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Wednesday, June 25, 2025

25: China

Jensen Huang recently claimed that “the ChatGPT moment for general robotics is just around the corner.”

Elon Musk backs Warren Buffett’s proposal to ‘end the deficit in 5 minutes’ as the bold idea gains steam again "I could end the deficit in five minutes,” Buffett told CNBC’s Becky Quick in a 2011 interview. “You just pass a law that says that any time there's a deficit of more than 3% of GDP, all sitting members of Congress are ineligible for re-election.” ....... “What produces [inflation] is too much government spending and too much government creation of money and nothing else,” adding, “Only Washington can create money.”

That era is over. We have reentered a period of great power conflict. The winner of this conflict will shape the future of humanity for the remainder of the century and perhaps longer. Our rival great power is the People’s Republic of China and, to a lesser extent, its chief authoritarian allies. China’s paramount leader, Xi Jinping, has openly stated that the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) goal is the end of U.S. primacy and the creation of a new authoritarian-friendly world order with Beijing at its center. .......... China understands this foundational concept and has for decades incorporated it into their grand strategy. Rather than profits, their companies’ “primary goal is to capture market share and thereby damage advanced economies and pave the way for China to become the world’s pre-eminent superpower.” ........... While centralized control has many drawbacks, it offers one critical advantage: coordination. Like Germany’s state-industrial model from the late 1800s through World War II, the CCP mobilizes society to dominate sectors it deems vital — ranging from strategic industries like steel to seemingly peripheral ones like Vitamin C. This truth is not only uncontroversial but openly acknowledged by the CCP. In a little-noticed anti-dumping case that reached the Supreme Court, the Chinese government admitted in official filings and sworn affidavits that it exercises “government control designed to cause certain important Chinese industries to operate in a coordinated fashion in order to insure their stability and further their profitability.” ............

In economic warfare, the CCP sees bankrupting an American company as equivalent to destroying a military installation, and collapsing an entire U.S. industry the same as winning a military campaign.

.......... The sharpest edge of this campaign is the deployment of China’s national champions like Huawei, ZPMC, and BYD. Like all Chinese companies, state owned or otherwise, they are subject to CCP control. Chinese law mandates cooperation with state security services, while internal Communist Party cells ensure compliance. Defiant executives risk severe consequences, including disappearance. These firms are charged with displacing competitors in every major market. To that end, they receive the full backing of the Chinese state — from subsidies to cyberespionage and lawfare — which in turn allow the companies to engage in predatory pricing, intellectual property theft, forced technology transfers, and economic coercion. ........... Over the past three decades, American businesses have learned a hard truth: no company can stand against a superpower. When Beijing targets a corporation or industry, the U.S. private sector alone cannot match its scale, staying power, or strategic patience. The result is predictable — market share erodes, capital dries up, and, eventually, a Chinese national champion takes its place. This has happened time and again, from shipbuilding to solar panels, rare earth processing to legacy semiconductors. ............. how should America respond to this whole-of-society threat while still maintaining the principles of limited government and free enterprise responsible for its remarkable innovation and prosperity? ............ Knudsen, who rose from immigrant factory worker to General Motors CEO, was a genius at mass production. In 1940, President Roosevelt called on him to lead the prewar mobilization effort. Knudsen, who deeply loved his adopted country, accepted the offer, playing several formal and informal roles. His story serves as a blueprint for national mobilization through capitalist means. ......... Knudsen understood that the power of American industry had to be catalyzed, not commanded. He asked his peers in the private sector for assistance. Most were ideologically aligned, but hesitant due to practical economics. No company could support a war effort at scale if doing so would quickly result in bankruptcy. Knudsen believed in both democracy and capitalism — and understood that the power of the latter was essential to preserving the former. Looking at the incentives in the defense industry, he knew that the system had to change. Procurement rules capped profit margins and disincentivized private investment. Knudsen famously urged Roosevelt to fix this through incentives, not threats, stating: “The government can’t do it all. The more people we can get into this program, the more brains we can get into it, the better chance it will have to succeed.” While some New Dealers viewed such reforms as apostasy, Roosevelt adopted them. ............ Both Knudsen and Roosevelt — the leading voices in American enterprise and politics, respectively — grasped a deeper truth: in moments of existential danger, free enterprise and government must function symbiotically. What the government requires of industry is a commitment to a shared mission: a recognition that enduring profit depends on America not only surviving but thriving. What industry requires of government is an alignment of incentives so that those who share this mission at least have an opportunity for greater profit than those who do not. Both must remain vigilant against corruption and self-dealing. ................ America has learned and forgotten this lesson in voluntary coordination many times. During the American Revolution, citizens boycotted superior British goods, while the Founders — many among the richest men on the continent — risked everything by signing the Declaration of Independence, “mutually pledg[ing] to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” ............. During the Space Race, Washington harnessed the full power of government, industry, and academia to surpass Soviet capabilities. The result was not just a moon landing, but a wave of innovation that secured American technological leadership. In each case, the United States triumphed not by dividing capitalism from democracy, but by aligning both toward a common cause. ..............

