~~ Huichol Reptile

I do get what they're trying to do here, but the language just doesn't do it. Perhaps because beauty is in the eye of the beholder, or perhaps because it is only skin deep, but it is something more than that. As you go through life, now and then beauty happens and it is wonderful, but we have fetishized beauty to such an extent that nothing else counts or matters. So sure, everything is beautiful in its own way, and, hence so is everybody, but now and then I'd be happy if certain things and leaders simply were not dysfunctional, but such is life; so, for me:

You know, just normal, everyday, people, Monday morning people, even.

Being aware that I am a crotchety old fart, and being completely inexperienced at using AI, I decided that this was a perfect opportunity to address both imperfections and use chatgpt.com to get a second opinion.

Moi: What is inner beauty?

chatbot: Inner beauty refers to the qualities and traits that make a person truly admirable and attractive beyond physical appearance. This often includes attributes like kindness, compassion, empathy, integrity, and a positive attitude. Inner beauty reflects how a person treats others, their values, and their character. It emphasizes the importance of what’s on the inside, suggesting that true beauty comes from how we connect with and uplift those around us.

Moi: Do androids, robots, chatbots and AI devices and programs have inner beauty?

chatbot: That’s an interesting question! Androids, robots, chatbots, and AI don’t have inner beauty in the same way humans do because they lack emotions, consciousness, and personal values. However, they can exhibit traits that might be considered "beautiful" in a different sense, like being helpful, efficient, or user-friendly. The way they interact with people—like being kind, understanding, or supportive—can create a sense of "inner beauty" in their functionality and design. Ultimately, it’s more about how they enhance human experiences rather than possessing beauty themselves.

MOI: Why do humans have a National Inner Beauty Day?

chatbot: National Inner Beauty Day, celebrated on March 4th, aims to promote the idea that true beauty comes from within. The day encourages people to appreciate qualities like kindness, compassion, and self-acceptance, rather than focusing solely on physical appearance. It serves as a reminder to cultivate inner qualities that contribute to positive relationships and a healthier self-image. By celebrating inner beauty, the day helps foster a culture of acceptance and encourages people to support and uplift one another.

Moi: Thanks.

chatbot: You’re welcome! If you have any more questions or need further information, feel free to ask!

So there you have it. Damned thing writes better than I do, but I don't know where it got that date. Checkiday.com says it's today, the duck refers me to checkiday, google says October 7, and Yandex agrees as well.

On this day in history:

The equivalent of October 7, 3761 BCE is purportedly the epoch reference date for or beginning of the Modern Hebrew Calendar. As a goy, I'm not remotely up to speed on such matters, and that is a largely lunar calendar that uses intercalary days and other such features to be also a quasi-solar calendar and is seemingly not the first iteration and so I'm just putting this factoid out there and stand ready to be corrected by anybody who is certain and/or really groks it.

This is of course, day zero of "The Book". Sordid Assorted Romans and others up to and including the umpteenth Pope Gregory took a shot at creating the modern Western European calendar This, however, didn't really change The Book. Every jot and tittle of the first 3761 years of Western and Christian history, including an overwhelming number of begats, are as told in The Book, except, arguably, those that never seem to have happened. In this respect, it should be noted that this is pretty much an old world thing seemingly having no impact on those residing in The New World and likewise seemingly unaffected by things that happened in The New World back in those days.

.

October 7, 1477 was the inaugural date for Uppsala University which, for reasons unbeknownst to me, had to get a permit from the Pope in order to exist. It's still there, and a good one too, so I assume that their permit is still valid.

October 7, 1571, was the Battle of Lepanto. This is pretty universally held to be an earth shaker even though it was fought on water. The Ottoman Empire was moving into Europe, seemingly an unstoppable juggernaut, and then their fleet got seriously clobbered by the fleet of the Holy League. The battle is often compared to Salamis in many respects, starting with the fact that both fleets were composed almost exclusively of rowed vessels, in this case galleys and galleases, though some did possess gunpowder based artillery. It was, in fact, the last major naval battle fought almost entirely with such vessels. Interestingly enough, the Holy League's fleet was largely financed by Phillip II of España, who also gave the world the magnificent Spanish Armada, which was not nearly so victorious, so to speak.

On October 7, 1763, King George III of Britain, issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763. This proclamation prohibited all settlement in North America west of a line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains. Everything west of this line was set aside as an Indian Reserve. Generally, all land with rivers flowing into the Atlantic Ocean were set aside for the colonies and all lands with rivers flowing into the Mississippi River was reserved for the Indians. This seriously angered colonial land speculators (surprise, surprise), especially in Virginia and Pennsylvania. (and here you thought that the American Revolution was all about quartering of troops, taxes, the slave trade, and the Stamp Act, didn't you?)

