Saturday

Tech

U.S. companies put record number of robots to work in 2018

"Pressure to automate is growing as companies seek to cut labor costs in a tight job market. Many companies that are considering bringing work back from overseas in response to the Trump administration’s trade wars may find automation the best way to stay competitive, even with higher-cost U.S. workers." 

and  

“The food industry is really starting to take off” as a market for automation, said Dan Hasley, director of sales and marketing for Kawasaki Robotics (USA) Inc, part of Japan’s Kawasaki Heavy Industries .

Thugs

Matt Gaetz investigated over threatening Michael Cohen tweets

"Gaetz tweeted at Cohen, "Do your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends? Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if she'll remain faithful when you're in prison. She's about to learn a lot..."

I can't see why this wouldn't earn some sort of criminal charge. It seems like clear cut witness tampering/threatening. 

Politics

The Intercept on Feinstein vs the Kids - The Fox News-Talk Radio wingnuts have been pulling hard on the right for years while the establishment Ds just sat there and let us drift into this mess. Now the Progressives Ds and the SDs are pulling hard on the left too. Hope they keep it up. They are our only hope to wrestle control from the corporate elite.

oh,... and Feinstein needs to go.

No More Mister Nice on pulling to the right. CPAC and the Media: Why?


Medicare for All

Is Nancy Pelosi Lying or Just Plain Stupid? - Well,... she ain't stupid. She's telling the story the donors want the US people to hear.

oh,... and Pelosi needs to go.


Iran Sanctions

India and China Defy Trump on the Iranian Oil Boycott: Instead of deterring the two countries from trading with Iran, the sanctions seem to have strengthened economic ties.

Little wonder that Iran’s oil exports in January at 1.1 to 1.3 million bpd were higher than 1 million bpd in December.

It looks like the rest of the world is give Trump a big "F**k You" on Iran.

Israel vs US

An Israeli firm spying on and threatening US Citizens.

• How a Private Israeli Intelligence Firm Spied on Pro-Palestinian Activists in the U.S.
• I was the target of a private Israeli intelligence firm, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt

It sure feels like there's been a shift in how we view and how the media is reporting Israeli meddling in US issues.  Maybe it's just my media/info bubble ?

Trump, Cohen, and the Rs

Probably the best summary of the Cohen testimony I've seen: [Hail Mary] from the always good Gin and Tacos

But it's a real Hail Mary for the GOP to rally around the defense of, this man who was the close, trusted ally of the president for 10+ years and served as his fixer is a vicious lying scumbag felon. They appointed Cohen finance chair of the Republican National Committee in 2017, for christ's sake. To call that argument an insult to the intelligence of their audience is an understatement. It's beyond stupid and it relies entirely on the assumption that people will support it without thinking about it if they are told to.

Does it bring anything closer to resolution? Who the fuck knows, and frankly at this point it is probably to the Democrats' advantage for Trump to run in 2020 rather than a last-minute replacement president who would give the GOP the appearance of having rid itself of its cancer. But it's pretty clear from watching the pathetic display put on by the GOP members of Congress during those hearings that the problem runs far, far deeper than one man. Whenever the Trump show is over, I have a feeling he's going to take more than a few of these allies down with him. If you want to lose a night of sleep, try thinking about the fact that some large percentage of your fellow Americans watched that shitshow and liked what they saw. Some of them liked it a great deal.

Don't get me wrong, we're all going on a three-week bender when Trump is finished, but man, this is not a problem that gets resolved quickly or easily. The president is the symptom, not the virus.

Trump, Cohen, and the Ds

"Cohen's fear - by digby

I don't believe this. Both parties scare their base with stories that the other guy is planning on taking over. The Rs did it with Obama. The Ds are doing it with Trump. If I had to bet, Trump is getting tired of it all, or scared, and wants out. Pence has been in the news some lately on foreign policy issues. I think he's gearing up to run in 2020.

Terrorism?

US offers $1m reward for capture of Osama bin Laden’s son (Mar 1, 2019 @ 12:03)

"Hamza bin Laden, 30, has threatened attacks on the US and allies to avenge his father Osama’s death in May 2011 by US commandos. The US State Department announced a $1m reward for information leading to his capture. “Hamza bin Laden is emerging as a leader of the AQ franchise,” said the notice. Osama Bin Laden had groomed his son to take over the AQ leadership. In August 2015, he began releasing audio and video messages on the Internet calling on his followers to launch attacks against the United States and its Western allies. “On January 5, 2017, the Department of State designated Hamza bin Laden as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.  His assets based in the United States were frozen"

I'd guess we should expect a terrorist attack any day now.