China currently leads the United States in “37 out of 44” critical technologies, from 5G to electric batteries.

..................... America remains the world’s second-largest manufacturer despite lacking any industrial policy. .......... extending existing restrictions on Chinese firms like Huawei and BYD to any state-backed national champion operating in strategic sectors and benefiting from intellectual property theft, lawfare, or covert state support. Washington’s earlier failure to act enabled Beijing to cripple the U.S. green tech industry in the 2010s, with other sectors now at risk. ............ the current “acquisition process and Defense Industrial Base… does not have the throughput, responsiveness, or agility needed to deter our adversaries.” Today’s defense procurement is a centrally planned rather than market-driven system. Its laws and procedures remain rooted in discredited top-down management theories that defense expert Bill Greenwalt noted “were once fashionable in the Soviet Union and at the vanguard of the 1950s U.S. auto industry before it was outcompeted by Japan in the 1970s.” ........... At present, China — which, ironically, allows greater free market competition and commercial innovation in its defense industries than the United States — can make 359 ships for every one that America manufactures. ........... risks America losing the next prolonged conflict because we quite literally will run out of munitions. ......... replacing cost-plus contracts with fixed-price, merit-based alternatives; shifting from program-based to portfolio-driven acquisition; and expanding funding for iterative prototyping and field experimentation — the very reforms that once secured American victory in the last great power war. ............. the United States must accelerate global adoption of its technological ecosystem, particularly in AI. Countries that fall under China’s digital sphere will not merely risk surveillance. They will operate behind a “Silicon Curtain” that obscures the truth and rewrites history. Allowing a future where most of humanity has forgotten the tragedies of 20th-century communism — or, worse, comes to view authoritarianism as a superior model — would be a strategic and moral failure from which we may never recover. ........... harness the dynamism of free enterprise toward national renewal.

How to Build ChatGPT for Robotics

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Here’s Mark Cuban’s Favorite Car To Drive — and Why It’s not a Tesla The 2025 Kia EV6 has a starting MSRP of $42,900. It also qualifies for up to $7,500 in a federal tax credit, which drops the starting price to $35,400. That’s not so different from what you’d find with other more economical vehicles — EVs or otherwise. ........ The EV6 still has a ton to offer, including up to 319 miles of range (looking at the latest model), ultra-fast charging and a combined 320 horsepower. Plus, as Cuban pointed out, “The stereo system is good.” ...... Cuban does still own a Tesla. But if his interview is anything to go by, it’s mostly because he hasn’t gotten around to selling it yet.

