Kiosk friendly, web-loving, advocate of photo industry.
Leesburg, VA
Joined February 2009
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Steve Giordano retweeted
This is worth reading…
1) AI will not eradicate humanity. Humans survived an ice age, the Black Death, two world wars, and (so far) the advent of nuclear weapons. Anyone who is loudly warning of AI-caused human extinction should not be taken seriously.
2) If you worked in a company where you anticipated a 10% chance that your product would kill ten people, let alone all people, the correct response would be horror, ceasing all operations, and likely contacting the police or other criminal authorities. I am obviously no Coxon booster but at least his behavior is in line with his stated beliefs. Any current AI company employees saying "yes, me too, the thing we are building and about to IPO may kill all humans" should, again, not be taken seriously. Their actions betray their actual beliefs.
3) Antitrust law does not prevent AI companies from coordinating to make sure AI does not hurt people. It does not prevent companies working together to make sure it doesn't hack people; the DOJ and FTC made this clear a decade ago when they issued a policy statement saying that the agencies "do not believe that antitrust is – or should be – a roadblock to legitimate cybersecurity information sharing." The same principles apply here. See: justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/…
4) Antitrust law does absolutely prevent AI companies from organizing to prevent the entry of cheaper, upstart rivals because the bigger companies are burning cash and failing to achieve sufficient profitability. The panic of individual employees may be sincere if misguided, but the moves by their CEOs to achieve some kind of broad "antitrust waiver" or "exemption" should be meet with deep skepticism in light of the economics of the industry and the threat they face from open models.
Steve Giordano retweeted
I resigned from Tesla today. I spent the last three years doing windshield wiper research at both Tesla and Rivian. Neither are acting responsibly. They’re racing straight toward self-improving windshield wipers and gambling with our lives. More thoughts below.
Steve Giordano retweeted
Communism through (my) ages:
1) When I was 15, a teacher told me "It isn't as bad as they say, and makes a lot of sense."
2) At about 19, college friends, "Socialism isn't communism."
3) At 20, on meeting my grandfather-in-law, "They are evil. We escaped in 1949."
4) At 30, "China is a wonderful developing Democracy"
5) At 35, I was sent to communist China on business. It was a crowded, smelly, dirty, factory of despair and hopelessness. This I saw with my own eyes.
6) At 36, "China doesn't count. Successful socialism is in northern Europe."
7) I moved to northern Europe when I was 40. It was much nicer than China, but also felt like I was living in the past. I had to wait 6 months for a hernia operation.
8) When I was about 45, the migrant crisis began. The socialist/globalist/pacifist allowed them entry into every country, regardless how many crimes they committed along the way. Just 20 minutes from my house, in Calais, I was shocked to see migrants jumping onto trucks, breaking open the doors, scattering the contents across the highway, then climbing in. They went through the Chunnel and got out in England.
9) At 52, the soft socialism around me had transformed into globalism. I was told I had to call people by their preferred pronouns, though it was a lie, and even if I didn't know what the preferences were. I quit.
10) I returned to the US, and am now 60. "Socialism" is no longer a dirty word here. People openly espouse the virtues of it. Politicians run as socialists and win.
Socialism has taken many forms, from the Bolshevism of Russia, to the CCP in China, the Nazis in Germany, Fascists in Italy, and the many forms of it found in Latin America. It is one of the two most destructive ideologies on earth. It is designed to deprive, despirit, and murder everything that comes in contact with it.
Socialism is a great lie at every level. It helps no one, not even those who benefit the most. This is because the cost is the imposition of one's will on everyone else, and that destroys the soul of the usurper and the life of the oppressed.
Socialism always fails on its own, but only after destroying almost everything in its train. It can also be conquered. Those are the options.
Steve Giordano retweeted
Read the replies ❤️
This is probably a long shot, but if anybody happens to be in DC this weekend and plans on visiting Arlington, I would love to see a fresh photo of my husband’s grave in Section 60.
SSG Alan W. Shaw
Section 60, Grave 8451
B Co 1/12 Cav, 1st Cavalry Division
November 10, 1975 - February 9, 2007
There’s just something about knowing people still stop by, still say his name, still remember. 🇺🇸⭐🇺🇸
Steve Giordano retweeted
I'm losing lots and lots more followers today because I am glad Thomas "Look at ME!" Massie lost.
