felt the song and learned to sing it. In one of his concerts, in Évora, he asked the people to sing it together again. :)

This is the magic of music. It opens our hearts and fills them with a tender universal love. 

Indian Givers - Standing Rock - In the River - Women's Warrior Song

Oscars 2017: the best was the party

Do you remember fun? Be surprised? Live the moment?
The oscars party was all that.
I haven't watched any of these movies yet but I've seen the party twice. :)

There is a movie that I really want to see: 20th century women.

This movie is about the present looking at the future: cultural innovation. 
Women understand the cultural changes. They are the first to feel the change and to embrace it. Many changes were the women themselves to provoke them. Women are better equipped to understand the millennials. :)

"Cross Country: The Power of Place in American Art, 1915-1950”

The High Museum of Art Atlanta is exhibiting “Cross Country: The Power of Place in American Art, 1915-1950”, which features Ansel Adams. 

I once wrote about a place, a movie and Ansel Adams.
"O Lugar" and "Rio sem Regresso e Ansel Adams" were published in Çopyright by Celso Alvarez Cáccamo, who chose the Ansel Adams picture, The Tetons and Snake River.

The importance of hope

I still remember Brideshead Revisited and not just because of the script (an adaptation of a novel by Evelyn Waugh). Everything seems magical, unreal. And the places, Brideshead, Venice, Tangier... 
The second generation of the family is divided between rigid religious values and the call of real life, for love, friendship, adventure. The eldest daughter returns to her comfort zone of purity and God's forgiveness. The youngest one can never free herself from this influence. And the son ends up in Tangier drinking and smoking his life away. 
The main character finds hope in the end, after all the experiences that life gave him: love, friendship, pain, hope. He is not a believer and has seen how rules can destroy a person devoid of affection. Only love can save and heal. 
Finally he understands the rejection of his lover and her choice for God and peace of mind.

Another tv series that I won't forget is The jewel in the Crown. Again, it's not just the script. The place is also magical... India in the fourties. So much love and so much pain. So much madness and prejudice. There is hope in the end, even with the scars...
More recently, Parade's End and War and Peace.
All these tv series are adaptations of novels.

And then there are tv series designed directly for television: Law & Order, criminal intent, Menphis Beat, Person of Interest, Borgen, Homeland. 

Homeland is becoming better every season. :)
Carrie defends young students caught up in the fine line between a natural revolt of free speech and the intention of violence, the real threat. The challenge is huge: how can we draw the line?
In Homeland we learn to accept human nature, its strengths and its weaknesses, suffering, dependencies, self-destructive behavior. We won't find prejudice or disgust. Humans are fragile. 
Hope is still alive in all of them, above suffering and lonely days. This is the message. Humans mess things up but have the ability to fix them.