Using Protection

Bodyguards, Trill Seekers

Most of the employment stories related to the AI-fueled tech boom are about the potential job losses. But the extreme wealth and social media-inflamed rage of the era has led to at least one area of significant job growth: Bodyguards. “Bodyguarding is at least as old as Alexander the Great’s somatophylakes, or ‘body guardians,’ and the Praetorian Guard, which emerged to protect Roman rulers as the Republic gave way to imperial rule around 27 BCE. During that time, as now, the erosion of democratic norms and free discourse helped create a market to keep the powerful alive ... Today, there are additional potential accelerants: a scummy soup of social media; unchecked inequality; and unrestrained bombast at every level of government and society, algorithmically optimized to reward the most controversial voices.” Grayson Schaffer in GQ: Meet the Bodyguards Signing Up to Protect America’s Frightened Billionaires. (Alt link.)

+ The violent speech online often bleeds into real life. So does the vigilantism. The merging of our on- and offline worlds is in full (and fully disturbing) view in this NYT (Gift Article) story about livestreaming vigilantes who ambushed an innocent man. They Tried to Catch a Predator. They Trapped Themselves Instead. “Akash had been ensnared by a business venture that traffics in public humiliation as entertainment. That he was innocent of what he was accused of only served to draw a bigger crowd.” The most vile aspects of social media sort of ruined the internet. Are they coming for real life next?

2

Nobody Puts Baby Around a Corner

Donald Trump has publicly claimed that an Iran peace deal was right around the corner at least 38 times. It must be a pretty big corner as the ceasefire has been replaced by fighting and threats of more to come. “The United States will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT. At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Here’s the latest from The Guardian, NBC, and NYT.

+ “It was a dramatic moment. President Trump seemed to be disclosing, on live television, a clandestine mission that involved spiriting away millions of barrels of oil, right under Iran’s nose. In Mr. Trump’s telling, the mission was so secretive that the Iranians were learning about it only at that very moment.” NYT(Gift Article): Trump’s ‘Secret Mission’ to Ferry Oil Past Iran Was Widely Disclosed. “While the operation was surreptitious enough — the U.S.-guided vessels have been turning off their transponders to avoid detection when crossing the narrow waterway — it could hardly have been news to Iran. Late last month, The New York Times published an article about the effort, reporting that U.S. Central Command had shepherded around 70 commercial ships through the strait.”

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Trill Seeker

On the eve of what could be the crowning of the world’s first trillionaire, the WSJ (Gift Article) tries to put that number into perspective. “1 trillion pennies? That’s a flight to the moon. And back. Twice.” You Have No Idea What a Trillion Dollars Is—and We Have Proof. “Not long ago, the word trillionaire only appeared in The Wall Street Journal as hyperbole. It was an obviously exaggerated way of describing an inconceivable fortune—like calling someone a bazillionaire. But now that SpaceX is going public, it might just be something we call Elon Musk.”

+ SpaceX’s IPO is expected to make more than 4,000 employees millionaires.

+ Meanwhile... “The condemnation over anti-immigrant riots in Northern Ireland was being matched by another growing outrage in Britain on Thursday: that the world’s richest person was inciting the violence.” He’s definitely the richest. He may also be the most dangerous.

+ Yesterday, I led with an overview of what’s happening in Northern Ireland. Belfast and the Furious.

4

Just the Tip

For the Knicks, a historic NBA finals game comeback culminated with a final seconds tip looked like a long-awaited championship tipping point. For the Spurs, it was the tip of the iceberg on a loss as brutal as the Knicks’ win was glorious. NBA Finals Game 4: Anatomy of Knicks’ comeback, Spurs’ collapse. (This just goes to show that there’s nothing like a June night in New York when Trump’s not there.)

+ “As far as we know, Ogugua Anunoby Jr.—better known as OG—does not, in fact, possess divine hands, but they are considerable, measuring 9.5 inches across and 9.25 inches in length. And they are, it seems, capable of divine acts so profound that they can alter history, confer NBA immortality, and bring momentary rapture to a city starved for basketball glory.” The Right Hand of God Game.

+ A Wu-Tang prayer, OG Anunoby, Jose Alvarado and the greatest comeback in NBA history.

