Category: politics

Big data

I’ll start with a link to the Wikipedia page on Big data. Though the summary is pretty easy to follow, I’ll be honest in admitting to not reading the rest.

Right, @GwenfarsGarden@rage.love posted this on Friday under the content warning Palestine/NHS action: keep Palantir out of the NHS (UK) (link) and this text:

Palantir, a US spyware company that provides technology enabling Israel’s genocide in Palestine, has been awarded a lucrative contract to develop and maintain a platform to store NHS patient data – known as the Federated Data Platform. It is now in the process of being rolled-out by NHS trusts in England.

Alongside health workers and patient groups, Palestine Solidarity Campaign are calling for the contract and roll-out of the platform to be stopped.

Write to the Health Secretary Wes Streeting, and Minister of State Karin Smyth, to demand the contract is revoked and the roll-out stopped:

https://palestinecampaign.eaction.online/palantirnhs

# Palestine #NHS

Since 2020 I’ve measured the likelihood changes will be reversed by how embarrassing it’d be to decision makers.

My journey along this road started with responding by email to poorly-thought out covid strategies at the high school my daughters attended and my youngest daughter still does – and their absolute intransigence after they’d published… Zero consultation with parents, see?

So, Palantir:

How efficient will it be to use them vs the harm to individuals here? Not very. By that I mean it’s likely to be cost-effective vs most of the previous attempts at unifying health data

How efficient vs how harmful to all of us? Bad. Not bad right away, but bad when the government relies on their data to make decisions about how the little people are treated. Bad because the government will uncritically examine datasets too large to comprehend and jump into… aaah…

A diagram of the generation and common application of big data. (Wikipedia, by user Jouasse).
A diagram of the generation and common application of big data. (Wikipedia, by user Jouasse).

So, I’m considering signing the petition.

Why “considering” though?

It’s not at all complicated but if you’ve got this far I’d like to ask you to read the Wikipedia article about the company, and especially the section on Controversies.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palantir_Technologies

The decision makers in this case must have known about the company’s history. They must have known about the ramping up of fascism in the United States. They must have known that once data is made accessible to Palantir it won’t stay there, whatever agreements and whatever language in those agreements tries to keep it safe.

So for me it’s pointless signing another petition, we’re being governed by a party with knee-jerk reactions to every decision that must be made. It’s worse than the previous shower of shite.

But in this case we’re throwing away the £millions (£billions?) thrown at previous attempts to bring together health data and throwing more at a company with a proven track record.

And I don’t mean a proven good one.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/27/us/cambridge-analytica-palantir.html

As a start-up called Cambridge Analytica sought to harvest the Facebook data of tens of millions of Americans in summer 2014, the company received help from at least one employee at Palantir Technologies, a top Silicon Valley contractor to American spy agencies and the Pentagon.

Remember them? Consider how likely it is that it was not just restricted to Americans (US publications always show bias to American issues and limit scope to Americans, no offence intended to Americans).

Anyway, I’m pretty sure that I’ve used the following quote for a past #QuoteSunday:

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”

– George Santayana.

Yeah, I know this is usually used for the bigger big stuff, but it works for me.

Fine

Do you know how most governments start their terms with the best of wishes for the people they govern, but soon find that the promises made simply cannot be kept – the scale of the challenge exceeded their imaginations? And so the disillusionment of the people who elected them grows?

Well the current United States administration didn’t begin with the best of intentions for the majority, neither in the short or long terms. It’s painful to watch from the comparative ‘safety’ of a little country just off the western edge of Europe.

A screen grab from an episode of Homestar Runner, with the Strong Bad character sat in front of a broken 'Compy 386' computer. A hand-drawn note pretending to be a genuine computer dialogue is taped on the screen, reading: "This is real. System report: Everything is fine. Nothing is ruined." With an 'ok' button below'.
A screen grab from an episode of Homestar Runner, with the Strong Bad character sat in front of a broken ‘Compy 386’ computer. A hand-drawn note pretending to be a genuine computer dialogue is taped on the screen, reading: “This is real. System report: Everything is fine. Nothing is ruined.” With an ‘ok’ button below’.

And yet we here are facing some of the same challenges as the country presided over by an occupant of a position once termed ‘The Leader of the Free World’.

The difference is stark. At least here the politicians pretend to have thought long and hard about the pain ordinary folks will have to endure for the next 4 years. At least here it’s unlikely any dissent or public protest will be met with literal criminal charges of ‘terrorism’ – although the Conservative government prior to this one did start to change our laws (the magic of the ‘Statutory Instrument’.

And, do you know, not one of our politicians had actually said they’d be a dictator on day 1. I’m certain in years gone by it’s be too much for a public accustomed to at least an illusion that their votes guaranteed a say in policy.

But ordinary people throughout the United States of America voted for a candidate who told them he’d strip away their rights and ignore the Constitution and all the amendments he and his backers don’t get along with.

And they put it all in writing, in public.

It’s not about Trump’s inability to think of anyone but himself any more, and drag vested interests along for the ride. That was his first, chaotic term.

No, there’s a literal book with a script that’s being worked to. The figures who previously lurked in the shadows don’t need to any longer. It’s not as if they feel emboldened to say and do things in public – the very system is now tailored directly for them, to either enrich or grant them previously unimaginable powers.

So why am I writing this now? What’s prompted this today?

Simple really. The past is being whitewashed again. Government sites are removing all references to Diversity, Equality and Inclusion initiatives – past, present and future.

https://taskandpurpose.com/news/arlington-cemetery-scrubs-website-dei/

I visited Arlington Cemetery way back in 1993. You know, back when governments had the best wishes for their people, their past, their future.

Code for government

Col on Mastodon provided me with more inspiration earlier, this time with a post linking to a Sky News article entitled “Nearly all US aid programmes worldwide frozen after Trump order“. POTUS1 also questioned the need for FEMA – the USA’s own disaster management body tasked with assisting states in times of dire emergency. But anyway…

I wrote a program designed to guide budding diplomats through the maze of decision making when it comes to aliens.

No, not 👽 aliens, but I’ve no doubt the same logic will be applied when The Space Browns arrive to save my Cleveland Browns.

The program is thankfully devoid of AI, and honestly it’s pretty BASIC.

1 REM ### DecSurpPop v0.01a ###
10 DealWithKids = 0
20 USForeignPolicyKids = 0
30 Month = 0
40 HellFreezesOver = 0
50 WHILE USForeignPolicyKids = 0
60 DealWithKids = 0
70 Month = Month + 3
80 IF Month = 3 THEN Month = 0
90 USForeignPolicyKids = RND()*1776
100 IF USForeignPolicyKids = 1 THEN HellFreezesOver = RND()*2025
110 WEND
120 IF HellFreezesOver = 1 THEN END ELSE GOTO 10

There are no integers on 90 & 100, it sounds too much like “integrate”.

Disclaimer: I am not a professional programmer, so before using this as an integral (ugh!) plank of your basis of government a check of its syntax may be appropriate.

  1. An acronym for the current President Of The United States. Please check which you’re following on any social or government account – it’s been rolled over from the previous incumbent. ↩