Artificial Intelligence
Save Taylor Swift. Stop deep-fake porn: Peter Menzies
Photo by Michael Hicks, via Flickr
From the MacDonald Laurier Institute
By Peter Menzies
Tweak an existing law to ensure AI-generated porn that uses the images of real people is made illegal.
Hey there, Swifties.
Stop worrying about whether your girl can make it back from a tour performance in Tokyo in time to cheer on her boyfriend in Super Bowl LVIII.
Please shift your infatuation away from your treasured superstar’s romantic attachment to Kansas City Chiefs’ dreamy Travis Kelce and his pending battle with the San Francisco 49ers. We all know Taylor Swift’ll be in Vegas for kickoff on Feb. 11. She’ll get there. Billionaires always find a way. And, hey, what modern woman wouldn’t take a 27-hour round trip flight to hang out with a guy ranked #1 on People’s sexiest men in sports list?
But right now, Swifties, Canada needs you to concentrate on something more important than celebrity canoodling. Your attention needs to be on what the nation’s self-styled feminist government should be doing to protect Swift (and all women) from being “deep-faked” into online porn stars.
Because that’s exactly what happened to the multiple Grammy Award-winner last week when someone used artificial intelligence to post deep-fakes (manipulated images of bodies and faces) of her that spread like a coronavirus across the internet. Swift’s face was digitally grafted onto the body of someone engaged in sexual acts/poses in a way that was convincing enough to fool some into believing that it was Swift herself. Before they were contained, the deep-fakes were viewed by millions. The BBC reported that one single “photo” had accumulated 47 million views.
For context, a 2019 study by Deeptrace Labs identified almost 15,000 deep-fakes on streaming and porn sites — twice as many as the previous year — and concluded that 96 per cent were recreations of celebrity women. Fair to assume the fakes have continued to multiply like bunnies in spring time.
In response to the Swift images, the platform formerly known as Twitter — X — temporarily blocked searches for “Taylor Swift” as it battled to eliminate the offending depictions which still found ways to show up elsewhere.
X said it was “actively removing” the deep-fakes while taking “appropriate actions” against those spreading them.
Meta said it has “strict policies that prohibit this kind of behavior” adding that it also takes “several steps to combat the spread of AI deepfakes.”
Google Deepmind launched an initiative last summer to improve detection of AI-generated images but critics say it, too, struggles to keep up.
While the creation of images to humiliate women goes back to the puerile pre-internet writing of “for a good time call” phone numbers on the walls of men’s washrooms, the use of technology to abuse women shows how difficult it is for governments to keep pace with change. The Americans are now pondering bipartisan legislation to stop this, the Brits are boasting that such outrageousness is already covered by their Online Safety Act and Canada so far …. appears to be doing nothing.
Maybe that’s because it thinks that Section 162 of the Criminal Code, which bans the distribution or transmission of intimate images without permission of the person or people involved, has it covered.
To wit, “Everyone who knowingly publishes, distributes, transmits, sells, makes available or advertises an intimate image of a person knowing that the person depicted in the image did not give their consent to that conduct, or being reckless as to whether or not that person gave their consent to that conduct, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years.”
Maybe Crown prosecutors are confident they can talk judges into interpreting that legislation in a fashion that brings deep-fakes into scope. It’s not like eminent justices haven’t previously pondered legislation — or the Charter for that matter— and then “read in” words that they think should be there.
Police in Winnipeg recently launched an investigation in December when AI-generated fake photos were spread. And a Quebec man was convicted recently when he used AI to create child porn — a first.
But anytime technology overrides the law, there’s a risk that the former turns the latter into an ass.
Which means there’s a real easy win here for the Justin Trudeau government which, when it comes to issues involving the internet, has so far behaved like a band of bumbling hillbillies.
The Online Streaming Act, in two versions, was far more contentious than necessary because those crafting it clearly had difficulty grasping the simple fact that the internet is neither broadcasting nor a cable network. And the Online News Act, which betrayed a complete misunderstanding of how the internet, global web giants and digital advertising work, remains in the running for Worst Legislation Ever, having cost the industry it was supposed to assist at least $100 million and helped it double down on its reputation for grubbiness.
