GUEST POST from Don – Comments II

COMMENTS ON NEWS, part duo

WIRED reports: “A Hiker Was Missing for Nearly a Year. Then an AI System Spotted His Helmet”

They found Nicola Ivaldo’s body on a mountain he was climbing ALONE. He didn’t tell anyone he was going. They thought he might be in trouble when he didn’t show up for work days later. He broke several safety rules for hiking/climbing, such as: Go with a buddy. Tell others where you are going and when you expect to return. Be prepared for weather changes. Results: He died. It took 10 months to find his body. It required others to risk their lives to retrieve his body.

The number one rule for hiking, running, or scaling a mountain: Never go alone. This is also true for going to the store after dark. Going alone increases your odds of disaster.

USA TODAY reports: “Americans are drowning in auto loan delinquencies; report says Congress needs to fix it” by Betty Lin-Fisher.

They falsely report that the “average” new car costs about $50,000. That number is only true if you include the more expensive e-cars and trucks that environmentalists are pushing. The average gas vehicle costs about $46,000. But the average gas car costs that because of those people who are buying the much more expensive midsize SUVs many of which start at $60,000 and those specialty cars that exceed the cost of your house. So, those people who buy “normal” cars are not the ones this article is talking about. Here’s another quote: “Car buyers with above-average credit scores (620-679) were twice as likely to fall behind as they were before the pandemic…” (620 is NOT a good credit rating, by the way … buying a car is cheaper if your rating is above 660 according to Edmunds). Who has good credit scores and buy the more expensive cars, trucks, SUVs and e-cars? Middle and upper class.

What I’m thinking is that USA TODAY wants the government to “rescue” people who have more money than they have common sense! They want a hand-out for the middle and upper classes. Does this sound like something the government should be involved in? The dealer will sell you almost anything if you have a job. But there are several formulas which can tell you how much car is TOO MUCH for your budget. Check it out and BELIEVE the formula! When you buy TOO MUCH car you will more likely find yourself with a budget problem.

One more quote: “Cars are increasingly expensive because of advanced technology, stricter safety and efficiency regulations and supply chain disruptions, to name a few.”

So, what should the “government” do? It has already made cars too expensive with regulations. If the government should do anything else it should create a budget formula for car buyers. If they buy TOO MUCH car they are on their own. “You screwed up! Don’t do that next time.” If the customer follows the formula and still fails, maybe the problem is the formula.

Smithsonian reports: “NASA Discovers ‘Clearest Sign’ Yet of Ancient Life on Mars in a Rock Studied by the Perseverance Rover”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying there hasn’t been “life” on Mars. I’m just saying that NASA is “grasping at straws.” They are looking at things on Mars from an “earth” perspective. On earth, if there is biological activity certain rock compounds form or respond to the biologicals. On earth we have biologicals EVERYWHERE. Whether those rock compounds can form without biologicals has never been formally studied (why would it need to be?) So, looking at certain rocks on Mars (through the lens of a machine there) they are seeing what “look like” compounds that “look like” they could have been formed by biologicals on a planet which is very much unlike earth.

NASA could have as easily reported “We found the ‘clearest sign’ yet of intelligence in Congress.” That report might be slightly more likely.

They HAVE NOT yet found proof that there ever was life there (from an earthly perspective). They might NEVER find proof. And, I say, so what!!!

Even Ethan Siegal at BIG THINK agrees. He says, “All hitherto discovered Martian minerals can also be produced abiotically: without life’s involvement.” To be called a biological only means that a carbon atom bonded with something else, to form a molecule like methane or benzene.

Is it required? If we ever send people to Mars there certainly will be all kinds of life. We will take bacteria and micro-organisms (including those critters which munch on decay in our eyelashes). After those humans eat food, something will need to break down the bodily waste (we will be taking that).

Copyright 2025 Donald Whelpley

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