I told that to whatever “AI” art generator WordPress uses. This was the result. There was no iterated refinement, this is the first thing, as is.
art
He created the Dilbert comic strip – which ran in many newspapers until there were fewer newspapers and they disliked that Mr. Adams didn’t kowtow to their leftist ways. He also pointed out the “One screen, two movies” of the Right and Left where they might be looking at the same screen, but seeing wildly different things.
Like most, I never met him, nor ever interacted with him. I read his comic. Various strips were (are) commonly seen in places where IT folks or programmers worked. Likely, most any technical setting. Some time ago a fellow I knew complained that, “Dilbert isn’t funny.” And, well, he was right. The Dilbert strip was not “funny ha-ha.” It perhaps closer to “funny, uh-oh.” But what it really was, was “You are not alone.” I’d heard “I think Scott Adams has a spy here.” No need. Corporate insanity is corporate insanity.
The one time I thought he’d lost it was later explained. If you followed the strip ‘back in the day’ you might recall the land of Elbonia, where everyone was always waist deep in mud, and things made even less sense than usual. What was going on? Mr. Adams explained, without explicitly saying it was Elbonia in the strip, that he had figured the strip was then established well enough he could take a serious chance. He had wondered when the letters of the “How did you know…?” sort would stop as he made things ever more improbable and outright insane.
The letters never stopped.
No matter how screwy he made things, the Universe had beat him to it.
Though too many people assume they draw from the same well. They DO NOT. I can do ad-lib (and often get carped for it….) but Improv is another matter. I have a couple examples, not going into too much detail.
One was a game (done on IRC) that was turn-based with a cartoon (think WB bent Reality) theme. The problem is I’d see a Golden Opportunity… and plan for it, but intervening players would screw it up, take things a completely different way and nothing I could come up was nearly as good (or even any good) as the original thought.
Another time, I was recruited into a bit at a smaller RenFaire. It sounded good in theory. Alas, my work on it… let us be truthful… was garbage.
Meanwhile, at different Faire, a fellow was taking video from a distance of a fellow in a comedy sword troop while not performing. He asked for commentary in addition to his own. The comedy swordsman was evidently “chatting up” a gal and someone else said somethings about “…and now he’s telling her about his organ.” And I added, “And now he’s pulling out all the stops.” and that was it. This happened on Saturday. Sunday, the fellow who had been taking the video told me he missed the quip at the time of recording but when he reviewed things Saturday night it hit hard. He really wasn’t expecting me (or anyone) to take “organ” as an actual musical organ and come up with a quip that still worked in/for the situation.
So, I can ad-lib – at least somewhat. But improv… not a Good Idea. Not for me, anyway,
Let’s have a bit of Weird Al brilliance as he parodies Madonna’s Like a Virgin with Like a Surgeon (1985).
If you’ve watched it, a couple things might stand out. One, there is a Three Stooges reference at the beginning. And the “heart monitor” doesn’t show a real cardiac rhythm, just simple pulses. Curiously, I now have an inexpensive electronic function generator that can produce many waveforms… including an at least passable cardiac waveform. But 40 years of technical advancement does that sort of thing.
Why the unofficial remaster? Because unlike the official version, I can embed it and not have an annoying gray block demanding you go to YubTub.
Or at least a possible future. It’s not a pleasant one. And, yes, the makers of the video absolutely have biases that show mightily. The video is still amusing – and also disturbing.
A different aspect that Ian Bruene explained on TwiXtter:
Much chatter is currently being expended over the once Great Britain turning into a tinpot dictatorship, and their belief that their jurisdiction extends to anything they can see even if it is in another country.
This post isn’t to discuss that part, but to explain to the British Government and People what the next steps are.
Once you lose the jurisdictional fight with America – and there is no scenario here where you don’t lose – you will have a couple options. The first is that you could back away from the censorship. For civilized people this is obviously the option we wish you would take, but we don’t expect you to.
