International Responses To Israel & How To Interact With AI
October 10, 2023
The Global Shockwaves From Strikes In Gaza
The Israel-Palestine conflict that began with a surprise attack on Israeli civilians by Hamas on Saturday has developed further, pulling in various countries from around the globe.
Responses to the war from the international community have taken a wide range of positions. Iran’s statement on the conflict announced Tehran’s “unflinching support of Palestine,” though the statement made clear that Iran was “not involved in Palestine’s response” at all. China chose to play both sides by saying, “We sincerely hope to see Palestine and Israel co-existing peacefully and sharing security and development.”
On the other side of the coin, the U.S. put its money where its mouth is, quickly repositioning its ships in order to deter further Hamas attacks while also preparing to send armaments and munitions to Israel to help its counteroffensive. Washington has called Hamas’ attacks “ISIS-level savagery” and compared them to 9/11, signaling the possibility of larger U.S. involvement in the crisis. America also seems poised to drag Iran into the conflict, with the intelligence community continuing a search for ties between Tehran and Hamas. “We have not found that connection, but that doesn’t mean we won’t,” said acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland.
On the ground, Israel’s retaliation to the attacks has expanded, with the IDF calling up hundreds of thousands of reservists while airstrikes continue to pound Gaza. The death toll of the war has risen to 1,600 on both sides, with about 900 people confirmed dead in Israel and almost 700 more confirmed dead in Gaza. Israel’s defense minister has ordered a “complete siege” of Gaza, stating that Israel will cut off all electricity, water, food, and fuel to the area (which might just constitute a war crime). “We are fighting barbarians and will respond accordingly,” the minister said.
Some Good News
- California is banning junk fees, those hidden costs that push up hotel and ticket prices (CBS)
- Economics Nobel Prize goes to Claudia Goldin, an expert on women at work (NPR)
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Kenya Block That Plan?
- Last Monday, the U.N. Security Council approved a plan to send a group of Kenyan police into Haiti in order to combat rising gang violence in the embattled Caribbean state. International human rights groups quickly raised concerns about the plan, citing Kenyan law enforcement officers’ history of corruption and human rights abuses.
- This Monday, a Kenyan court temporarily blocked that plan until October 24 in response to a petition by the country’s opposition party and two Kenyan citizens. The petition described the decision to deploy Kenyan police to Haiti as “not only nonsensical and irrational but unconstitutional,” saying that the decision didn’t involve any public participation and that only the Kenyan military is legally allowed to operate outside of the country’s borders.
Beijing Bends Just A Bit
- A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators, led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday as part of a larger diplomatic trip to East Asia that will include stops in South Korea and Japan. At the 80-minute meeting, according to Schumer, Xi highlighted the U.S.-China relationship as the most important in the world, before talks moved on to other subjects including Israel and international trade.
- “The fundamental way out of the conflict lies in implementing the two-state solution and establishing an independent State of Palestine,” said China’s foreign ministry in a statement regarding the recent explosion of violence in Israel. “I was very disappointed, to be honest, by the foreign ministry’s statement that showed no sympathy or support for Israel during these troubled times,” Schumer said following the meeting, noting that he’d expressed his disappointment with Beijing’s statement to Xi during their encounter.
- After the meeting, Beijing’s foreign ministry updated its statement with stronger language, saying that it condemns “all violence and attacks on civilians” and that “the most urgent task now is to reach a ceasefire and restore peace.”
