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My junior high instrumental music teacher and band director was a spinster who never owned a car. She took taxis to get around our small town. At the time, it seemed odd. Now that I’m 70 years old, it looks like my future.   The promises of robotaxis (I’m looking at you, Elon) have so far outdistanced reality. I’m silently cheering for them, though. I know the day will come when my wife or daughter will demand the car keys, saying I’m no longer fit to drive.  There are several alternatives, of course. An e-bike. Lyft/Uber. Regular taxis. But Elon isn’t the only one making promises about robotaxis:   “Tesla, again on the downswing for its vehicle deliveries, is on the upswing, aiming to overhaul ride-hailing like it did the auto industry. “Uber is wheeling and dealing, touting more than a dozen partnerships, with plans to operate robotaxi services in 10 markets by the end of 2026. “Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Waymo is seeking new funding at a valuation of at least $100 billio...

I live in Rhode Island. Ca. 90% of electricity in Rhode Island is generated by natural gas. So if you re-charge your EV in Rhode Island, you’re fueling your car with natural gas. Some folks have pointed out that EVs are about twice as efficient as ICE vehicles. That is, they waste about half the energy converting battery electricity to motive force as ICE vehicles do converting gasoline in the tank to motive force.  That’s correct. But what this calculation overlooks is that even in the more advanced combined cycle power plants, only about 60% of the energy stored in natural gas is converted to electricity. So here in Rhode Island, there isn’t much difference between EVs and ICE vehicles for carbon consumption. Now there are plenty of states that generate more electricity from renewables than RI. And for our electrical needs, we’ve contracted with a solar farm, so if we recharged an EV at our house, it would be running on green fuel.  I’m not constitutionally opposed to EVs, b...

I was in the vaccine arm of the Moderna mRNA vaccine phase III trial. I’ve had a total of eight jabs since August 2020 and I’m still fine. Of course, I’m just an anecdote. But by now, hundreds of millions have had the mRNA vaccines worldwide, with few if any proven side effects beyond mild fever and transient headache and muscle ache. Of course, I’m an adult male. What about all those pregnant people and their fetuses being exposed to the vaccine? “A nalysis of data from almost 20,000 pregnancies in Canada has revealed that getting a COVID-19 shot is a great idea for pregnant people – not just for their health, but the baby’s too. As well as being linked to a lower risk of hospitalization and serious illness, vaccination was also found to be associated with a decreased risk of preterm birth.” Yes, you can still get infected even if you’ve had the vaccine. But you’re much less likely to end up in the ED or the morgue, and you’re less likely to get long COVID. And now the benefits extend...

Since Trump’s return to the White House in January 2025, the editorials have been filled with claims that the United States is slipping into authoritarianism. While this possibility is greeted with cheers by right-wing extremists, it is a source of dire concern for liberals and for moderates like me. As Niels Bohr (and Yogi Berra) observed, predictions are hard, especially about the future. That doesn’t seem to discourage many people.   Today’s dire forecast for the new year comes from Emanuel Pastreich:   “ In a healthy society, where citizens actually play a role in politics, the politicians rise to the top because their primary mission is serving the needs of their clients, whether they are bankers, businessmen, generals, or other interest groups in the general population. Politicians can play the central role because they reflect the needs of citizens. As long as politicians can effectively meet the needs of the bankers, the generals, and the citizens, and keep the money f...

Kotkin came to my attention through reading the first two volumes of his projected three-volume history of Stalin (the third volume has been long delayed). I just stumbled upon a two-part interview of Kotkin about his second volume. I was curious about what he looked like and how he spoke, so I watched them both. I found him to be articulate and incisive, summarizing vast swaths of detailed history into memorable oral commentary. He has a trait that I’ve tried to cultivate, which is the ability to speak continuously without saying “uh” or otherwise stammering just to fill space. Those interviews were courtesy of the Hoover Institution at Stanford, a notorious conservative bastion. At the time, he was still a professor at Princeton. Since then, he left Princeton to become a fellow at the Hoover Institution. There are several interviews of Kotkin online giving his takes on current events. Most interesting to me are his takes on Ukraine. Until now, my touchstone on this issue has been his...

GLP-1-based therapies for obesity have been transformational. The benefits are undeniable, and the risks for most people are negligible. These drugs belong in the class with anti-hypertensives and statins. Who could complain? Here's one doc who was an initial enthusiast, but who has cooled: “The  truth is, most patients don't stay on anti-obesity medications -- I see it in my practice every day. Research shows that three-quarters of patients stop GLP-1 medications  within 2 years , many within months. Reasons for discontinuation include cost, side effects, and supply shortages. But one of the most common reasons is that patients simply don't want to take a weight loss medication indefinitely. Many believe they can "beat the system," use them briefly, change their lifestyle, and stop taking them without regaining weight. “Unfortunately, they can't. Clinical trials of semaglutide and tirzepatide show that the average patient  regains two-thirds  of the weight lo...