+ For SF Giants fans, the Knicks game wasn’t even the greatest comeback of the day. Before their latest game, MLB teams were a combined 1-3,090 when trailing by 8 or more runs after 7 innings over the last 20 seasons. They’re now 2-3,090. And it ended with a walk-off grand slam by a rookie who went from promising to legendary with one swing. (Is this a big, national story of cultural significance like the Knicks-Spurs NBA finals thriller? No, but I’m the editor of the internet and I need to share an occasional story that doesn’t make me feel like throwing up. So, thank you for your attention to this matter.)

5

Extra, Extra

FIFA and the Fiefdom: “Paying rent to the Trumps was the choice of Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s president, who has made being close to Mr. Trump a top priority. He has lavished the president with praise, trophies and a medal. He has made pilgrimages to Mar-a-Lago, the Trump National Doral golf club and even the ‘Melania’ documentary premiere. Mr. Infantino has publicly boosted the president through impeachments and plummeting poll numbers. It was all in service, Mr. Infantino’s supporters say, of ensuring that the World Cup, which begins this week, goes off without a hitch.” A Yearslong Effort to Woo Trump Culminates With the World Cup. Yes, we knew the mix of FIFA and Trump would make for a toxic corruption stew. But now it’s time to move past the ugly business and get on with the beautiful game.

+ A Sad Truth About Ally: Worried about something embarrassing or offensive happening during the World Cup that could sour the views our allies have of America? Well, maybe this will ease your mind. Only 11% of Europeans view US as an ally.

+ Little Boy Meets World: “A long-anticipated and dramatic global climate shift has arrived, federal forecasters said June 11 as they confirmed the start of El Niño conditions. The announcement also adds to mounting evidence suggesting this El Niño will be unusually strong, potentially supercharging droughts, heavy rainfall events and heat waves.” Forecasters expect a global weather powerhouse.

+ Slush Bucket Unkicked: “Behind the scenes, Justice Department and other Trump-administration officials have quietly assured allies that plans for some form of payout remain on track. I spoke with eight people familiar with the so-called Anti-Weaponization Fund—including current and former Justice Department officials, current and former members of Congress, a defense attorney, and political operatives close to the administration. All said that Justice Department officials and people close to the White House have indicated that the payout idea has not actually been scrapped.” The Atlantic (Gift Article): Trump Isn’t Giving Up on His Slush Fund.

+ The Other AI Investment: “Some of the most powerful players in A.I. — led by some of my friends and former partners, to my great sadness — have raised hundreds of millions of dollars to forestall a more serious and meaningful debate about how A.I. should be governed. They have helped create political action committees to help defeat candidates who want strict regulations on A.I. and to promote those who can be counted on to stay out of their way. I believe this is a huge mistake.” We Can’t Let My Former V.C. Colleagues Buy Off Our Democracy.

+ Balloon Animals: “You might not think much about wind. Storms, sure, but you may not ponder the forces behind the soft, warm breezes that bend the switchgrass or the stiff, cold northers that sting the cheeks. You haven’t studied the physics of gases that yearn for stabilization and rush from high- to low-pressure areas. You don’t analyze the various wind currents flowing in different directions at different altitudes, moving like the traffic on some Dallas interchange in the sky. And why would you? You’re not a competitive hot-air balloonist.” Texas Monthly: The Rise and Rise of Balloon Racing’s First Family. (I’m a member of the first family of DoorDash.)

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Bottom of the News

“Although this observation had nothing to do with his original research, it piqued his curiosity. ‘This was the first signal that something weird was happening.’” Nearly Everyone, Everywhere, Veers Left When Walking.

+ “A New York City pastry chef swirls vanilla-bean ice cream into a waffle cone, then dips the creamy soft serve into a vat of golden liquid to form a crispy shell. It’s not chocolate or butterscotch or peanut butter that’s coating this frozen dessert; it’s a thin, hardened layer of savory French butter, sprinkled with sea salt. And diners, no longer so fat-fearing these days, are eating it up.” Ice Cream Not Decadent Enough for You? Dip It in Butter. (Or just hook up a softserve machine to one of your ventricles.)