Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

CapnBob

Blogiversary 21

For an incredible 21 years, “Cap’n Bob and the Damsel” has been navigating the vast digital sea, and we owe every single milestone of this journey to you, our wonderful readers. Whether you’ve been on board since our very first post back in 2005 or just recently dropped anchor in our comments section, your unwavering support, lively discussions, and shared enthusiasm have been the wind in our sails. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for reading, laughing, and growing alongside us through two decades of blogging -— here’s to celebrating the past and looking forward to many more adventures together!

22 Sep 2026 by Blogosphere Cyberspace

Artificial Intelligence and
 the Resistance Thereto

Now that researchers in the US have made significant advances in Artificial Intelligence, there are hysterical cries about AI “destroying humanity.” What’s up with all of the crazy predictions?

The short version: most of those predictions are not about today’s chatbots turning into Skynet next Tuesday. They are about a hypothetical later system—something much more capable and autonomous than current models—getting goals that don’t stay lined up with human survival, then being competent enough to act on them. That idea is old, loud, and wildly contested.

As you might expect, the loudest opposition to AI is from the political left, who seem to want to destroy everything that President Trump is for. Moreover, they seem to want to destroy America, the Constitution, Christianity, the Family Unit and anything else that is normal and good about the country, AI destroying us is just the latest bullshit scam akin to Y2K, Covid19, etc.

Be sure to get out and vote this November. Stop the crazies from taking over. Stay armed, watch your six and pray.

Artificial Intelligence – a look into some of the terms being used.

Stage Meaning Status (2026)
ANI — Artificial Narrow Intelligence Good at specific tasks. Can be superhuman at chess, translation, or protein folding and still helpless outside that box. This is almost everything deployed today.
AGI — Artificial General Intelligence Roughly human-level across most cognitive work: learn new domains, transfer skills, handle messy real-world tasks. Contested. Some lab leaders say “we’re there or close.” Most researchers and independent tests say not yet.
ASI — Artificial Superintelligence Clearly beyond the best humans, and in stronger definitions beyond large teams of experts, across nearly all mental work. Still hypothetical.

Clickable image above from ChatGPT. Table from Grok.

And this from Cartoonist Gary Varvel:

15 Sep 2026 by Cyberspace Notions Technobabble Whacko Politics

Patriots Day 2026

Today is the 25th Anniversary of the Islamic Terrorist Attacks on the World Trade Center, The Pentagon and the Flight 93 crash in Pennsylvania.

Alleged Islamic Terror sympathizers like Abdul El Sayed, Hasan Piker and Zoran “Commie” Mamdani have no business visiting the WTC memorial site.

We will be praying for the victims and their families as we usually do in remembrance of the tragic day. We will also be praying for the Islamist sympathizers to have their demons cast out of them as Jesus did when he healed the mentally disturbed during his days on Earth.

NEVER FORGET! God Bless the USA!

11 Sep 2026 by Islamic Terrorism Never Forget Patriotism

New Mouse Pad

The old one was getting worn out so I replaced it with this one. Most armed patriots have the words pictured above committed to memory, but it’s nice to see them in the mouse pad format.

The old pad had a different message: I AM A VETERAN — MY OATH NEVER EXPIRES. It also had an image of an American Flag with silhouettes of several armed combat soldiers overlaid on the flag.

I thought about sending a couple of these 2A mouse pads as gifts to our anti-gun senators here in Arizona, but realized it would be a waste of effort and money. The pad cost about $12 after S&H +tax added.

Scanned image above is clickable.

09 Sep 2026 by Firearms Gun Grabbers Second Amendment Technobabble

Labor Day 2026

Happy Labor Day! We’re celebrating with grilled filet mignon steaks for dinner today. The (clickable) AI banner above isn’t far from what was on the grill today.

Labor Day marks the end of summer although in our area the temperatures will remain summer-like until late September or early October. We like to refer to this time as “Second Spring.”

About Labor Day:

Labor Day originated during the peak of the 19th-century Industrial Revolution. In 1894, President Grover Cleveland signed legislation making the first Monday in September a federal holiday.

