On Google's 'Woke' AI Disaster

WARNING: NUANCED OPINION ALERT!

by Ben Cohen

The generated images above are from Google’s Gemini app. They are being widely circulated on Twitter by right wing reactionaries, distraught by the fact that an AI algorithm depicted Vikings with black skin. According to the right, this is nothing less than anti-white racism:

Predictably, Elon Musk has amplified the tweets and is claiming this is the end of Western civilization:

There is something sad watching grown adults melt down over “Wokeness” — an issue that does require debate — but not apocalyptic warnings about the end of the white race.

I would like to offer some nuance on this topic, a somewhat revolutionary approach in today’s climate that requires giving weight to opposing views and not succumbing to tribalism. So be warned: you might not agree with everything I am about to say.

As much as I hate to admit it, there is something to the right’s argument against the all encompassing Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) philosophy. It has seeped into every aspect of our lives, and is now so blatant and patronizing that stalwart liberals like myself are pleading for it to stop.

My sense is that the Gemini image debacle is part of a broader and somewhat desperate attempt by tech, media and educational institutions to appear liberal. This usually means massively over representing a single minority (those of black African descent) in all of their offerings. This is particularly strange in places like the UK for example, where roughly 4% of the population are black.

I was in London over Christmas and couldn’t help but notice that the cast on almost every ad on television was at least 50% black. Notably, there was almost no Asian, Indian, or Eastern European representation whatsoever. I also watched a Netflix series set in Blackpool, England, and over half the cast were black — and again, no other minorities. I’ve been to Blackpool, and there is a very distinct lack of diversity there, so while it didn’t make much difference to the plot, it was about as realistic as a drama set in India featuring only Filipinos.

This is great news for black actors in the UK of course, many of whom have faced discrimination in an industry that has excluded and stereotyped them for decades. But when you change the ethnicity of major historical figures, or completely misrepresent the population you are depicting, you have to expect some backlash from the majority population. If Nigerian historical dramas started featuring blond haired Swedes for example, it would probably raise some eyebrows.

All of this is to say that the DEI efforts just feel forced and decidedly not genuine. The myopic focus on a single minority, the insistence on having diversity for the sake of it, and the very real exclusion of other minorities is creating an unsettling atmosphere. Many liberals who genuinely do care about fighting racism and greatly value diversity feel completely alienated by the DEI movement. For the minorities excluded by DEI, the alienation is morphing into something far more hostile. We’ve seen what it can do the right, so why are these companies and institutions still doing it?

Google it seems, has finally recognized their attempts to rewrite history in the name of DEI have gone too far. Reported the Guardian today:

Google has put a temporary block on its new artificial intelligence model producing images of people after it portrayed German second world war soldiers and Vikings as people of colour.

The tech company said it would stop its Gemini model generating images of people after social media users posted examples of images generated by the tool that depicted some historical figures – including popes and the founding fathers of the US – in a variety of ethnicities and genders.

“We’re already working to address recent issues with Gemini’s image generation feature. While we do this, we’re going to pause the image generation of people and will rerelease an improved version soon,” Google said in a statement.

This thankfully seems to be part of a broader reckoning in our institutions that are now being forced to come to terms with the consequences of DEI overreach and extremism.

Again, I don’t think Google, Netflix, or educational institutes are engaging in anti-white racism. For the most part, I believe the people making these decisions have benevolent, or at the very least benign, intentions. But you don’t fight discrimination through transparently ridiculous propaganda. We all know Nazis, Vikings and the founding fathers were white, and it doesn’t mean Google is racist for telling you so.

It would be helpful to have nuanced, adult discussions about all of the above without descending into tribalism. You can believe that racism exists and that more diversity is great while opposing cult-like efforts to enforce it.

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Trump’s Legal Debts Alone Disqualify Him From The Presidency

We ran the numbers. It doesn't look good for the so-called billionaire.

Definitely not a sign of desperation. Image: AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

by Bob Cesca

WASHINGTON, DC – Donald Trump isn’t just the most brittle, whiniest human to ever engage in national politics, he also has a raging victimhood complex. Whenever he’s caught committing a crime or other similar atrocity against basic human decency, he plays the well-worn “who me?” game.

We’ve witnessed this most recently when he claimed in a Truth Social post that the half billion dollar judgment against him in New York for his obvious and widespread business fraud violates his constitutional rights against excessive fines. Finally – a Republican actually acknowledged an amendment that’s not the second one. But the Eighth Amendment  won’t help him here. (While we’re here, the actual New York fine is $364 million, plus $100 million in interest, accruing daily.)

The Eighth Amendment won’t help him in spite of the fact that George Washington University constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley tried desperately to hammer the square peg of Trump’s case into the Eighth Amendment’s round hole. Turley wrote:

By making the fine so large, Engoron guaranteed that Trump will lose tens of millions even if his judgment is reduced or tossed out. Moreover, Trump has 30 days to come up with close to a half billion dollars in a deposit or bond just to file an appeal.

Yeah, see, that’s what happens when you’re caught red-handed committing business fraud while showing zero contrition for it.

But let’s do some basic math and see how badly this will hurt Trump… or not…

This is an excerpt from today’s Members Only piece. Get 50% off a Banter Membership and continue reading here:

Trump’s Legal Debts Alone Disqualify Him From The Presidency