Author Archives: Michael Froomkin

Coral Gables Commission Run-Off: Please Vote Cabrera

We have a run-off on Tuesday April 23rd (i.e., tomorrow if you are reading this Monday night) between the two top vote getters in Group 4.  Sadly, the incumbent Mayor beat Jeannett Slesnick by 123 votes — even fewer than last time.

I wrote previously about why you should vote for Ralph Cabrera, and there’s more where that came from. If you live in Coral Gables it’s important you take a few minutes and vote in this run-off. We really Do Not want some unknown party to buy this election for Jorge Fors. 

Since the election there have been two more sleazy mailers from a shadowy source making false charges against Cabrera. The sordid business is documented, and speculated about, at Political Cortadito’s Secretly funded PAC attacks Ralph Cabrera with mystery mailers, lies.

It’s weird and sad that dark money has come to a small city like Coral Gables, but these are the times we live in. Please don’t let the bad guys win this.

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Watch Out for Hurricane Sheldon

AOC teams up with the Intercept, Naomi Klein, and illustrator Molly Crabapple to imagine a happy future in which the Green New Deal helps save the planet.  Well, most of the planet.  Pity about Miami.  (See video at 6:02.)

Posted in 99%, Weather With a Name | Comments Off on Watch Out for Hurricane Sheldon

Brexit Stamps (via ‘Yucks’)

The Yuks mailing list sends me these new UK stamps in honor of Brexit:

Posted in Completely Different | 1 Comment

When I Do It, It’s More Metaphorical

Apparently, hobby-horse riding is a thing in Scandinavia (especially Finland): Finland’s Hobbyhorse Girls, Once a Secret Society, Now Prance in Public.

They have competitions and everything. According to the NYT and the trailer for the inevitable movie, it’s a form of girl power.

Posted in Kultcha | Comments Off on When I Do It, It’s More Metaphorical

The Robots Are Coming

Police in Washington County, Oregon, have responded to a distress call from a woman claiming her home was being burgled, only to discover a robotic vacuum trapped inside the bathroom.

Woman calls 911 over home invader. It was a Roomba.

Of course some day, someone really will figure out how to use a robot to do a burglary.  Or, more likely, subvert one via your smart home.

We’ll be talking about what robots are actually coming, what they may do, and how we should prepare for it, at We Robot 2019, which starts tomorrow. Advance registration is closed, but on-site registration will be available.

Posted in Robots, Talks & Conferences | Comments Off on The Robots Are Coming

Traffic Simulator

Check out the Traffic Simulator.

Being from Miami, first thing I did is set the slider to simulate less-polite drivers under “lane-changing behavior”. Chaos ensues.

Next up, traffic cones everywhere.  Pretty soon it will look just like local roads!

Posted in Internet, Miami | 1 Comment