Our primary car for the last decade or so is an EV.  But we have a ten year old gas Miata that has about 18k miles on it.  So I literally fill it up a few times a year.  I was getting worried about future availably of gas and decided to fill up just in case.

I went to Bernalillo which is pretty much the only place on I-25 to buy gas between Albuquerque and Santa Fe.  There are maybe a half dozen stations with a couple that are truck stops that cater to big rigs.  The first place I tried, a Speedway, had no gas at all.  I crossed the street to large Circle-K and it looked like close to half the pumps were closed. I did fill up, at almost $5.25 a gallon.  Total bill was over $40.  For a Miata that wasn’t even on empty.  Someone put this little sticker near the prices on my pump.

Reported first by CNN and now picked up by other news outlets.  This report is said to be the reason the White House has banned CNN.

Exclusive: US military had close call after using AI for false intelligence report, sources say

A story from a few months back.  It’s back in the news because she has decided to sue.  It’s a story of AI technology being misused, which is easier to do than ever. Worth a read if you think “couldn’t happen to me”.

Tennessee grandmother jailed after AI facial recognition error links her to fraud

Motor oil is now being rationed.  Costco did a big price increase and limits purchases.  From Global Market News.

Costco’s New Purchase Limit Exposes a Bigger Inflation Problem

One place Climate Change Denial will hit a brick wall is in insurance.  And it looks like this is one of many fronts (including fire, drought and floods) that will challenge the insurance business.  Is anyone ready for this?  From Insurance Business.

Dillon Amaya, an oceanographer at North Carolina State University, said the wave alone could raise sea levels along the coast by 6 to 12 inches for months at a time, on top of roughly a foot of sea level rise the state has already seen from climate change and a separate, ongoing marine heat wave.

A Kelvin wave is about to hit California

From The Atlantic.

The Dark Side of Mindfulness

Is this going to be the Peak Oil we have heard about for so long?   High prices from the Iran War are driving down consumption, but it is also pushing electrification.

China oil demand contracts as Sinopec sees 8.9% drop

I have noticed Bitcoin ATMs on my Google Maps for quite a while. I also noticed they seem to be in sketchier neighborhoods.  Maybe they are for people without traditional banking access?  Nah, probably not.  Turns out they are frequently used for fraud.  Saw this first on the local news but this is from a crypto / AI investment site.

Crypto ATM Regulation: Why States Are Banning Bitcoin ATMs

Suspicious financial transactions may also get you pulled over (they will make up an excuse).  What could go wrong?  I keep thinking of Terry Gilliam’s Brazil.

Border Patrol is monitoring US drivers and detaining those with ‘suspicious’ travel patterns

Trying to find an article that explains this twisted tale.   The Right-wing president of El Salvador decided to make Bitcoin legal tender in that country.  An exchange was opened and everyone who wanted to participate (over half the country) was given $30.  After the initial enthusiasm, usage went to zero.

In order to get IMF loans El Salvador had to disclose where the Bitcoin money was coming from and where it was going.  It seems “private donations” were used to build up government Bitcoin reserves.  Also Bitcoin is no longer Legal Tender.  The president says it was perhaps his most unpopular move.  I can’t say I understand the unpopularity of free money (even Bitcoin money) but there it is.  It all sounds shady, but this is Bitcoin.

Two articles below.  Like I said, it’s hard to find a full story on this, especially in the mainstream press.

IMF clears El Salvador bitcoin: Private donors never named or quantified

Why is Bitcoin use down 99.8% in El Salvador?