On October 7, 1864, the USS Wachussett attacked and captured the CSS Florida in Bahia Harbor, Brazil. When some of the Confederate sailors jumped overboard, the crew of the Wachussett shot them in the water as they tried to escape. This event seriously outraged the government of Brazil, who correctly asserted that it was a violation of Brazilian neutrality, so the US had a show trial in which the captain of the Wachussett was court-martialed and convicted, but the sentence was never carried out and he was later promoted for his glorious surprise attack victory over a largely unmanned ship (most of the crew being ashore) in a neutral port. Brazil also demanded that the CSS Florida be handed over to them for return to the surviving Confederate crew, but we accidently sunk it instead. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Even then, the US did whatever it damn well pleased and ignored "international law", applying its own "rules based order" instead.

On October 7, 1913, Ford Motor Company introduce the first moving vehicle assembly line.

On October 7, 1870, in the midst of the Franco-Prussian War, one Léon Gambetta escaped the siege of Paris in a hot air balloon. Heh.

On October 7, 1963, JFK signed the ratification of the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. Shockingly enough, it appears that the US has thus far abided by both the letter and spirit of this treaty.

On October 7, 2001, the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the graveyard of empires, began.
Today, after 20 years of seemingly unrestricted war upon the civilian populace of Afghanistan, punctuated by sporadic successful attacks on suspected members of Al Qada, the Taliban and assorted warlords, the war is well over. In the end, we bailed; hiya Tommy, howdy Ivan. Though some say it was the US's longest war, it was only the US's longest shooting war. The US has been waging economic and covert war against Iran since they overthrew the US backed tyrant, Shah Reza Pahlavi, in 1979, and Cuba since they overthrew he US backed tyrant dictator, Fulgencio Batista, in 1958.

Some people who were born on this day:

Never express yourself more clearly than you are able to think.

~~ Neils Bohr

1819 – Ann Eliza Smith, author and US Civil War hero
1870 – Uncle Dave Macon, singer, songwriter, banjo player, and comedian
1879 – Joe Hill, labor activist, songwriter, and poet.
1885 – Niels Bohr, physicist
1888 – Henry A. Wallace, agronomist and politician
1907 – Helen MacInnes, librarian and author
1911 – Vaughn Monroe, singer, trumpet player, and band-leader
1919 – Henriette Avram, computer scientist
1927 – Al Martino, singer and actor
1928 – Lorna Wing, (real) autism researcher
1934 – Amiri Baraka, (LeRoi Jones ) poet, playwright, and academic
1937 – Chet Powers, singer, songwriter, and guitarist
1939 – Harry Kroto, chemist
1944 – Judee Sill, singer, songwriter, and musician
1949 – Dave Hope, bass player not in Kansas anymore, Toto
1951 – John Mellencamp, singer, songwriter, and guitarist
1953 – Tico Torres, drummer
1964 – Sam Brown, singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer
1967 – Toni Braxton, singer, songwriter, producer, and actress
1968 – Thom Yorke, singer, songwriter and guitarist.
1975 – Tim Minchin, comedian, actor, and singer
1978 – Alison Balsom, trumpet player and educator

Some people who died on this day:

There is no exquisite beauty… without some strangeness in the proportion

~~ Edgar Allen Poe

1849 – Edgar Allan Poe, short story writer and poet
1950 – Willis Haviland Carrier, engineer, invented electrical air conditioner
1959 – Mario Lanza, tenor and actor
1983 – George O. Abell, astronomer, professor, science popularizer, and skeptic
1990 – Grim Natwick, animator, drew Betty Boop
2001 – Herblock, editorial cartoonist and author
2012 – Wiley Reed, singer, songwriter, and pianist

Some Holidays, Holy Days, Festivals, Feast Days, Days of Recognition, and such:

National Frappe Day
National Flower Day
National Inner Beauty Day
Wold Architecture Day
World Habitat Day

Today's Tunes

Inner Beauty

The Bahia Incident

Léon Gambetta

Uncle Dave Macon

Joe Hill

Vaughn Monroe

Al Martino

Chet Powers

Judee Sill

Dave Hope

John Mellencamp

Sam Brown

Toni Braxton

Thom Yorke

Tim Minchin

Alison Balsom

Mario Lanza

Wiley Reed

I won't be here when this posts

Ok, it's an open thread, so it's up to you folks now. So what's on your mind?

Cross posted from http://caucus99percent.com

Open Thread, Inner Beauty Day, Battle of Lepanto, Proclamation of 1763, Bahia Affair, Léon Gambetta, Joe Hill, Tim Minchin