Ninth Week of Ordinary Time

 

Welcome to the Ninth week of Ordinary Time.

Please open your Hymnal to page 3 and join in our processional  “O Lord Please Don’t Burn Us” Verse 1

O LORD, please don’t burn us,   Don’t grill or toast your flock,

Don’t put us on the barbecue,  Or simmer us in stock,

Don’t braise or bake or boil us,  Or stir fry us in a wok. 

Thank you for that rollicking rendition it was calming in troubled waters.  Now please open The Holy Text volume 1 to episode 12 page 151 where the prophets say …

Himmler

How do you do there squire, also I am not Minehead lad but I in Peterborough, Lincolnshire was given birth to, but stay in Peterborough Lincolnshire house all during war, owing to nasty running sores, and was unable to go in the streets play football or go to Nürnberg. I am retired vindow cleaner and pacifist, without doing war crimes (hurriedly corrects himself) tch tch tch, and am glad England win World Cup - Bobby Charlton, Martin Peters - and eating lots of chips and fish and hole in the toads, and Dundee cakes on Piccadilly line. Don't you know old chap I was head of Gestapo for ten years. Five years! No, no, nein, I was not head of Gestapo at all...I make joke.

Landlady

Oooh, Mr Bimmler, you do have us on. (A telephone rings) Oh excuse me I must go and answer that. (leaves the room)

Open your hymnal to page 4 and join us in singing “Holzfaller Song”  Verse 1

Ich wollte... ein Holzfäller sein! Ja, ein Holzfäller! Der von Baum zu Baum hüpft, die auf den mächtigen Wassern von Südtirol hinabschwimmen.

 Die gigantische Rotbuche! Die Lärche! Die Tanne! Die kräftige Kiefer! Der Duft von frisch gefälltem Holz!

 Das Geräusch der stürzenden mächtigen Bäume! An meiner Seite, mein liebes Mädel... Und wir würden singen, singen, singen...

Now please open The Holy Text volume 2 to episode 34 page 155 where the prophets say …

Gulliver	I have seen an agent in the town. My life is in danger.
Pither	Danger, Clodagh?
Gulliver	Stalin has always hated me.
Pither	No one hates you, Clodagh.
Gulliver	I will not let myself fall into the hands of these scum.
Pither	I think you should go and have a little lie down, my dear. There is a busy day tomorrow of concerts and promotional tours.
Gulliver	I. One of the founders of the greatest nation on earth. I! Whom Lenin has called his greatest friend.

 

Homily  In the ongoing attempt to discuss the going and growing danger of Artificial Intelligence I thought it prudent to discuss the more ‘street level’ view of the situation.  This week I thought I would look at all those workers at the bottom of the work ladder at places like McDonalds.  Where the conglomerate has viewed the pressure to raise worker wages toward $15 an hour with a replacement strategy of bringing self serve order kiosks in to replace workers taking orders at the counter.  To this McDonald’s is now adding “AI online” ordering to further replace its human work force (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mcdonalds-and-google-cloud-announce-strategic-partnership-to-connect-latest-cloud-technology-and-apply-generative-ai-solutions-across-its-restaurants-worldwide-302006915.html).  I am “sure” that the labor unions have a plan for what to do when these people lose their jobs, perhaps they can get hired into their labor union itself.  It is just about as sustainable an idea as $15 an hour. 

Meanwhile at a slightly higher end quick take out restaurant – Chipotle, we find another technological wonder going into operation.  It seems that Chipotle is creating a robotic Guac prep “solution” (https://newsroom.chipotle.com/2023-07-12-CHIPOTLE-PARTNERS-WITH-VEBU-TO-TEST-AUTOCADO-PROTOTYPE,-A-ROBOTIC-SOLUTION-TO-GUACAMOLE-PREP).   These two companies are also working on a tortilla chip making robot.  That way they can eliminate all of the entry level jobs that their work force started out in.  Such a “fresh” approach to food production is bound to do wonders for the workers in the restaurants. 

Finally, I was reminded of that insult leveled so quickly just a few years ago “learn to code” at factory workers put out of work by automation when I read this last story.  It seems that Duolingo is cutting ties with 10% of its work force (all contractors) and replacing the humans with AI programing (https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/we-no-longer-need-many-people-duolingo-fires-10-contractors-will-replace-them-ai).  Apparently Duolingo believe that AI can now teach people languages as well as everything else.  I never thought I would be glad for my Latin Instructors, so thanks for that AI – I guess. 

Amen

Please join us in our recessional on page 3 of your hymnal “O Lord Please Don’t Burn Us” second verse. 

Oh Please don’t lightly poach us,  Or Baste us with hot fat,

Don’t fricassee or roast us,    Or boil us in a vat,

And please don’t stick thy servants, Lord,  In a Rotissomat.