Simon says work less ???

Crime don’t pay

An article in Vegas Slots Online this week told the story of an Italian court handing out more than 2,200 years worth of jail sentences in a (tangentially) gambling-related criminal case.

The Court of Vibo Valentia has “decimated the Italian crime syndicate ‘Ndrangheta,” according to the article, as it sentenced more than 200 individuals to prison time for crimes relating principally to the drug trade and money laundering.

Among those sent down were ‘Ndrangheta clan bosses Saverio Razionale and Domenico Bonavota, who were each served 30-year sentences, as well as former senior police officers, financiers and politicians.

According to the article, defendants bearing some interesting nicknames were also brought to justice, including ‘The Wolf’, ‘Fatty’, ‘Sweetie’, and ‘Lamb Thigh’.

Among the charges were drug and arms trafficking, extortion and mafia association.

The ‘Ndrangheta syndicate is claimed to have masterminded 80% of Europe’s cocaine trade, according to the article, with an eye-watering estimated yearly revenue of ￡52bn.

And with a billion pounds a week in dirty money needing to be laundered, apparently the syndicate turned its eyes to Malta’s online gambling sector.

Back in 2015, Europol extradited six suspected ‘Ndrangheta mobsters from Malta back to Italy to face prosecution.

At the time, the gangsters were accused of running a €2bn money laundering operation through online gambling firms based on the island.

Six remote gambling companies were linked to that investigation alongside a number of local property holdings.

Money laundering was just part of the latest charge sheet brought against the syndicate in Italy.

Other criminal activities and tactics included blowing up informants’ cars and leaving slaughtered animals on their doorsteps, while ambulances were used to transport drugs and weapons were stashed in graveyards.

It seems Italy’s justice system has thoroughly rejected advice not to Mess with the Mob.

Q, Robot?

Following a Succession-style drama at ChatGPT developer OpenAI this week, CNBC has revealed a warning sent by researchers at the company to its board before the temporary ousting of CEO Sam Altman.

According to the story, ahead of Altman’s “four days in exile” – meaning the time between being sacked as CEO by the company’s board and his being swiftly reinstated – researchers “sent the board of directors a letter warning of a powerful artificial intelligence discovery that they said could threaten humanity.”

The letter (which has apparently not been seen or released by the press) allegedly contained warnings about a potential breakthrough in a project called Q* (pronounced Q-Star).

Some employees internally believed the project could be a significant step towards the firm’s search for an artificial general intelligence, or superintelligence.

According to OpenAI, such a system is defined as one which is smarter than humans.

Given vast computing resources, Q* was apparently able to solve certain mathematical problems.

Although only working at the level of a school student, the programme’s ability to problem-solve “made researchers very optimistic about Q*’s future success.”

That optimism was matched in the reverse by a recognition of the threat such a programme could present to humanity, according to CNBC.

The letter, alongside “a longer list of grievances” was one factor in OpenAI’s board decision to remove Altman as the company’s leader, the article said.

But with Altman now back at the helm of the business, perhaps we will be hearing more about Q* and its capabilities very soon.

How the other half live

The Sun this week published an article about how pop mogul Simon Cowell is embracing a new working culture, namely the much-debated four-day work week.

According to the article, Cowell now insists on a somewhat leisurely schedule for his everyday job – searching for showbusiness’ Next Big Thing while berating and embarrassing the chronically deluded.

“The America’s Got Talent judge has adopted a new mantra of downing tools on Friday no matter what work matters are pressing,” the article reports.

The Sun editors’ not quite knowing the meaning of the word ‘mantra’ notwithstanding (and notsurprising), it seems the X Factor creator has adopted a new focus on his work/life balance.

The 63-year-old has apparently “overhauled his hectic lifestyle” after “working almost 20 hours a day running shows” (yeah, right), and now sticks to four strict rules in order to maintain balance in his life.

His first rule, as already described, is not to work on Fridays – “because you don’t have to” (correction, Simon, you don’t have to).

The second rule is, inexplicably, to eat dinner at 5pm, and not to take calls or read emails after 5.30pm.

The third and fourth rules are “watch a happy movie. And stay outside.”

Good advice, though perhaps aimed most accurately at Cowell’s contemporaries in the 60+ age bracket.

Anyway, he did make a compelling argument for the four-day work week, suggesting: “I don’t think anyone should be working five days a week. It’s just pointless.”

His epiphany was brought about by becoming a parent, the article suggests, which has seen him ditch his workaholic lifestyle in favour of more fun activities with his son, like “driving 25 miles to buy a Pokemon card.”

While not everyone will be able to follow Cowell’s advice (seriously, who eats dinner at 5pm?) there’s certainly a nugget of wisdom or two buried in there somewhere.

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