In a recent post at X, Elon Musk issued a dire warning. Starship, the biggest vehicle in the SpaceX fleet, “will make life multiplanetary,” he wrote, “preserving life ... from extinction events on Earth, so long as it is not smothered by bureaucracy.”“There is more government regulatory smothering every year. If this continues, all large projects in the United States will be illegal,” he wrote, pointing to California’s cursed high-speed rail boondoggle as a typical cautionary tale. “The Department of Government Efficiency is the only path to extending life beyond Earth,” he concluded, referencing the would-be agency (bearing the not-so-coincidental acronym DOGE) Musk himself would lead in a second Trump administration with a mandate to slash Washington’s Borg-like mass of managers and bureaucrats. It wouldn’t be the first time the road to hell was paved with good intentions. The more potent the tools, the more grandiose the intentions; and the more prideful they are, the harder they fall.Musk’s message is a bright spot for many in an increasingly grim era. Today’s bureaucrats aren’t just stifling the major infrastructure and transportation projects that were the hallmark of America’s postwar golden age. They’re pinching off the lifeblood of American culture and commerce in a broader sense: enforcing speech codes, degrading and decreasing the food supply, inflating away savings, eroding the rule of law, and tightening the noose of social and financial surveillance. They’re becoming the only branch of government with the power to eclipse all the others.Against the agenda to destroy family formation, childbirth, land ownership, home ownership, and physical and mental health, Musk has distinguished himself as conspicuously pro-natalist, pro-growth, and pro-freedom — all elements of what we’re led to imagine life on Mars would be like if Starship indeed starts ferrying pioneers to the Red Planet. But with increasingly dystopian technology spreading far and wide and a huge share of technologists actively working toward building ultra-intelligent machines and planetary computers, it would be nice if an American rose to prominence with a clarion call to ensure that, if life is to spread beyond Earth, human life is not swiftly left behind and replaced by the kind of cyborg collective that epitomized villainy in the "Star Trek" universe, the kind that our home-world bureaucrats are themselves becoming. It’s all too easy to see how the wide-eyed wonder coming out of many leading futurists about opening the stars to the light of consciousness could lead to Mars becoming ground zero for communist colonies of people who want nothing more than to merge with each other and their supersmart machines — not just mega-computers underground but drone swarms, nanobots, virtual demigods, and on and on. Our technologically hybrid age, wherein leading visionaries hope to fuse the worship of human imagination with that of machine memory into a universal New Age religion, has put Americans at shocking risk of being mutated into a hyper-powered version of the USSR’s “New Soviet Man” ideal — a posthuman superbeing at once master of, and servant of, his machines. There’s also the "oops" factor to contend with. Mars colonists might show up devoted in theory to adding more red-blooded humans to the universe only to discover over time that they wound up naively or foolishly doing things that led to the conquest of the planet by intelligences unfriendly or disrespectful toward the continued dominance — or even existence — of “merely” human beings that are born, live, and die in the manner given to us from the beginning. It wouldn’t be the first time the road to hell was paved with good intentions. The more potent the tools, the more grandiose the intentions; and the more prideful they are, the harder they fall. Some would argue that today's situation is so bad on Earth or in America that we have to blast out of the grip of the bureaucrats and figure the rest out later. Perhaps this is true, or at least understandable, even if debatable or simply wrong. But if so, while some of us are hard at work on the blasting, others really must concentrate on the lasting — bearing witness to the precious and sacred character of our given human being, and warning, in proper prophetic tradition, that the swiftest and surest way to lose that character is by turning our face from God.