So I might as well go all in and purge all the freaks from my follower base.
There are hundreds of nations and thousands of interest groups that constantly seek to influence American public policy.
If the only nation doing that which you are bothered by is Israel, and if the only PAC doing that which you are bothered by is AIPAC, and if you drone on incessantly, endlessly and vigorously about Israel/AIPAC and no OTHER NATION OR PAC, rational, intelligent people know why that is.
It's because you are an antisemite.
And if you want to say "Oh you are so wrong, I'm bothered by ALL nations and PACs attempting to influence US policy," but literally the only time you ever mention it in your X feed is in the context of Israel, you are an antisemite.
Don't like that? Want to unfollow me because I said that?
Good.
Beat it.
Is anyone else sick of the AI models telling how great their latest model is, only to figure out it likely incremental better, but in many ways worse. Chill out with the OMG posts.
Steve Giordano retweeted
VIRGINIA
OK, I am trying to organize my thoughts about yesterday's vote in Virginia. Here is my analysis from my capturing of the election night reporting data.
There was an "f-curve" at 8:59pm that was actually preceded by a near f-curve at 8:43. These 2 updates wiped away what had been a decent lead for "no redistricting". Interestingly, at 9:16 there was another big jump for "yes".
From my analysis, most of the votes from all 3 of these came from Fairfax County, one of Virginia's most reliable vote manufacturing hubs.
My old pet peeve, totals going down rather than up, was way too frequent. 23 counties had at least one case of "negative votes", including Chesterfield's whopping 71,903 deduction at 10:45 this morning (April 22). Augusta had a 11,968 deduction at 10:18. A whopping 13 counties had deductions in the SAME REPORT at 7:41PM on the 21st (for a total of 18,476). This is not acceptable and needs explained. (Other than, "well these numbers aren't official". They are official enough to show on the news.)
And, of course, the referendum was ultimately lost because of mail-in votes. About 10% of the total was mail-in, and about 73% were "yes". We have no way of knowing how many of these were real people casting a vote for themselves, but they added net 137,000 votes for "yes" and that is almost 50,000 more than the currently reported winning margin for "yes". (The same applies for the election of Commissar Spanberger)
In summary, a completely preventable train wreck. I hope that the Republican leaders in Virginia are now convinced that mail-in ballots and machine counting are not our friends. I also hope they start asking the hard questions of counties like Chesterfield.
It's going to be easiest to read this, shrug, and move on. Please don't. Please forward on, especially if you know people in Virginia. But the same thing will happen in every other state, eventually, if its not stopped.
You can see the raw data for yesterday's election at votedatabase.com/2026 - select Virginia, unknown party, then statewide or whatever county you want to examine. I'm here if anyone has questions.
Steve Giordano retweeted
By publishing this explicitly false story, the @FT has officially become tabloid trash for market participants.
Despite my direct, on-the-record denial of ever having advocated, explored, or espoused the idea that Chancellor-Bank of England statute serving as a prototype for a Treasury-Federal Reserve relationship, FT journalists manufactured a story with the headline, “Scott Bessent praised Bank of England as model for tighter oversight of the Federal Reserve.”
These pathetic journalists have clearly fabricated a story to give the impression that both I and the Trump Administration are setting “about restructuring the relationship… at a time when President Donald Trump has launched an unprecedented assault on the world’s most important central bank.”
Their mendacious assertion is based on vague statements from unnamed “financial industry executives familiar with the matter.”
In short, FT has literally manufactured an entirely fake policy position for me and the Administration. Other than furthering a maliciously false narrative of dysfunction and divisiveness, it baffles the mind as to why they would shred their already diminished journalistic credibility.
Over the past 10 years, I have written more than 20,000 words opining on the Federal Reserve decisions, personnel, structure, and modifications. Nowhere have I ever mentioned this ridiculous notion.
The Governor’s letters to the Chancellor have proven to be a useless and perfunctory device.
There is much to be said about the storied Bank of England, but any recreation of its operating framework on this side of the Atlantic has never been contemplated.
The shameful journalists and editors at the FT are shocking in their meretriciousness, lack of standards, and general intellectual libertinism. It is the worst tradition of Fleet Street to manufacture news rather than report on it.
They have brought irredeemable shame to their parent organization, Nikkei Inc., with whom I had previously held excellent relations.
