SCOTUS in the Tank

 If anything about 2022 stands out to me, it's the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, both chopped with one blow of the axe.

I saw it coming, because an even less conservative court overturned a 1972 decision that affected organized labor. There will be more anti-labor decisions coming down the pike, including one against the Teamsters that will make it nearly impossible for unions to strike.

This conservative Supreme Court was never about unborn babies or concealed firearms. It's about creating a pro-oligarchy climate in America and entrenching the moneyed interests.

Trouble is, the Roe fiasco has shed new light on the Supreme Court as an institution. Its reputation has tanked.

Everyone is saying that this latest mid-term election wasn't a Red Wave because of Trump. I don't think that's true. I think the Red Wave was more like a still pond because of the Supreme Court. People just don't like the way it got loaded with ideologues so quickly. As we at "The Gods Are Bored" like to say, BAD FORM.

Recently, my daughter The Fair got a job at a lively new online newspaper called the Philadelphia Citizen. I've got to thinking about her good fortunes. In my youth I was unable to find a journalism job in a big city. So, in a way, my daughter is living my dream. But when I was her age, if I had needed an abortion, I could have walked into any clinic and gotten one. Our nation has gone backwards. The high court is off the rails.

The one bodily autonomy women retain is the ability to fill out a ballot and vote. I think they did it in 2022. I think they'll keep doing it. Justice needs to be not just for the rich, but for all.

A (Very) Short Chat with ChatGPT

Welcome, fellow sufferers on this mortal path! I'm Anne Johnson, hostess of "The Gods Are Bored." Long time no write, but hey, at least I'm not wasting your time.

Have you heard of this new Artificial Intelligence program called ChatGPT? You can ask a question about anything, and it will pour over the entire World Wide Web to craft an answer for you. This AI essayist is said to have all the knowledge of the world at its behest.

So, you know, almost like a Writing God, or some such.

Well, I put the blighted thing to the test, and it failed like an egg-sucking dog.

I went to all the trouble to log in, prove I wasn't a robot (ironic, eh?), get a numerical code on my phone, and then I could pose a question to the machine.

I kept it simple. I asked, "Are Gods bored?"

Here's its reply:

It is not possible for me to know whether or not gods, if they exist, experience boredom or any other emotion. Beliefs about the nature and characteristics of gods vary widely among different religions and belief systems. Some people believe that gods are all-knowing and all-powerful, and therefore do not experience boredom or any other negative emotion. Others believe that gods are imperfect beings who experience a range of emotions like humans do. Without more information about the specific beliefs of the person asking the question, it is not possible for me to provide a more specific answer.

Honestly, AI? You have access to the whole World Wide Web, and you didn't consult "The Gods Are Bored" to find the simple answer YES THEY ARE?

And here I was thinking I could get Chat GPT to write my blog for me, while I sit back and sip a hot cup of tea with a deserving bored Goddess! I'm crushed, I tell you. Crushed.