Additional World News
- U.S. leads moment of silence for Israeli victims at UN Human Rights Council (Reuters)
- A 7th man accused of killing an Ecuador presidential candidate is slain in prison (NPR)
- What is Hamas? The militant group behind surprise attack on Israel has ruled Gaza for years (ABC)
- U.S. climber Anna Gutu and her guide dead, 2 missing after avalanches hit Tibetan mountain (CBS)
- Flights at Hamburg Airport suspended after a threat against a plane from Iran (ABC)
- India discussing local currency trade with Tanzania (Reuters)
- Guatemala’s attorney general asks authorities to act against pro-democracy protests (ABC)
“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” – Desmond Tutu
Making Missouri Less Miserable
- Missouri has one of the strictest anti-abortion laws in the nation, only making exceptions for medical emergencies that threaten the life of the pregnant person. The Missouri Women and Family Research Fund, founded by Jamie Corley, hopes to change that. It’s a tale as old as time (or, as old as the Dobbs decision), but Corley’s story is slightly different, in that she’s a Republican.
- The MWFRF has submitted six proposed ballot initiatives that would establish abortion exceptions in the case of fatal fetal abnormalities, incest, or rape, so long as a person calls a crisis hotline. “I think most Republicans do not want to see a total ban on abortion,” Corley said. Data actually backs up her claim – Christine Matthews, president of Bellwether Research, said, “70% [of constituents] say abortion should be legal in cases of rape and incest in Missouri.”
RFK F-U’s Both Parties
- Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced on Monday he’ll be dropping his bid for president as a Democrat – but he’ll be running as an independent instead. The move is a blow to both Biden and, likely, Trump’s campaigns (unless another GOP candidate miraculously pulls ahead of the 91-criminal-charges-and-counting former president).
- Kennedy has the recognition of Democrats because of his family name, but his anti-vax conspiracy theories make him more popular among Republicans. “The Democrats are frightened that I’m going to spoil the election for President Biden,” RFK said. “The Republicans are frightened that I’m going to spoil it for President Trump. The truth is, they’re both right.”
Additional USA Reads
- California governor vetoes bill that would have set a $35 cap for insulin (Guardian)
- Death of Atlanta deacon who was electrically shocked during arrest ruled a homicide (CBS)
- McCarthy won’t rule out return to speakership after Israel attacks (Politico)
- Retired Vermont university dean found shot to death on a trail near campus. Now police are looking for her killer (CNN)
- Earthquake hits western Washington near Seattle area, no damage or injuries reported (USA Today)
- Protests flare in South Florida following weekend attack by Hamas on Israel (CBS)
- 9 US citizens dead in Israel conflict (CNN)
Humans Can’t Handle AI Interactions
- According to two new studies published last week, human beings have a hard time interacting with artificial intelligence. One study showed that people’s preconceived notions about artificial intelligence can affect how they interact with AI chatbots. Another showed that humans are likely to repeat mistakes in certain tasks they execute with the help of AI – even when AI isn’t assisting them in the task anymore.
- The first study, published in the journal Nature Machine Learning, involved people who were told different things about an AI chatbot before interacting with it. Those who were told the bot was manipulative were more likely to perceive it as malicious, while those who were told it was caring were likely to describe it as caring. In addition to this finding, people’s priming also affected how they interacted with the AI – those who were told the bot was malicious had increasingly negative conversations with the AI, while the people who were told it was caring had more positive conversations with it.
- The second study, published in Scientific Reports, showed that AI is perceived as more trustworthy than humans for certain tasks – so trustworthy, in fact, that humans are likely to repeat mistakes made by computer algorithms even when they’re not being used for that task anymore. “It is going to be very important that humans working with AI have not only the knowledge of how AI works … but also the time to oppose the advice of the AI — and the motivation to do it,” said one of the study’s authors.
Additional Reads
- Louisiana student punished by school for dancing at private party (Guardian)
- As false war information spreads on X, Musk promotes unvetted accounts (WaPo, $)
- 23andMe user data targeting Ashkenazi Jews leaked online (NBC)
- California governor signs ban on social media ‘aiding or abetting’ child abuse (The Verge)
- ‘Healthy eating’ curriculum can do more harm than good (CNN)
- Physicists Who Explored Tiny Glimpses of Time Win Nobel Prize (Wired)
- Glitter sales surge in Germany before EU microplastics ban this week (Guardian)