BunkerLINKS - #3 - May 24, 2025

"Super" computers, deflation, and sin... original and otherwise.

May 24, 2025

Elon Musk brought ‘the world’s biggest supercomputer’ to Memphis. Residents say they’re choking on its pollution

Memphis is the closest place to a hometown as I’ll ever have.

It’s always been a troubled place for several reasons. (That list is for another time or place. Or, you can just read the history. I recommend the work of Otis Sanford or G. Wayne Dowdy.)

The Musk project reminds me of Sidney Schlenker’s Great American Pyramid… with the bonus of negative environmental impact.

I hope for the best but expect to be disappointed.

Speaking of…

DOGE deflated: Elon Musk has lost his political power

His pet project, DOGE, has failed to deliver any real savings and basically just caused havoc in the federal government. For instance, their recent foray into the Social Security Administration has resulted in massive delays of service while finding essentially no fraud…

I’m all for eliminating federal government waste. Everyone should be.

But once again… as is often the case in Trump World… it was apparently all smoke and mirrors… the actions of a certain type of individual filled with fury, signifying nothing.

The Fall of Favre: the making – and unmaking – of a flawed NFL gunslinger

Although the welfare scandal wound up costing Favre lucrative endorsements, broadcast work and general credibility, he has never been charged with any wrongdoing over the allegations.
— Andrew Lawrence

I’ve cut screen time drastically over the past couple of years. There’s something to be said for self-imposed constraints.

But Lawrence’s piece in The Guardian on the The Fall of Favre, a new Netflix documentary, has piqued my interest. I’ve never been a football fan… but I’m always interested in the reasons behind system failures.

Clearly, with Favre, we can name at least two.

My Moral Sphere

“Telescopic philanthropy” (Gurri’s link) flatters our vanity with its call for heroic poses. Small gestures grow large with self-importance. I can, in my own eyes, become savior of the Earth by the simple act of purchasing a Prius.
— Martin Gurri

If Martin Gurri publishes it, I’m going to read it.

I’ve recommended The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium to dozens of people. Each one found the investment of time and effort worth it.

This article advocates the mission of good deeds done quietly.

The small world is what matters because it’s the only place where you and I can matter. It’s all potentiality, all signal. The great joys and the sheer fun of life can only be had by success in this place.
— Martin Gurri

The Stoics, staring down from their perch, smile in agreement.

Why Small Businesses Can’t Quit China

(Possible paywall.)

An excellent explanation of the reality of supply chains.

Also, yet another excellent example of the utter void of second and third-order thinking of… him.

Finally…

Jake Tapper’s Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again is out after being hyped to the heavens for at least two weeks.