Cultural Traditions:

  • The Unofficial End of Summer: Labor Day weekend serves as a seasonal boundary marking the return to school, the close of community pools, and the final stretch for summer vacations.
  • Barbecues & Gatherings: The early tradition of union picnics evolved into family cookouts, camping trips, and outdoor gatherings.
  • Parades & Political Speeches: While early Labor Day events featured massive union marches to demonstrate collective strength, modern parades are generally smaller community events or labor-focused political rallies.
  • Sports & Retail: The weekend marks the launch of college and high school football seasons, as well as major retail sales.

Wishing everyone a safe and happy “Second Spring!”

07 Sep 2026 by Food & Dining Holidays Notions

Squall Line

We were expecting thunderstorms in our Arizona home which prompted me to look at the weather radar on-line. So, I pulled up the area radar and saw that we were likely clear (for the time being) of any serious weather.

As I usually do, I scanned elsewhere in these United States for what else might be going on when I saw this massive squall line over North Dakota extending into Canada in provinces Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It is highly unusual to see a squall line like this in North America. (Clickable) image above is screen capture of an Accuweather radar map of the area. I had a chat with Grok about squall lines in the area:

The most organized feature is the nearly north–south band of stronger echoes (yellows and reds) running through central North Dakota. It stretches from north of Minot, through the Bismarck–Mandan area, and south toward the South Dakota border near Mobridge. That is the classic look of a squall line / QLCS on radar: a relatively narrow, continuous line of thunderstorms rather than scattered individual cells. At the time of the image it was moving generally east.

A second, somewhat more broken area of stronger storms (also showing red cores) sits farther north and east across southeastern Saskatchewan into southwestern Manitoba, near Yorkton, Dauphin, and Brandon. That is the northern extension of the same larger system that produced the earlier severe weather and tornado reports in southern Saskatchewan.
The lighter green areas west of the main line are leftover lighter rain and weaker showers from earlier activity.

NWS Bismarck still had a Severe Thunderstorm Watch in effect until 11 p.m. CDT, and additional warnings were being issued as the line continued east (one around 8 p.m. CDT covered parts of Burleigh and Emmons counties with 60 mph wind gusts). The line was expected to weaken some as it moved into eastern North Dakota later in the evening.

We said a prayer for the people in the area to be granted the mercy of God’s grace. We pray for victims to be safe, sheltered, fed, clothed as required and given the ability to recover. We know that the volunteer organizations will see to their well being in time. Remember to donate to those charities.

30 Aug 2026 by Environment Science Technobabble

Starlink Surprise

I was alerted a couple of days ago by my Starlink App that a “Mesh Node” was trying to connect to the Router. I Had no idea why a mesh node might be trying to connect, so I asked Grok to explain it to me:

A new Starlink mesh node (or extra router used as one) will try to join your network automatically once you power it on. The Starlink app usually shows a “PAIR NEW MESH NODE” (or similar “New Mesh Node(s)”) notification within about 1–2 minutes if everything is working.

Grok then told me how to set up my new mesh node. Problem is that I don’t have a mesh node or anything else like that. Could it be that a neighbor has one?

Yes, it could be a neighbor’s mesh node.

Starlink mesh nodes broadcast a pairing request when they power up (or after a reset). Your app can detect a nearby unpaired node and show the “PAIR NEW MESH NODE” (or “New Mesh Node”) notification even if the hardware isn’t yours. The official Starlink Mesh Installation Guide includes this exact wording on the prompt:

“A new node is attempting to pair with your network. Please reject this request if you don’t own Starlink mesh nodes.”

What to do:

  • Deny / Block / Reject the request in the app. Do not pair it.
  • Check the Network > Nodes section afterward. You should be able to see previously blocked nodes if you need to manage them later.
  • The node will not join your network or use your bandwidth unless you explicitly approve the pairing.

I did as the AI instructed and blocked the node request.

Later, when I took Tucker out for a walk, I noticed someone finishing up installation of a Starlink Antenna on the house about 60 yards to the northwest of here (see the marked clickable image above for the circled locations of the neighbor’s antenna and our antenna).

Grok further instructed me that if I had the mystery node blocked, that I could just ignore it henceforth.

I looked into mesh nodes for possible use as a range extender for our use, but with our current setup, the range limitations for a barefoot Starlink Mini are sufficiently adequate for our needs, both at home and on the road.

22 Aug 2026 by Arizona Cyberspace Notions Technobabble

Categories

Archives