Recommended Reading, December 22, 2024

Robert Cox

22 Dec 2024 — 6 min read

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DUBLIN, IRELAND (December 22, 2024) — Loli and I had an interesting December here in Dublin. Joan Baez was at The Lighthouse Movie Theater to support I Am A Noise, a documentary film about her life just as A Complete Unknown, a new film with Timothy Chamelet as a young Bob Dylan is about to be released. Ralph Fiennes was at the Abbey National Theatre to give the 2024 T.S. Eliot Lecture, actually more of a performance of Eliot’s Four Quarters, just as he is on the verge of a third Academy Award nomination for Conclave, Rhiannon Giddens, Grammy Award-Winner, MacArthur recipient and Pulitzer Prize winner, was at Whelan’s to headline a fundraiser for Appalachian Flood Relief (she is from North Carolina), Stephen Rea, nominated for an Academy Award for The Crying Game, was also at the Abbey on another night for a special event to mark 120 years of the National Theatre of Ireland. Rea, his shaggy hair, and the other actors joined the audience after for mince pies and pints. My favorite, maybe not surprisingly, was his role as Chief Inspector Finch in V for Vendetta.

Speaking of videos…

I have avoided TikTok for years, mostly because video production is so time-consuming and TikTok is not a platform for text like X or Facebook, or still images like Instagram, but only video. At the same time, I kept reading that so many people, especially young people, get their news from TikTok. Over the past year or so, with the explosion in AI, there has been new tools for creating videos based on text (scripts) — generative AI videos. I tested a few of these tools and decided to get a monthly account at Fliki.ai.

My first test videos were, admittedly, not great but they did receive hundreds of views within 24 hours. After I got a paid account I took text and an image from this article…

…make this video:

@talkofthesound
Read the article on Talk of the Sound: https://talkofthesound.com/2024/12/18/pelham-manor-police-chief-gregory-sancho-sworn-in-by-mayor/
♬ original sound - TalkoftheSound

Here is another.

@talkofthesound
Bronx Man Who Jumped Bail in 2016 Returns to Rye https://talkofthesound.com/2024/12/22/bronx-man-who-jumped-bail-in-2016-returns-to-rye/ <<— go to linkin.bio/talkofthesound to learn all about it
♬ original sound - TalkoftheSound

Fliki.ai sort of worked but added in some odd stock video so what is in the videos is not accurate.

I want to use the remaining days of 2024 to keep creating and uploading videos to see if I can get it right. Also, to crank out as many Thimblerig stories I can to clear my backlog of material, make a few technical improvements to Words in Edgewise and other housekeeping to clear the decks for 2025. One thing Ghost.org did for me was upgrade the comments section so check then out. I really like that subscribers can now reply to each other.

I am already drafting my response to the City of New Rochelle Lawfare Campaign. It will drop in the week after New Year’s Day.

Content Only for Premium Subscribers

Content for All Paid Subscribers

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XI

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XII

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XIII

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XIV

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XV

Content for Everyone

Articles from Words in Edgewise, Talk of the Sound and Elsewhere on the Web.

WOO HOO! Upgraded Comments Section for Words in Edgewise (robertcox.ie)

Bronx Man Who Jumped Bail in 2016 Returns to Rye

Brooklyn Man Busted for Passing Funny Money in Rye

Rye Marine Unit Locates Missing Wakeboarder in Mamaroneck

Police Seeking Witnesses After Elderly Pedestrian Struck By Car

Bridge Replacement Mostly Finished In Mamaroneck: Ribbon-Cutting To Cause Road Closure

6 hurt in Hutchinson River Parkway wrong-way crash in Rye Brook near CT border, police say

Truck cleared from Hutchinson River Parkway after hitting overpass

New Rochelle police called to Iona University-owned home 9 times before 47-year-old woman’s death

First look inside New Village of Pelham Municipal Center

Opinion: Mamaroneck Town Backs Down on Tax Hike Due to Outcry

New Rochelle woman leaving CNN after 17 years

Talner Jewelers in New Rochelle closing after almost a century of business

New York State Committee on Open Government: No Such Thing as a School Board “Retreat”

Pelham Manor Police Chief Gregory Sancho Sworn in by Mayor

6 people injured in apparent wrong-way crash on Hutch in Rye Brook

Port Chester Police Seek Help Identifying Victim of Car v. Pedestrian

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part I

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part II

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part III

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part IV

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part V

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part VI

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part VII

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part VIII

The New Rochelle Thimblerig - Part IX

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part X

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XI

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XII

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XIII

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XIV

The New Rochelle Thimblerig — Part XV

Sustainable Westchester 2024 Contract: 10 Part-Series

Three Reasons Why Sustainable Westchester Should be Indicted for Criminal Fraud

Links to Sustainable Westchester Articles

CROWDSOURCING PROJECT: Help Document NO votes on Sustainable Westchester

Sustainable Westchester Body Count

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