We can also have news that is in itself satire, if unintentionally. Last week saw a wiseguy, Baby Boomer real estate developer from Queens, New York, President Donald J. Trump, sit in his house in front of a gold leaf fireplace, next to the new Japanese Prime Minster, Sanae Takaichi, a diminutive female that if she was sitting on a long bench NYC subway seat in a North Face puff coat there could easily be 7 more of her comfortably seated next to her, even if a pocket book or two were wedged between them.
An exchange between the president and the Japanese prime minister became news. The NYT carried the story on Page 9 in Friday's paper, led in from a teaser on the front page: Trump Makes Joke About Pearl Harbor as Japan's Leader Sits Next to Him. The online NYT is even better. There is a short video of the exchange so you can her it.
It was Sauae's first visit to the White House and The Donald made it a memorable one when fed a cue that contained the word "surprise" in it, when a member of the press asked why Japan and other allies had no advance notice of the U.S.-Israeli assault on Iran. The president responded, "we didn't tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise."
That could have answered the question, but the Donald kept talking. He could have said we didn't tell Germany we were coming to Normandy beach on June 6th, 1944 not to sun ourselves, but to invade, but he didn't. He, being a wiseguy real estate developer from Queens, New York, tilts his head toward Ms. Sanae Takaichi and says: "who knows better about surprise than Japan, OK? Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor, OK? Right?
There was audible laughter from the off camera people, but not belly laughs. Seated sext to Ms. Takaichi appears to be an interpreter who no doubt was instantly translating the president's remarks. Ms. Takaichi appears a bit uneasy, catches her breath and says nothing to be translated.
The president was of course was not letting the opportunity get past him to enlighten the press what the word "surprise" really meant and provide an example. This of course was news, and was typical of the unfiltered president. Quite honestly, I being a wiseguy from Queens, New York (not a real estate developer but a onetime homeowner in my birth borough) would have said the same thing. But then again, I wasn't elected president.
The Donald was criticized for breaking diplomatic protocol. He was considered rude. The encounter reminded me of the long ago utterance of the advertising executive Jerry Della Femina who umpteen years ago pitched the idea that the advertising agency use the tagline for the emerging Japanese companies' goods coming to the States: "From those wonderful folks who brought you Pearl Harbor," for the new Panasonic account. Jerry turned it into a book. Being a wiseguy from Queens, I bought it.
I'm sure there are Japanese comedians. The prime minister is not one of them. What I would have loved to have seen was Sanae Takaichi gently take hold of President Trump's right arm and tell him, "Well, the atomic bomb was a surprise too, no?" The room would have erupted.
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Much is being made of ChapGPT and all the other AI powered platforms and how they are going to change the world, do everything for humans, and basically replace us. Puhleeeze.
Can AI create a response to President Trump, that would knock him off his chair? The answer is no. AI is not a wiseguy real estate developer from Queens, NY. I asked ChatGPT:
"What could the Japanese Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi have said to President Trump when he talked of Pearl Harbor being a surprise too."
Here is the response verbatim.
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