People > Politics Our politics really is rigged. But it’s not rigged by some shadowy conspiracy. It’s rigged by money. Billionaires are now spending 39 times more on federal elections since Citizens United in 2010. Most politicians are loyal to their donors, not you. They’re more worried about losing their campaign funds than losing votes.Continue reading “A New Populist Agenda for America”
Category Archives: Essays
In Defense of Effective Altruism
The Worst Form of Ethics, Except For All The Others This would’ve been a lot easier in August 2022. Flash forward 15 months, and the EA movement is in trouble. RIP: Effective Altruism (2011-2023). Right? “The measure of a man’s life is not the number of his breaths, but the action he takes.” – AristotleContinue reading “In Defense of Effective Altruism”
Dear Mama
“I wish I could take the pain awayIf you can make it through the night, there’s a brighter dayEverything will be alright if you hold onIt’s a struggle every day, gotta roll onAnd there’s no way I can pay you backBut my plan is to show you that I understandYou are appreciated.”— 2Pac, Dear MamaContinue reading “Dear Mama”
Abolish The Electoral College
We Need to Directly Elect Presidents Summary: Idea: A constitutional amendment to directly elect presidents by popular vote. Problem: The Electoral College has been corrupted by the two-party system. Trend: We’re about to have the least popular presidential election ever. History: We’ve been close to abolishing the Electoral College but never got it done. Solution:Continue reading “Abolish The Electoral College”
Biotech 2.0
Biotech is following the same technological revolution roadmap as the internet, just 20-30 years later. It’s time to prepare for Biotech 2.0 now.
End Accredited Investor Laws
90% of Americans can’t invest in startups. Let’s change that now. Idea: Eliminate all accredited investor restrictions for startups and VC funds.
How to Fix the FDA
We need the FDA to be 100% public funded. Compare how much time was spent on Moderna’s mRNA development vs. regulatory work: Development: Regulatory:
1,000 Haters
Every creator should know Kevin Kelly’s idea about 1,000 True Fans: “To be a successful creator you don’t need millions. You don’t need millions of dollars or millions of customers, millions of clients or millions of fans. To make a living as a craftsperson, photographer, musician, designer, author, animator, app maker, entrepreneur, or inventor youContinue reading “1,000 Haters”
Y Combinator for Biotech
Bringing the original YC model to biotech. Introduction: Both of these VC models are built for the old playbook for biopharma company formation: Two big changes have made it much cheaper to launch and scale biotech companies: The new playbook for biotech will be the YC fundraising model, as explained by Paul Graham: Biotech isContinue reading “Y Combinator for Biotech”
Stay in the Pocket
Imagine you’re a quarterback. The center snaps the ball to you. Look up. Take three steps back. Two defenders are coming through the line, one on each side. Pause. What do you do next? Everything in your body tells you to run, escape. You want to get out of the pocket. But the right moveContinue reading “Stay in the Pocket”