Scott Alexander argues against criticism of billionaire philanthropy, citing its efficiency, positive impact, and ability to support important causes that governments often neglect. Longer summary

Scott Alexander argues against criticizing billionaire philanthropy, presenting several points: 1) Criticizing philanthropy more than luxury spending incentivizes the wrong behavior. 2) The potential good done by philanthropy outweighs concerns about inequality. 3) Billionaire donations often receive more scrutiny than praise. 4) Government spending is often less efficient and focused on important causes than private philanthropy. 5) Philanthropy can support pluralism and fund important work the government won't. 6) Centralized government control risks a single point of failure. He concludes that the immense good done by philanthropic efforts, such as saving millions of lives, outweighs concerns about democratic accountability or inequality. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander examines bail reform as a potential solution to high incarceration rates in the US, discussing its impacts, alternatives, and the effectiveness of bail-paying charities. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses the issue of high incarceration rates in the US and focuses on bail reform as a potential solution. He explains how the current bail system disproportionately affects poor defendants, leading to longer sentences and more convictions. The post examines alternatives like Washington DC's system without monetary bail and the effectiveness of charities that pay bail for defendants. Alexander compares the cost-effectiveness of bail reform charities to other efficient charities and suggests both short-term (supporting bail-paying charities) and long-term (systemic criminal justice reform) solutions. He concludes that while bail reform may not be the most important change needed in the US criminal justice system, it could be one of the easiest to implement. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander argues that accusations of Trump being an 'openly white supremacist' candidate are exaggerated and harmful, and calls for more measured criticism of Trump's actual flaws. Longer summary

In this post, Scott Alexander argues that accusations of racism and white supremacy against Donald Trump and his supporters are exaggerated and harmful. He contends that while Trump has said and done problematic things, claims that he is an 'openly white supremacist' candidate are not supported by evidence. Alexander reviews various arguments about Trump's alleged racism and rebuts them, citing statistics and providing context. He argues that treating Trump as uniquely racist compared to past presidents is inaccurate and counterproductive. The post ends with a call to stop 'crying wolf' about racism, as it causes unnecessary fear and may desensitize people to real instances of racism in the future. Alexander makes several predictions about what will happen under a Trump presidency to back up his argument. Shorter summary

Scott shares and comments on various interesting links spanning history, science, economics, and current events, with topics ranging from ancient Greek snake warfare to modern AI development. Longer summary

A collection of diverse links covering various topics, from historical anecdotes about ancient Greek warfare with snakes to modern developments in CRISPR technology and urban policy. Scott presents interesting findings about bullying interventions, Vitamin D supplementation, and mental health in different societies. The post includes commentary on various current events, including Venezuela's economic situation, drug policy debates, and AI development at OpenAI. The post maintains Scott's characteristic mix of scholarly interest and humor throughout. Shorter summary