In 2025, I laid out a comprehensive 6,000+ word review of each and every policy reform that I believe should be adopted by the Federal Reserve.
Read my actual, real thoughts on and proposals for Federal Reserve reform at the International Economy: international-economy.com/TI…
FT exclusive: US treasury secretary Scott Bessent discussed tightening the US Treasury’s oversight of the Federal Reserve by adopting elements of the Bank of England’s model ft.trib.al/6dgGvkh
Steve Giordano retweeted
Gold Star wife here.
When ISIS killed your wife, you supported going after the people responsible. You understood exactly why we were fighting and never called it “Israel’s war.”
My husband, Alan, was killed by Iranian proxies in Iraq. And now, after decades, the fight is finally leading back to the number one state sponsor of terrorism in the world.
You understood it when it was your loss. Now you’re minimizing it when it’s mine.
You don’t get to redefine this war just because it’s not your grief anymore.
After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.
I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.
It has been an honor serving under @POTUS and @DNIGabbard and leading the professionals at NCTC.
May God bless America.
Steve Giordano retweeted
That CW5 Slover is a hard man who does hard things.
Men like that do not show emotion.
But that outburst of patriotic love moved him. You can tell.
Congratulations, Chief! 🫡 Much respect.
The real divide between those 'woke' freestyle skiers / skaters and the U.S. hockey team isn't just medals, it's mindset. The skiers fixate on their own individuality, agonizing over whether the flag aligns with their personal values or moral qualms about the country. The hockey players? They get it: it's not about 'me', it's about team, sacrifice, and representing something bigger than yourself: your country, your teammates, the uniform on your back
Steve Giordano retweeted
I get tired of Democrats claiming to be on the “right side of history” when both their past and their present are so utterly sordid and destructive. So, if you are a Democrat, let me tell you about MY side of history and YOUR side of history.
My side of history is Cato the Elder, John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Irving Babbitt and William F. Buckley. Your side of history is Thomas Hobbes, Karl Marx, Josef Stalin, Mao’s Little Red Book and Noam Chomsky.
My side of history is George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump. Your side of history is Tories who fled to Canada, Jefferson Davis, Woodrow Wilson, Bull Connor, George Wallace and Nancy Pelosi.
My side of history is freedom of thought, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and spirited debate. Your side of history is ThoughtCrime, Speech Codes, religious persecution and Cancel Culture.
My side of history is Brown v. Board of Ed., Loving v. VA, Gitlow v. NY, and Heller v. DC. Your side of history is Dred Scott, Korematsu and Roe v. Wade.
My side of history is Jackie Robinson. Your side of history is Colin Kaepernick.
My side of history is head held high, standing straight, hand over heart. Your side of history is sullen glances at the ground, kneeling.
My side of history is the family as the foundation of society. Your side of history is mutilating confused children.
My side of history is the rockets’ red glare. Your side of history is imagine no religion.
My side of history is firefighters going up the stairs into the Twin Towers. Your side of history is 28-year-old men playing Call of Duty in their mothers’ basements.
My side of history is smoked brisket. Your side of history is a no-foam, no-sugar, soy latte.
My side of history is Lincoln freeing the slaves and General Patton liberating Buchenwald. Your side of history is Fort Sumter, the Gulag and Pol Pot’s killing fields.
My side of history is Mel Brooks. Your side of history is Amy Schumer.
My side of history is all men and women are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights. Your side of history is critical theory and only some lives matter.
My side of history is 20-year-olds storming Omaha Beach. Your side of history is 20-year-olds in their safe spaces with adult coloring books.
My side of history is American men and women disabled by an IED. Your side of history is American men and women disabled by anxiety.
My side of history is the Kentucky Rifle, the Springfield 1861, the M1911, the M1 Garand, the M14 and the AR15. Your side of history is whimpering submission.
My side of history is Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, Apollo 11 and Jonas Salk. Your side of history is “global warming,” 100+ genders and porous cloth masks stopping viruses.
My side is of history is laughing babies. Your side of history is selling aborted baby parts on the open market.
My side of history is the Sistine Chapel and Monet’s water lilies. Your side of history is an inverted crucifix in a bottle of urine.
My side of history is construction. Your side of history is deconstruction.
My side of history is civilization. Your side of history is nihilism.
And, MOST OF ALL:
My side of history is liberty. Your side of history is tyranny.