Anticipated now in the spring after being first promised in 2019, the Online Harms Act has been rattling around the Department of Heritage consultations since 2019. Successive heritage ministers have failed to craft anything that’ll pass muster with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms so the whole bundle is now with Justice Minister Arif Virani, who replaced David Lametti last summer.
The last thing Canada needs right now is for the PMO to jump on the rescue Taylor Swift bandwagon and use deep-fakes as one more excuse to create, as it originally envisioned, a Digital Safety czar with invasive ready, fire, aim powers to order take downs of anything they find harmful or hurtful. Given its recent legal defeats linked to what appears to be a chronic inability to understand the Constitution, that could only end in yet another humiliation.
So, here’s the easy win. Amend Section 162 of the Criminal Code so that the use of deep-fakes to turn women into online porn stars against their will is clearly in scope. It’ll take just a few words. It’ll involve updating existing legislation that isn’t the slightest bit contentious. Every party will support it. It’ll make you look good. Swifties will love you.
And, best of all, it’ll actually be the right thing to do.
Peter Menzies is a senior fellow with the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, past vice-chair of the CRTC and a former newspaper publisher.
Artificial Intelligence
Garbage in = Garbage Out…The issues with censorship and AI.
Yakk Stack Sheldon Yakiwchuk
What happens when you shift from education in the basics – Math, English, Science, Social Studies and health…and shift that to progressive ideologies supporting DEI, Transgenderism, Climate Alarmism and Social Justice?
We’re seeing it.
A world full of neurotic nut cases, screeching at the top of their fingertips on the internet…soapboxes in public.
Of the most confused seem to be these people:
Whose fundamental ideologies are in direct conflict with those they are supporting.
But it really doesn’t end there, does it?
Because along with this, we now have generations who’ve been confused into thinking that this is a healthy lifestyle…
Censorship on science has led us to believe that:
Eggs are bad – when they are almost the most perfect food;
Meat Causes Cancer – where it is the foundation of fitness, nutrition and energy for our bodies;
Margarine is preferred over Butter – where it turns out that hydrogenated seed oils are ten times more likely to cause heart disease than standard fats…
The list goes on.
Misinformation promotion and true information censorship, really isn’t that new of a concept…but with the onset and increasing use of AI technologies, will become an even larger detriment to the fabric of our education and understanding.
Throughout the last 4 years…we’ve never seen more rampant attacks on our Freedom of Expression and in sharing knowledge…all to push lies, inflating the risks from COVID, through to lies about the safety and efficacy of the COVID vaccines.
You could be removed, suspended and banned for wrong-speak…and if you’re reading this now, it’s because this is exactly what had happened to me. YakkStack was started out of a need to preserve information that kept being removed from other social media platforms, video streaming services.
After about a year of posting…having seen accounts completely wiped out with no chance of recovery and at the suggestion/guidance from others, had me start an account here…write in longer form and post links along with supporting information.
It’s been an amazing experience, building up a lot of support and spanning the globe with thousands of subscribers and millions of reads/impressions:
With my largest hurdles being…
Trying to keep up with everything &
Trying to remember what I’ve even written or talked about…taking hours to re-research topics I’d already even covered.
There is a fantastic amount of information that we are exposed to on a daily basis…but considering the sources and the selection of language…it’s not all real and definitely not all good.
We hear from the media and progressives about Anti-Trans Legislation…where the legislation is set out not much different than other legislation to protect children from making harmful decisions that are irreversible. In Canada, you cannot smoke cigarettes nor even buy nicotine products, consume alcohol or even be in establishments (pubs, bars) where serving is their primary function, get a tattoo, vote, join the military…without being being at least 18. Throughout these tender years, you are held in the responsibility of your parents or surrogate guardians in coaching you through these times – so that you don’t make tragic mistakes because your mind isn’t fully developed.
We hear from the media and politicians about Toxic Supply of narcotics, that are still illegal to posses in most provinces…where “Safe Supply”, is the option…&
Where shooting up in public was frowned upon, we now have “Safe Injection Sites”, where the ideas are…
If you provide safer narcotics and support to drug addicts, this will reduce the strain on healthcare and “Save Lives”.
