@GovKathyHochul please veto S-138, which would enable the laxest MAiD program in the US: No wait period. No psych screening. Incredibly lax oversight. the American Medical Association has condemned MAiD the bill is ableist & bad for the vulnerable. And it legalizes su***de. 1/2

Could we dramatically simplify medical billing? Since you give your insurance card at EVERY APPOINTMENT it should be easy: all providers could accept payment via a bill-pay portal linked to your insurance account. This would be huge for providers & for patients.

& I think gamification should have a more limited role than @jliemandt does It's *more important* to learn 1. what's worth shooting for and 2. how to work in a non-gamified way when necessary than to learn more content @ all costs Bc 1. is the goal & 2. is often a prereq 10/10

another philosophical problem that arises out of the AI-customization approach: why bother studying the humanities *at all*? (If it's just "to get ahead" it probably ain't worth it! Instead it involves other people & aesthetics in a way that AI can't grok.) 9/

There are also some limitations with the Alpha approach, most fundamentally philosophical ones: eg if kids are "buying back" their day by knocking out their school work in 2 hours, *what is that leisure for*? This is, like, a pretty important question! 8/

I'd love 1. a way of running the program fully on B&W e-ink tablets 2. ways to customize what programs operate on the platform. Eg what if I want to add Beast Academy + a specific podcast, but remove the the personalized AI tutoring (but keep the mastery standards)? 7/

worth noting that Alpha employs *higher mastery standards* than the programs it uses, and it takes pedegogical research quite seriously. that said, I definitely have some things on my wishlist for their software 6/

Practically every parent I know has some niche type of school they'd love to send their kids to — and they often know a number of other parents who have a similar desire. But usually not enough parents to overcome the startup costs. 5/

Normally to get a school going, someone needs to have a ton of hustle/enterprise, and every family who joins needs to be confident that 1. the school will actually exist and 2. that it will be better than the alternatives. Lower those startup costs & you can unlock A LOT. 4/

You may live in a city with 25+ musical Catholic families, who would all love to send their kids to a Catholic school with a super strong music program — & who would think 25+ families is enough. But usually nobody has the resources to summon the school into existence. 3/

The overhead on starting something that is 1. niche and 2. communitarian is often incredibly high. Not just setup/admin/teaching/facilities, but also coordination costs. eg. 2/

These themed micro-schools are incredibly promising, especially if Alpha or someone else finds a way to scale them in a way that drastically cuts overhead. I'd add "cheapo schools," co-ops & other values-based &/or communitarian projects to the specialization list.... 1/

This a level of thoughtfulness in which the NYS Legislature failed to engage, but which @GovKathyHochul totally can and has a responsibility to. So let's hope she doesn't want to go down as the Gov who said yes to doctors helping their patients kill themselves. @NoSuicideNY

Some of the strongest concise comebacks you’ll find against claims commonly made in support of NY’s very broad physician-assisted self-termination bill, whose fate will be determined by @GovKathyHochul

New from me @TheAtlantic: The birth-rate crisis isn’t as bad as you’ve heard. It’s worse. Humanity is set to shrink decades ahead of schedule.

The reality is if we owe MAiD access to the terminally ill, we should be helping *all sorts of people* to end their own lives. We could offer it to anyone who wants it… or restrict it to those lives we think are arguable “not worth living.” Either way: absolutely not. 7/7

The reality is if we owe MAiD access to the terminally ill, we should be helping *all sorts of people* to end their own lives. We could offer it to anyone who wants it… or restrict it to those lives we think are arguable “not worth living.” Either way: absolutely not. 7/7

"NY's @GovKathyHochul has placed a much-needed focus on #SuicidePrevention. If she wishes to maintain this strong record, she must veto A-136," writes @AudreyPollnow. #AssistedSuicide #Suicide https://t.co/vwhkdxJ9Xo

Argument 3 is that you’re going to die anyways. That if you know you aren’t going to get better & that you’re going to endure hard stuff until the end, s******* is a legitimate solution. But this is the situation for many disabled people, and also plenty of depressed people. 6/

Argument 2 is that terminal illness can cause lots of pain & hardship, and that s****** is a legitimate way to avoid this But depression can cause lots of pain/hardship. And s— is not a legit way to overcome this. & disability can as well. But s— is not the answer. 5/

Argument 1 is that “withholding MAiD” from the terminally ill fails to respect their autonomy. But if this is true, it means we should give up on most s****** prevention efforts: that instead we should help everyone to get what they want, even if that is death. No thank you! 4/