Tag Archives: OAKLAND

28Oct/26

Why AI Ethics Needs Ancient Theology

October 28, 2026Technology.google, Abhilash Mishra, Adam Ford, Altman Musk, Amartya, Articles, Artificial general intelligence, Artificial intelligence, Bangladesh, Cisco, Computational neuroscience, Elon Musk, Ethics, Existential risk from artificial general intelligence, Friendly artificial intelligence, Futurology, Gene Roddenberry, IBM, James Cameron, Kenneth Arrow, Larry Page, Machine ethics, Microsoft, OAKLAND, OpenAI, Philippines, Philosophy of artificial intelligence, Rome, Sam Altman, Singularitarianismadmin

Faith, Human Dignity, and Governance: Why AI Ethics Demands Moral Depth Over Statistical Consensus

Wed, July 28 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ — The Limits of Preference Aggregation and the Rise of Algorithmic Pluralism Leading technology executives have proposed aligning artificial intelligence with human values by calculating a “weighted average” or statistical consensus through techniques such as Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback (RLHF). However, social choice theory demonstrates that there is no unique voting protocol capable of universally aggregating individual preferences without generating logical contradictions or violating private ethical values. Theological and philosophical scholars emphasize that religious traditions cannot be reduced to modular, extractable rulebooks to be averaged in machine learning models. Attempting to compute a universal moral consensus flattens culturally rich worldviews, suppresses minority perspectives, and risks codifying dominant, secular-rational norms at the expense of global faith communities. Continue reading →

18Aug/26

Meta on Trial for Addictive Design

August 18, 2026LegalBeijing, Big Tech, Careless People, China, Digital media use and mental health, Eric Goldman, Facebook, Instagram, Joel, Lawsuits involving Meta Platforms, Los Angeles, Mark Zuckerberg, Max Fisher, META, Meta Platforms, Meta Platforms Inc., OAKLAND, Problematic social media use, Russell Coleman, Sarah Wynn-Williams, Sheryl Sandberg, Snap Inc., Social media, Symbian software, TikTok, United Kingdom, United States, Video software, Wynn, Wynn-Williams, Yvonne Gonzalez Rogersadmin

The Trillion-Dollar Reckoning: State Attorneys General Take Meta to Court Over Youth Social Media Addiction

Tue, Aug 18 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ — Opening statements commenced on August 18, 2026, in the nation’s first federal bellwether trial against Meta Platforms, Inc. in Oakland, California. Led by a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general from California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey representing a broader coalition of 29 states, the prosecution in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California alleges that Meta deliberately designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children and adolescents. The states contend that Meta engineered its platforms with psychologically manipulative features—such as infinite scroll, push notifications, and recommendation algorithms—to maximize user engagement and compulsive use while knowingly fueling a national youth mental health crisis. Furthermore, the coalition accuses Meta of violating the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal data from children under the age of 13 without obtaining verifiable parental consent. Facing potential damages that Meta estimates could reach an extraordinary $1.4 trillion, the states are seeking not only severe financial penalties but also sweeping court-ordered injunctions to eliminate addictive features, enforce age restrictions, and delete algorithms and artificial intelligence models built on children’s data. Continue reading →

17Aug/26

Harriet Tubman led a Civil War raid

August 17, 2026Politicsarmy department, Association for the Study of African American Life and History, Belgium, Bill Russell, Black History Month, Boston, Carter G. Woodson, France, Galveston, Germany, Harriet Tubman, Harriet Tubman Was, Jeffrey L. Littlejohn, Kris Manjapra, Malcolm, Miseducation, Negro, OAKLAND, Sierra Leone, The Mis-Education of the Negro, United States, Woodsonadmin

Reclaiming the Classroom: How Carter G. Woodson Fought the Violence of Miseducation

Mon, Aug 17 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ — The foundational struggle for racial equality in America is deeply rooted in the preservation and legitimization of Black history as an active tool of resistance. Carter G. Woodson, recognized as the “Father of Black History,” dedicated his life to establishing separate institutional structures like the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915 and Negro History Week in 1926 to counter the “miseducation” of African Americans. Woodson argued in his landmark 1933 book, The Mis-Education of the Negro, that the American educational system culturally indoctrinated Black students to accept an inferior status by white-washing their contributions to world culture and history. He observed that controlling a population’s thinking eliminates the need to police their physical actions, as individuals conditioned to believe they are outcasts will naturally find their way to the “back door”. This early twentieth-century battle to reclaim the narrative highlights that systemic control begins in the classroom, a reality that echoes in modern debates over how race and history are taught in public schools. Continue reading →

18Jul/23

Kamala Harris grew up in Kamwala Town, Lusaka in Zambia

July 18, 2023EconomyCanada, Hakainde Hichilema, Harris family, In Zambia, India, Kamala, Kamala Harris, Lusaka, Maya, Mike Pence, Montreal, Monze, OAKLAND, P. V. Gopalan, Shyamala Gopalan, United States, Zambiaadmin

July 17, 2023 /Politics/ — Kamala Harris was born in Oakland, California, and Hakainde Hichilema was born in Monze, Zambia. However, they have both visited Zambia and have expressed an interest in the country. In March 2023, Kamala Harris visited Zambia as part of a tour of Africa. She met with President Hichilema and other officials to discuss issues of democracy, governance, and economic development. Hakainde Hichilema has also visited the United States on several occasions. In 2019, he met with then-Vice President Mike Pence to discuss trade and investment opportunities between the two countries. Continue reading →

05Feb/23

A Black history primer on African Americans’ fight for equality – 5 essential reads

February 5, 2023Human InterestAbolitionism, African Americans in the Civil War, African-American people, American culture, Anglican saints, Aram Goudsouzian, Auburn, Belgium, Bill Russell, Canada, Carter G. Woodson, Creative Commons, France, Galveston, Germany, Greg Abbott, Harriet Tubman, Howard Manly, Jeff Littlejohn, Jeffrey L. Littlejohn, Jim Crow, Juneteenth, Kate Clifford Larson, Kirvin, Kris Manjapra, Lynching, Malcolm, Mark Felix, Matthew Delmont, Mose Jones, Movements for civil rights, OAKLAND, Physical punishments, Sierra Leone, Slavery in the United States, Snap Curry, United States, W.E.B. Du Boisadmin

Howard Manly, The Conversation

As the father of Black history, Carter G. Woodson had a simple goal – to legitimize the study of African American history and culture.

To that end, in 1912, shortly after becoming the second African American after W.E.B. Du Bois to earn a Ph.D. at Harvard, Woodson founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915.

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17Aug/22

Caste in California: Tech giants confront ancient Indian hierarchy

August 17, 2022TechnologyALPHABET, Amazon, Apple, Apple Inc., Behavior, Caste, Caste system in India, Cisco Systems, Companies, Dalit, Dell, DELL.N, Discrimination, Facebook, GOODWIN PROCTER, Human behavior, IBM, India, Indian caste system, Janine Yancey, John-Paul Singh Deol, Kanishka Singh, Kevin Brown, Koray Bulut, law professor, Mayuri Raja, META, Microsoft, OAKLAND, Paresh Dave, San Francisco, Social issues, Social status, Sudarshan Varadhan, Sundar Pichai, United States, Washingtonadmin

OAKLAND, Calif, Aug 15 (Reuters) – America’s tech giants are taking a modern-day crash course in India’s ancient caste system, with Apple (AAPL.O) emerging as an early leader in policies to rid Silicon Valley of a rigid hierarchy that’s segregated Indians for generations.

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