The other option you will have is to build your own Great Firewall of Britain (GFoB). You cannot fully disconnect from the internet and have a modern economy so you don’t have that option, so trying to filter the internet is the next best thing.
Once you build the GFoB you will have announced in very clear terms to the American people that you are an enemy state and intend to remain so. And you will have done this by violating the rights of your citizens on one of the things which we consider absolutely sacred. The result is that every politically aware American will consider breaking your government over their knee to be somewhere between a moral good and a moral duty.
Remember I said you can’t fully disconnect from the internet?
Because the data connections will still be in place, data smuggling from America to Britain will be easy and safe activism for Americans. This means your censorship filters are going to be overwhelmed by people breaking them or going around them. Some of that will be simple political commentary, but a lot will also be far more consequential.
I’ve posted the image attached to this post many times as a meme. But it is not a joke at all: you cannot stop your population from knowing how to make weapons and we will make damn sure that it stays that way.
And there is no diplomatic overture you can make which will stop this once it starts: our government does not have the authority to give any order which would stop it, and if they try anyway we will just consider them part of the enemy.
But none of this should be a problem for your government, so long as your population is generally happy with what you’ve been doing.
You have been making them generally happy with your performance, right?
Caitlin has sent the artwork.
Mr. L has received the artwork.
The artwork has been framed and presented to Mrs. L.
Mrs. L has a place for the artwork (it might be in place by now…it’s been a while… ox slow, ya know).
Mr. L has been inspired to aid Caitlin in another matter.
And the cookie sheets are likely to get donated.
This is one of those wonderful cases: EVERYBODY WINS.
The Artist/Sender gets the work to the Customer/Recipient – WIN!
The Recipient gets the work, intact – WIN!
Recipient pleases Wife – WIN!
The Artist/Sender gets further aid – WIN!
Someone, beyond artist & recipient, benefits from the protective cookie sheets – WIN!
And heck, even ox get to feel good about minor part in it – WIN!
Take THAT, zero-sum joiks!
Caitlin Walsh: Reminds me I REALLY need to get some 11×17 stiff things so I can ship that one comic to [Mr. L]. I’m thinking maybe luan from the hardware store… I think cardboard would probably be too bendy.
$HOUSEMATE: Cheap cookie sheets.
Caitlin Walsh: That is brilliant and I will do it. I have been sitting on this completely finished and the customer wants it picture for literally weeks because I couldn’t work it out.
$HOUSEMATE: I can’t claim credit for it. The ox has used it in the past.
Caitlin Walsh: Then the Ox shall receive thanks as well.
(The rabbit, the tiger and the ox walk into a shipping dilemma…)
Ox: Moo! Had to ship some things to a fellow who had long complained about everything getting mangled. Big padded envelope and a couple dollar store cookie sheets… arrived intact. And, “Oh, wow I have cookie sheets now, too!” Wasn’t expecting that.
For anyone wondering as I usually use initials or obscure identities, if only slightly, I asked about this and Caitlin Walsh granted permission to use her name in the above. She also was pleased by the Nancy Drew style title.
And yeah, maybe a stretch, but I get something I thunk of called ‘brilliant’, I’m using it! Also: Moo!
So here, have an ASCII art unicorn (from back when):
/
.,. /
,ttttn
,,.__ .,XXX"nI)
X XXXXXXXXXXXXX ""
.X XXXXXXXXXXXXXXxx
" .XX"XX X ./
*X' (X X "
X ") X
X, '" '"
This is HILARIOUS!
ADDENDUM: Someone made it EVEN BETTER: “From the anus to the P, Phallustine will be free”
At $WeBuildScales I “inherited” a couple prints, and was told I could take them with me when I left:
The Blank Signature, 1965 by Rene Magritte
Pure Reason, 1948 by Rene Magritte
I’d have them up somewhere, but every place it makes sense to hang something already is taken.
The Elegant Ungulate 