Trump grapples for upper hand in debate over damage caused by U.S. strikes on Iran

'Biblical prophecy': Christian nationalists pushing Trump to 'usher in the End Times' Before launching his 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump didn't have a lot of contact with evangelical Christian fundamentalism........ Trump was raised Presbyterian/Mainline Protestant — not evangelical — in Queens by a Scottish immigrant mother and an American father. And religion, even non-fundamentalist Protestant Christianity, wasn't a high priority for him. ......... Cruz was referencing evangelical belief in a Biblical prophecy that war involving Israel and the larger Middle East is 'only one more step in ushering in Jesus' return," Marcotte notes. "As journalist Sarah Posner explained at Talking Points Memo, 'this movement holds that a series of prophesied events, including Jews' return to Israel and invasion by armies of foreign countries including Iran, will culminate in a bloody, victorious battle at Armageddon.'" .......... "As a result, the conflict between Iran and Israel has launched a frenzy within evangelical circles, as they hope the final battle is coming and they will get to witness the End Times…. Family Research Council head Tony Perkins was one of the architects of Project 2025, the far-right plan for a government takeover being implemented by Trump's administration. He's also a big believer in this Biblical prophecy and, as Kyle Mantyla of Right Wing Watch documented, has been using his podcast to frame war with Iran as the key to bringing Jesus back to Earth." ........... Other than the rocket remnants, I'm a big fan of Post-Its. I have a row of them across the bottom of my computer screen. All the way left are the most urgent problems, and farthest right are things I can deal with later........... When there are challenges, I enjoy getting into the engineering details. Nowadays, I'm dealing with a lot of technical and production questions about Neutron......... These unexpected moments are the most intellectually stimulating parts of each day. I try to avoid meetings whenever I can, but there are a few scheduled ones I have to attend. We have a set of rules in each meeting room, and if you're not adding value, you should leave. ........... Most days, I try to eat with a random group in the cafeteria, though I'll bring my plate to my desk when it's especially busy. ........ We're all busy people, but there aren't excuses for skipping out on the meal, which is usually the most enjoyable part of my day. We're all jokers, so dinner often consists of us talking about our days or taking digs. .......... After dinner, it's back to work. My time at home is for deeper thinking, whereas my time at the office is for solving practical problems. If I have a big choice to make, I'll collect opinions throughout the day and then eventually sit down with a glass of wine to mull it over. ............. I go to sleep as soon as I start to get ineffective, which is earlier and earlier these days, typically around 10 or 11 p.m. ........ I consider myself an active relaxer, meaning I have to do an activity to destress. ....... My favorite way to active relax is to fly a helicopter. When I'm flying, I have to shut out everything else, or I risk crashing. ...... Occasionally, I'll relax by flying a jet or driving a race car — really anything where there's no possibility of thinking about work.

Zohran did not win because of TikTok and podcasts His victory was the culmination of years of organizing and a platform that resonated with hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers. ........ This idea that if Democrats could only leverage the right social media platform they could seize political power emerged in the wake of the 2024 election. Rather than consider the fact that Kamala Harris was a deeply unpopular candidate who clung to wildly unpopular policies, kissed up to Republicans and treated her base like garbage, the message many Democrats seem to have walked away with was: Podcasts! .......... Zohran didn't win because of podcasts or TikTok or memes. He won because he is a widely charismatic and talented political leader who had a popular platform and slate of policy proposals that resonated with hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers. ......... His victory was also the culmination of years of organizing efforts by the DSA, the Working Families Party, and other grassroots groups. "All the credit for this monumental upset goes to Zohran himself, for being a generational talent, and to NY DSA, who’ve been laying the groundwork by building a bench of electeds for nearly a decade," journalist Lindsay Ballant correctly stated. "This didn’t start in 2025, this started in 2019 when he first ran for office." ......... "The Left… won this," she said. "They were the ones who organized and built community trust, block by block, positioning Zohran's campaign to catch fire in the media sphere in the first place. It takes an incredible amount of dedication to put all that faith when you're at 1%." ........... Mamdani didn't even really do that many podcasts. ......... Do you think podcast hits helped a socialist win over a third of Staten Island? ........ And his biggest video was one documenting his walk across the island of Manhattan. .......... "Zohran had integrity, charisma, great policies, messaging discipline, ground game & a tremendous team around him & yes he also did organic social media appearances around leftist content creators because we are all naturally a part of the same movement. Dems don't want that" .......... the establishment Democratic party is deeply and painfully out of touch with the public. Social media posting and podcasting appearances won't do anything if your policies suck. People want to see real political courage and they want leaders like Mamdani to stand up to corporate power and fight for more equality in every sense of the word.

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