Constellation Energy has agreed to restart a reactor on Three Mile Island and will supply the vast majority of the power to Microsoft to support its data centers.Three Mile Island in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, is the site of the partial nuclear meltdown that happened in 1979. However, the energy company will reopen the Unit 1 reactor, which did not melt down but rather closed in 2019. CNBC reported that Constellation will invest $1.6 billion in restarting the plant through 2028, and it is expected to remain open until 2054. The plant will be called the Crane Clean Energy Center after the company's deceased CEO, Chris Crane.Microsoft will purchase energy from the plant in a 20-year deal in order to power its artificial intelligence and data centers with what is being described as carbon-free power. This will occur despite criticisms from environmental activists who have shunned nuclear energy due to its waste. Microsoft founder Bill Gates even has a green energy company called Breakthrough Energy; however, green energy would not have the capacity required for Microsoft's data centers.'The decision here is the most powerful symbol of the rebirth of nuclear power as a clean and reliable energy resource.'Energy reporter Mark Nelson claimed in a post on X that Microsoft will pay approximately $800 million per year across the 20-year deal, for a total of $16 billion spent on energy.According to the Tokenist, the agreement also states that Constellation will provide Microsoft with about 835 megawatts of power, the largest purchase Microsoft has ever made for energy. This represents almost all of the Unit 1 reactor's capacity, which Constellation said had a ceiling of 837 megawatts before it was shut down.While this is enough power to feed more than 800,000 homes, Microsoft will essentially have its own nuclear plant to energize its data centers."The decision here is the most powerful symbol of the rebirth of nuclear power as a clean and reliable energy resource," said Constellation CEO Joe Dominguez. "In this rebirth, we see the most powerful sign that America will turn to the enduring promise of nuclear energy, an old and loyal ally that is renewed and ready to light the way forward."CNN reported that the reactor's reopening will create about 3,400 jobs and add another $16 billion to the Pennsylvania economy, which pleased local politicians.“This will transform the local economy and presents a rare opportunity to power our economy with reliable clean energy that we can count on," said state Rep. Tom Mehaffie (R); the plant is in his district. "This is a rare and valuable opportunity to invest in clean, carbon-free and affordable power — on the heels of the hottest year in Earth’s history."Constellation's stock jumped about 15% or about $30 per share after the news broke.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Mobile US chip maker Qualcomm wants to buy Intel, according to the Wall Street Journal. The reported move follows a rapid drop in Intel’s share price after its last quarterly earnings report, which has prompted several cost-saving measures across the company, including large-scale staff layoffs. Meanwhile, Qualcomm has been making headlines with its latest Snapdragon CPUs. Despite being based on the Arm architecture, its new chips, such as the Qualcomm X Plus range, are able to run the latest Windows software (including games) using on-the-fly x86 emulation. If Qualcomm were to buy Intel, though, it would suddenly be allowed to make full-on x86 chips for the best gaming laptops, while also having access to its Arm expertise, putting it in an enviable position. Continue reading Qualcomm reportedly wants to buy Intel, and Nvidia should be worried MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Core i5 14600K review, Best gaming CPU, Core i9 14900K review

I oftentimes find it difficult to play videogames after work. Writing about them all day is a privilege, but it does mean I don’t want to move from my office to my couch to just play what I’ve been writing about. Games that hone in on warm, relaxing vibes are a different story. I can easily sit and create in games like Minecraft and Terraria to my heart’s content, and now that Tiny Glade is finally here, this drop-dead gorgeous castle-building game can be added to that list. Pull up a chair, grab a cup of tea, and prepare to lose yourself in the vibes. Continue reading Stunning sandbox building game Tiny Glade is finally here, with a demo MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best sandbox games, Best building games, Best relaxing games

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JBL’s party lights can sync their animations to the company’s speakers. | Image: JBL JBL has announced two new accessories for its PartyBox line of LED-enhanced Bluetooth speakers: the PartyLight Stick, which looks like a glowing animated lightsaber, and the PartyLight Beam, which can cast a light show on walls or ceilings. The $99.95 PartyLight Stick and the $149.95 PartyLight Beam can each function as standalone lights. You can adjust the intensity, speed, and motion of each light to match a party’s vibe using a mobile app, but they both include built-in microphones that will make their animated light shows match up to whatever music is playing in the room. Both lights become more capable when wirelessly connected to one of JBL’s PartyBox speakers. Their glowing animations will be synchronized to the LEDs in the... Continue reading…

Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge YouTube is telling Premium subscribers outside the US that they’ll be paying more for the service soon, social media users began reporting over the weekend. So far, the higher prices are being reported in regions that include the EU, the Middle East, and South America, according to Android Authority. The price increases affect both individual and family plans. In some EU countries, people have said they were told their family plans will be going from €17.99 to €25.99 (or €11.99 to €13.99 for individuals) starting on November 7th. Posts on social media are reporting similar increases in places like Singapore, Colombia, and Saudi Arabia. A Reddit user is tracking the amounts in one thread. Another Reddit user posted screenshots of a... Continue reading…

If you just bought one of the four iPhone 16 models and you're wondering whether you really need a case, I wouldn't blame you. First of all, Apple says all four iPhone 16 models feature the latest-generation Ceramic Shied glass that's "two times tougher than any smartphone glass." Then there's the titanium frame on the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. The new iPhones should be more durable than ever, and some people might want to avoid using screen protectors and cases to enjoy the phones as they are. The first iPhone 16 Pro drop tests are here, with good and bad news. Yes, the iPhone 16's front glass appears to be more durable. But it can still crack, depending on how the phone lands when it's dropped. But there's worse news, too. If the ultra-slim bezel is the point of impact, the iPhone 16 Pro or 16 Pro Max display might be killed instantly. Continue reading... The post First iPhone 16 Pro drop test reveals the downside to ultra-slim bezels appeared first on BGR. Today's Top Deals Today’s deals: $20 Amazon credit, 23% off Galaxy Z Flip 6, $50 Ninja blender, $48 Anker ANC earbuds, more Today’s deals: $129 AirPods 3, Nintendo Switch game sale, $30 Fire TV Stick 4K, $16 TOZO earbuds, more Best Apple deals for September 2024 Today’s deals: $449 Apple Watch Ultra, first deal on iPhone 16 Pro official Apple cases, $179 Roomba, more