10/24/2024

My dear Friend & POTUS, JRB,

            How are you feeling these days? Strong? Alert? Feisty? I’m feeling physically fit. My latest effort to maintain my health is to build my upper body strength using the apparatus in the workout room in my new place. So far, so good.

            I’m less satisfied with my mental sharpness. I notice mistakes, like having the wrong date on yesterday’s letter, & wonder how many errors slip past my detection. Those senior moments of blanking on a word or name happen more frequently. Playing Wordle is not restoring my cognitive acuity. Any suggestions?

            Perhaps the tech wizards will invent a chip that will augment my neurons, & I will be running on all cylinders again. It may seem farfetched, but who knew we’d have to be worried about “fully autonomous weapons that operate at blazing speeds” removing humans from battlefield decisions. I got that language from a NYT article about the national security memorandum you are signing today. A.I. continues to baffle me so I have no comments beyond encouragement for “efforts to bring the best A.I. specialists from around the world to the United States.”

            I hope your plane ride to AZ is smooth. I’m excited to learn more about the groundbreaking solar-over-canal project in the Gila River Community you’re visiting. The leader of the tribe, Stephen Roe Lewis, writes “this project builds on the work of our ancestors, who found innovative ways to harness our water & natural resources throughout the generations.” Isn’t that fantastic?

            News from Burma continues to be concerning. RFA says that the junta is so hard up for $$ that they are putting a huge tax on money that Burmese migrant workers are trying to send to their families back home. RFA also reports on a gruesome attack that junta soldiers made in Budalin township where they killed 25 villagers. I hope the conflict ends sooner, rather than later. WINTA!

            BYBS,