These ideas have led to the deaths of more than 47,000 overdoses throughout the last decade(ish) of progressive liberalism, pushing the fantasy that addicts can recover by feeding them more of what they are addicted to.
It’s nuts!
On this Remembrance Day, looking back at World War 2, there were approximately 44,000 Canadians that died.
47K from Overdoses, marking a 300% increase in drug related deaths since Justin Trudeau has been in office.
We hear about the atrocities committed in Residential Schools – run by the Catholics, where there are supposedly thousands of unmarked graves. We are told that there needs to be “Truth and Reconciliation”, over these deaths…by the same people who’ve been fed Millions of Taxpayer Dollars to investigate, find and recover bodies…where not a single one has been uncovered…
And even if one were…
The vastest majority of the population was either not alive during this period nor did they have anything to do with what may or may not have gone on, in these schools.
We’re being told that denialism of this is racist and could soon become a criminal offence…
By the same people, over the last 4 years, made up the facts…where science could never substantiate, change the definitions on vaccinations and immunity, lie about the statistics to continue on the narrative, create policy around emotion – “if we can only save one life”, have your business deemed ‘Non-Essential’ and closed, worked with social media platforms to have you censored, wanted to see you fired, removed from Employment Insurance that you’d paid a lifetime into, restricted from finding new employment, have your children/grandchildren restricted in extracurricular activities, taxpayer sponsored and affordable tutoring, summer camps and even sitting inside of a McDonalds to have a Happy Meal Combo…because this was another one of the social situations that neither you nor they could be tolerated in…without listening to their instructions and reiterating their lies.
They make up the truth and your only option is to toe the line.
You are supposed to care and understand atrocities that may or may not have happened in residential schools, that began in 1831 – Brantford, Ontario…where and when, throughout this period the reservations were plagued with poverty, virus and firewater – children taken from homes where parents were dead or deathly ill, provided for, fed and educated…when a single body hasn’t been recovered…
While at the same time, forget about what happened to 8 Million Canadians over the last 4 years…Did you or do you know of others who;
- Lost their jobs, savings, businesses and houses?
- Couldn’t visit a loved one in hospital, long-term care or hospice?
- Watched a family member die, alone and afraid, through a window in a bricked up exterior wall of one of these places?
- Miss family celebrations, graduations, birthdays, seasonal holidays, religious holidays, funerals?
- Watch the setback of education in children forced to learn off of a computer or be restricted from colleges or universities, because of their vaccine status?
- Have family and community members break ties with you, because you understood that you were never at risk and didn’t want to become a lab rat?
Tough shit…is what they’re saying…because they control the conversation and with this, you will believe in fiction to erase fact, or you will be punished – because Actions Have Consequences.
Not for those who created and stocked these fires…for YOU!
Certain platforms and search engines – Google being a Prime Example, have shifted their metrics to hide or completely erase information that is available…so when you do a search, you end up with results that are either historically untrue, unsubstantiated or that are deemed content you are allowed to read…where, people such as Bill Gates have already suggested that the internet needs to be cleansed of False Information – False being anything that he decides is false…where this has actually already started to happen.
Read the full article here →Link
But in the first paragraph, you will find some of what we already know:
Instances of censorship are growing to the point of normalization. Despite ongoing litigation and more public attention, mainstream social media has been more ferocious in recent months than ever before. Podcasters know for sure what will be instantly deleted and debate among themselves over content in gray areas. Some like Brownstone have given up on YouTube in favor of Rumble, sacrificing vast audiences if only to see their content survive to see the light of day.
And when you think of where Artificial Intelligence gets it’s information from…you have to appreciate that on your query, you’ll either receive dosed information or inaccurate to the point of absolute lies.
Are Eggs bad to eat?
As per ChatGPT, yes:
Here’s a breakdown of why eggs are sometimes considered “bad” to eat:
1. Cholesterol Content
- High in Cholesterol: Eggs, particularly the yolk, are high in dietary cholesterol. One large egg contains about 186 milligrams of cholesterol, which is more than half of the recommended daily limit for cholesterol intake (300 mg for most people). This has led to concerns that eating eggs could raise LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels in the blood, increasing the risk of heart disease.
