Lower Columbia Informer: Slow and Steady Saves Face

Where to find the new Reader

It’s delivered all around the River by the 15 th of each month. Here’s the list of handy, regularlyrefilled sidewalk box and rack locations where you can pick up a copy any time of day and even in your bathrobe ...

LONGVIEW

U.S. Bank Post Office Bob’s (rack, main check-out) In front of 1232 Commerce Ave In front of 1323 Commerce Ave YMCA Fred Meyer (rack, service desk area) Teri’s Grocery Outlet Fibre Fed’l CU - Commerce Ave Monticello Hotel (front entrance) Kaiser Permanente St. John Medical Center (rack, Park Lake Café) LCC Student Center Regents Indie Way Diner Columbia River Reader Office 1333 14th Ave.

KELSO

Heritage Bank Visitors’ Center / Kelso-Longview Chamber of Commerce

KALAMA

Fibre Fed’l CU Kalama Shopping Center corner of First & Fir McMenamin’s Harbor Lodge

WOODLAND

Visitors’ Center

CASTLE ROCK

Lacie Rha’s Cafe (32 Cowlitz W.) Parker’s Restaurant (box, entry) Visitors’ Center 890 Huntington Ave. N.

Exit 49, west side of I-5

RYDERWOOD

Café porch

CLATSKANIE

Post Office Chevron / Mini-Mart Fultano’s Pizza

WESTPORT

Wauna mill parking lot

RAINIER

Post Office Cornerstone Rainier Hardware (rack, entry) Earth ‘n’ Sun (on Hwy 30) El Tapatio (entry rack) Grocery Outlet

DEER ISLAND

Deer Island Store COLUMBIA CITY - Post Office

WARREN

Warren Country Inn

ST HELENS

Chamber of Commerce Sunshine Pizza Post Office Olde Town (Wild Currant) Safeway

SCAPPOOSE

Post Office Road Runner Fultano’s Ace Hardware To find the 24/7 pick-up point nearest you, visit crreader. WARRENTON, OR Fred Meyer com and click “Find the Magazine” tab.

CATHLAMET

Cathlamet Pharmacy Tsuga Gallery Cathlamet Realty West Puget Island Ferry Landing

SKAMOKAWA

Skamokawa General Store

NASELLE

Appelo Archives & Café Johnson’s One-Stop

Auto, Home, Flood, Boat, RV, ATV Business & Commercial Insurance & Bonding 360-274-6991 25 A. ST. SW • CASTLE ROCK • 866-514-3356

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the Lower Columbia Informer by Perry Piper

Exception:

When it comes to personal health risks like the pandemic, err on the side of caution even before proven.

Wear a mask, distance and wash your hands.

Slow and steady saves face

We’re entering a crazy time leading up counting the money he received in settlements to the election, being in the middle of from the multiple media outlets who defamed a worsening pandemic with 195,000+ him. Americans dying from it so far. On top of this, It always struck me as a little odd that in the age the news makes it seem like there are non-stop of modern smartphones, every “leaked” video riots in Portland and other cities. Worst of all, is so blurry, it’s like it came from ancient video especially since the media barely talks about it, cameras. Now I’m not saying every video like this is that easy access to new computer technology has been faked, just that it’s easier to make fake called “deepfakes” can make us doubt reality videos that are blurry and low resolution; it takes itself. less computer power and technical skill. Tools are freely available now enabling people Luckily, Microsoft has just released its Video with basic tech skills to synthesize the voices, Authenticator tool for news, voting and political faces and bodies of real people to make videos agencies to scan videos for an indication of their showing them doing things they never actually legitimacy. The main problem with this, though, did. The easiest way to do this is to film a mock is that it’s a game of cat and mouse between state event or speech of yourself or friends, then using actors, hackers and the good guys making these a kind of facial puppetry, make the video very tools for the people. So we should take its results realistically look like it was done by a celebrity. as one piece of evidence, not the absolute, final We all need to be extra skeptical and less answer about any specific video. reactionary now. Even if it seems like some group If this article is sounding your alarms for conspiracy or person has done horrendous things, try not to theories, you can see if you can tell real from fake form an opinion until you have multiple pieces in an online quiz. It’s difficult for people who don’t of high quality evidence from multiple sources follow technology closely to understand where the and, in some instances, the case has been tried in world really is right now — what is still science court. It seems like people are reacting violently fiction and what isn’t — but things are changing to initial and incomplete evidence, making inbreathtakingly fast. person protests very dangerous. Visit spotdeepfakes.org/en-US and, after the Here’s a recent example: Nick Sandmann, a intro, question 5 (video examples of original Make America Great Again hat-wearing high versus tampered-with content) is where things schooler appeared to mock a Native American heat up. Remember, in this quiz you are taking drummer. at a demonstration near the Lincoln your time to analyze what you know is fake. Memorial. Later, multiple other camera angles But are you going to take the time to verify in confirmed it was far more complex than the first the heat of the moment when a friend sends an video made it seem. anger-inducing video of the political figures you Everyone should have reserved judgment, may already dislike? Will you cross-check sources because there was more to the story. But many before passing judgment? jumped the gun, saying it was “obvious” the Surprisingly, new footage has just boy had bad intentions,” and was surfaced in the case of George clearly a racist, bigoted punk. Floyd whose death sparked the In truth, he probably had months-long global protest. the last laugh and is still Some wonder if this may affect public opinion about the officers’ motives, and the outcome when they have their day in court. •••

Perry Piper keeps his

“electric thumbs” on the pulse of emerging technologies. He is available to assist with computer and technology needs. See ad, page 30. He also likes chocolate.