*finis*
Steve Giordano retweeted
Marco Rubio and Lex Fridman talk Venezuela, Greenland.
@marcorubio
@lexfridman
Steve Giordano retweeted
If you want to know WHY President Trump is doing what he’s doing in Gaza, Iran, and Venezuela - read this:
Most people are watching these flashpoints in isolation. That’s a mistake.
Trump isn’t reacting to events. He’s disrupting a network.
A quiet axis has been forming for over a decade - and it runs straight through China.
Let me connect the dots.
The real axis isn’t “random chaos.”
It’s China–Iran–Venezuela–Palestine (Gaza), with Russia and Cuba orbiting nearby.
Different regions. Same purpose.
➡️ Undermine U.S. dominance
➡️ Evade sanctions
➡️ Lock down energy and logistics
➡️ Weaponize “anti-imperialism” for the Global South
China doesn’t lead with tanks. It leads with money, infrastructure, and diplomatic cover.
1) Start with Venezuela - the Western Hemisphere hub
Venezuela isn’t just a failed socialist state.
Under Chávez and Maduro, it became:
A sanctions-busting platform
A logistics node for Iran
A safe operating space for Hezbollah and Hamas
A money-laundering + narcotics corridor aimed at the U.S.
China poured $100B+ into Venezuela. Iran funneled billions through it. Oil, cash, drones, training - all moved quietly through Caracas.
That’s why Maduro mattered.
And that’s why his capture in January 2026 detonated the board.
Beijing condemned it - not out of principle, but because its assets were exposed.
2) Iran - China’s energy lifeline and military lever
Iran is the cornerstone.
China:
Imports ~1.7M barrels/day of Iranian oil
Buys it cheap, off-books, via barter and currency swaps
Funds ports, rail, 5G, pipelines
Shields Tehran diplomatically at the UN
The 25-year China–Iran pact isn’t symbolic. It’s $400B in long-term energy security.
Post-Israel–Iran war?
China didn’t pull back - it accelerated commitments.
Why?
Because Iran anchors:
Gulf access
Anti-U.S. military pressure
Proxy networks from Gaza to Latin America
No Iran → no axis.
3) Gaza & Palestine - the narrative weapon
This is where people get emotional and stop thinking strategically.
China’s role in Gaza isn’t about Hamas. It’s about credibility.
Beijing uses Palestine to:
Pose as “moral leader of the Global South”
Undercut U.S.–Israel legitimacy
Wrap geopolitics in “international law”
Build influence without boots on the ground
China:
Hosts unity talks (Hamas + Fatah)
Pushes ceasefires without naming Hamas
Condemns Israel while trading $20B+ with it
Wins applause across Africa, the Middle East, Latin America
Low cost.
High narrative return.
That’s asymmetric warfare.
Now connect Gaza back to Venezuela
This is what media never explains.
Venezuela openly:
Backed Hamas
Funded Palestinian programs
Framed itself as a “rear base” for resistance
Iranian and Hezbollah operatives used Venezuelan space. Chinese money greased the system. Oil paid the bills.
This wasn’t ideology. It was infrastructure for resistance, built far from the Middle East.
So what is Trump actually doing?
He’s cutting the spine, not swatting flies.
Disrupt Venezuela → break Iran’s Western Hemisphere platform
Pressure Iran → threaten China’s energy security
Control Gaza escalation → deny China its moral high ground
This is pre-emptive containment, not random aggression.
Trump understands what most leaders don’t:
You don’t fight China directly.
You dismantle the ecosystems it hides behind.
Why China is nervous right now
Venezuela flipped from asset to liability
Gaza chaos is harder to exploit
Iran is exposed and economically brittle
U.S. demands are clear: cut ties or face consequences
China will posture. Talk about “stability.” Try to salvage ports, rail, oil.
But it will avoid open conflict - because China’s strategy only works below the threshold of war.
Bottom line
This isn’t Trump being reckless. It’s him seeing the board clearly.
Gaza. Iran. Venezuela.
Three fronts. One axis. One adversary pulling strings with money, not missiles.
Understand this - and everything makes sense.
Steve Giordano retweeted
Absolutely
David Sacks @DavidSacks is a throwback to the era of American greatness in which the most capable private sector citizens selflessly volunteered for government service in moments of peril for a dollar a day. He is a credit to our nation, and we need more like him, not fewer. 🇺🇸