- Impact on Heart Health: While some studies suggest that dietary cholesterol has a smaller impact on blood cholesterol levels than previously thought, research has shown that for certain individuals—specifically those who are “hyper-responders”—eating eggs may lead to an increase in LDL cholesterol and may negatively affect heart health.
2. Saturated Fat
- Saturated Fat Content: Eggs contain a small amount of saturated fat, which can raise LDL cholesterol levels when consumed in excess. A large egg has about 1.6 grams of saturated fat. High intake of saturated fat is linked to increased risks of heart disease and stroke, though eggs contribute relatively little to this risk when consumed in moderation.
3. Potential Risk for Type 2 Diabetes
- Some studies have shown a potential link between high egg consumption and an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. For example, research suggests that people who eat a lot of eggs (more than 7 eggs per week) may have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, particularly in older adults. The reason for this is still not fully understood, but it may relate to the combined effects of cholesterol and the presence of certain inflammatory compounds in eggs.
4. Foodborne Illness (Raw or Undercooked Eggs)
- Salmonella Risk: Eggs that are not properly cooked can carry a risk of salmonella infection, which can lead to food poisoning with symptoms like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal cramps. Raw eggs, such as those used in some recipes like homemade mayonnaise or eggnog, pose a higher risk of salmonella, although the overall incidence of contamination has declined with better food safety practices.
- To reduce the risk, it’s advised to avoid raw or undercooked eggs and to buy eggs from a trusted source, preferably pasteurized eggs, which are heat-treated to kill any harmful bacteria.
5. Allergy Concerns
- Egg Allergy: Eggs, particularly egg whites, are a common allergen, especially in children. People with egg allergies may experience a range of symptoms from mild to severe, including skin reactions, respiratory issues, or even anaphylaxis (a life-threatening allergic reaction).
6. Environmental and Ethical Concerns
- Animal Welfare: The production of eggs, particularly from large commercial farms, raises significant ethical concerns related to the treatment of laying hens. Many hens are kept in confined conditions (like battery cages), which restrict their ability to move freely and engage in natural behaviors. This has led many consumers to choose eggs from more humane, free-range, or pasture-raised sources.
- Environmental Impact: Like other animal-based foods, egg production has a carbon footprint and contributes to environmental issues, such as land use, water consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions. However, compared to red meat (especially beef), eggs have a smaller environmental impact.
7. Risk of “Overconsumption”
- Excessive Consumption: While eggs are nutritious, consuming them in very large quantities on a regular basis—especially when paired with a diet high in other sources of saturated fat and cholesterol—could contribute to poor heart health over time. The key, as with most foods, is moderation. Consuming 1-2 eggs per day as part of a balanced diet is generally considered safe for most people.
Does red meat cause cancer?
As per ChatGPT:
The link between red meat consumption and cancer risk has been studied extensively, and there is evidence suggesting that eating large amounts of red meat, particularly processed meat, may increase the risk of certain types of cancer, particularly colorectal cancer.
Here are some key points:
1. Red Meat and Cancer Risk
- Red meat generally refers to beef, pork, lamb, and goat meat. It contains compounds like heme iron, which may contribute to cancer risk.
- Studies have shown that consuming large quantities of red meat (especially over long periods) can increase the risk of colorectal cancer. The mechanism is not fully understood, but it may involve the formation of carcinogenic substances during the cooking process (e.g., through grilling, frying, or smoking) or through the breakdown of heme iron, which can produce harmful compounds in the gut.
What makes Margarine a safer alternative:
As per ChatGPT:
Margarine can be considered a safer alternative to butter for several reasons, especially in terms of heart health. The key factors that make margarine a potentially better choice include its fat composition and the way it is typically made, though not all margarines are created equal. Here’s a breakdown of why margarine can be a safer alternative to butter:
1. Lower in Saturated Fat
- Butter is high in saturated fat, which has been linked to increased levels of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, also known as “bad” cholesterol. High LDL levels are a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke.
