SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR [1]. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, some more technological advances with negative consequences.
An AI Camera Put Another Wrong Man in Jail
Over at The Liberty Daily: How a Bad AI Camera Hit Put the Wrong Man in a San Diego Jail Cell [2]. Here is an excerpt:
“They tried to stop a red Alfa Romeo on Broadway about ten minutes later. The driver fled at speeds reaching 100 miles per hour and officers lost the car near Little Italy without ever reading its plate. They were left with a description of a red Italian sports car with tinted windows and not much else.
Then a Flock reader five miles away in Old Town photographed a red Alfa Romeo on the 2200 block of Moore Street. Detective Gary Gonzales, one of the officers who had been chasing the carjacker, got the image and, according to his report, “’ecognized the vehicle in the image as the vehicle [we] were pursuing due to the red paint and black tinted windows.’
There was a problem with the timing that should have ended the case right there.
The Old Town photo was taken 23 seconds after officers in Golden Hill tried to stop the fleeing suspect. No car covers five miles of city streets in 23 seconds.”
JWR’s Comments: It is telling that they call these “Flock” cameras. That implies that we in the general public are a flock of sheep, to be shorn. By the way, I believe that we need a new acronym, to describe a Willing Human Accomplice To Artificial Intelligence Tyranny (WHATAIT). The police officer who made that arrest is a WHATAIT — and not a particularly bright one.
An Enormous Hack on Residential Proxy Networks
Three readers mentioned this at The WSJ: How Hackers Found a Back Door Into the American Living Room [3].
The Unintended Consequences of Tech Revolutions
A Fortune conference video featuring Steve Case and David Kirkpatrick: The Unintended Consequences of Tech Revolutions [4].
Car Trackers Becoming Factory Standard
Over at Bustednuckles: For your “Safety” factory tracker you didn’t order [5].
South Africa Creates Biometric Population Register
Reader C.B. suggested this at Breitbart: South Africa Creates Biometric Population Register to Control Migration [6].
Some Details on Alpha-Gal Syndrome
At The Hill: Tick that causes meat allergy, other rare virus is spreading: What symptoms to watch for [7].
And, from blog reader H.L.: Alpha-Gal Syndrome: How Long It Lasts, Foods To Avoid, and More [8].
Here is a fair use quote from the latter article:
“Alpha-gal syndrome is a meat allergy that can develop after you’re bitten by a lone star tick. The bite itself transfers a carbohydrate molecule called alpha-gal into your body. If your body’s immune system reacts to this molecule, then you will develop alpha-gal syndrome. The initial exposure to alpha-gal sensitizes your body to this molecule, and after that your body will have an immune system reaction after every exposure.
Alpha-gal can be found in all mammals that aren’t primates. It’s in all meat that comes from these animals, including beef, lamb, pork, rabbit, goat, and venison. It’s also present in any medications that are made from mammalian products, as well as in dairy products, though at lower levels. It may also be present in gelatin, which has a wide variety of uses, including as gel capsules for some medications. Alpha-gal syndrome does not prevent you from eating chicken [9], turkey, or fish, though you can be allergic to those foods separately.”
States With Data Privacy Laws
U.S. Data Privacy Laws: A Guide to the 2026 Landscape [10]. “The United States doesn’t currently have a national comprehensive privacy law, despite efforts to enact one.”
The Aging U.S.Air Force Aircraft Inventory
From the National Security Journal: 22 generals just sent Congress an urgent warning: The US Air Force has never been this old, this small, or this unready [11].
Tulsi Gabbard’s Parting Shot
Video from departing DNI Tulsi Gabbard: I’m Exposing Dr. Fauci [12]. An excerpt from the transcript:
“…today, on my final day as director of national intelligence, I’m releasing never-before seen communications and documents that expose exactly how Fauci worked with politicized career leadership in the intelligence community to suppress the truth about his actions, the virus’s lab leak origins, and his role in directing US funding for this dangerous research that caused immeasurable harm and countless lost lives. Now, these documents expose Fauci’s direct role in influencing and manipulating intelligence assessments on COVID 19 and how Fauci lied to Congress in 2024 when under oath he denied knowledge of or participation in discussions with intelligence officials about viral research.”
Russia Has Deployed a Starlink Jammer
This video was linked over at the Whatfinger.com [13]news aggregation site: Russia Deploys Starlink Jammer [14].
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