- Margarine, especially the soft or liquid varieties, tends to have lower levels of saturated fat. Many margarines are made from vegetable oils like canola, sunflower, or soybean oil, which are high in polyunsaturated fats, including omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are beneficial for heart health.
You see…
Because of the censorship and information that you are being allowed to view in your research…what was once an amazing tool – the internet, feeding into what should be the next level in educational tools – AI…has become an abomination.
Where your previous reliance on figure heads, politicians and legacy media sources has been decimated through their lies and omissions…
Your new reliance on super brains that have the ability to process more information in mere seconds to summarize…are becoming just as bad.
Consider the source, because as we move on…the issues with AI will be the same censorship as has always been.
They decide the garbage that gets put in…
You’re the one left holding the bag, when it comes out.
Artificial Intelligence
Character AI sued following teen suicide
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The last person 14-year-old Sewell Setzer III spoke to before he shot himself wasn’t a person at all. | ||
It was an AI chatbot that, in the last months of his life, had become his closest companion. | ||
Sewell was using Character AI, one of the most popular personal AI platforms out there. The basic pitch is that users can design and interact with “characters,” powered by large language models (LLMs) and intended to mirror, for instance, famous characters from film and book franchises. | ||
In this case, Sewell was speaking with Daenerys Targaryen (or Dany), one of the leads from Game of Thrones. According to a New York Times report, Sewell knew that Dany’s responses weren’t real, but he developed an emotional attachment to the bot, anyway. | ||
One of their last conversations, according to the Times, went like this: | ||
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On the night he died, Sewell told the chatbot he loved her and would come home to her soon. | ||
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This is not the first time chatbots have been involved in suicide. | ||
In 2023, a Belgian man died by suicide — similar to Sewell — following weeks of increasing isolation as he grew closer to a Chai chatbot, which then encouraged him to end his life. | ||
Megan Garcia, Sewell’s mother, hopes it will be the last time. She filed a lawsuit against Character AI, its founders and parent company Google on Wednesday, accusing them of knowingly designing and marketing an anthropomorphized, “predatory” chatbot that caused the death of her son. | ||
“A dangerous AI chatbot app marketed to children abused and preyed on my son, manipulating him into taking his own life,” Garcia said in a statement. “Our family has been devastated by this tragedy, but I’m speaking out to warn families of the dangers of deceptive, addictive AI technology and demand accountability from Character.AI, its founders and Google.” | ||
The lawsuit — which you can read here — accuses the company of “anthropomorphizing by design.” This is something we’ve talked about a lot, here; the majority of chatbots out there are very blatantly designed to make users think they’re, at least, human-like. They use personal pronouns and are designed to appear to think before responding. | ||
While these may be minor examples, they build a foundation for people, especially children, to misapply human attributes to unfeeling, unthinking algorithms. This was termed the “Eliza effect” in the 1960s. | ||
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Garcia is suing for several counts of liability, negligence and the intentional infliction of emotional distress, among other things. | ||
Character at the same time published a blog responding to the tragedy, saying that it has added new safety features. These include revised disclaimers on every chat that the chatbot isn’t a real person, in addition to popups with mental health resources in response to certain phrases. | ||
In a statement, Character AI said it was “heartbroken” by Sewell’s death, and directed me to their blog post. | ||
Google did not respond to a request for comment. | ||
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The suit does not claim that the chatbot encouraged Sewell to commit suicide. I view it more so as a reckoning with the anthropomorphized chatbots that have been born of an era of unregulated social media, and that are further incentivized for user engagement at any cost. | ||
There were other factors at play here — for instance, Sewell’s mental health issues and his access to a gun — but the harm that can be caused by a misimpression of what AI actually is seems very clear, especially for young kids. This is a good example of what researchers mean when they emphasize the presence of active harms, as opposed to hypothetical risks. | ||
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“Artificial intimacy programs use the same large language models as the generative AI programs that help us create business plans and find the best restaurants in Tulsa. They scrape the internet so that the next thing they say stands the greatest chance of pleasing their user.” | ||
We are witnessing and grappling with a very raw crisis of humanity. Smartphones and social media set the stage. | ||
More technology is not the cure. |
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