Gordon Steen

Save the children. Stop the bombing.

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@ianbremmer @gzeromedia Mooks are stupid.

[The Christian Science Monitor @csmonitor]

World Cup success has been elusive for the US, despite the team’s talent and skill steadily increasing over the past few decades. But Friday’s group stage win—the second in a row—has fans hopeful that Team USA has turned a corner. #worldcup #fifa #teamusa https://t.co/Nwh2WulcEV

[Mark Cuban @mcuban]

The fact that the administration is looking for opportunities to cut costs is great. These changes were needed. But they are missing an important piece.

The expectation that giving insurance companies more leverage in certain negotiations will lead them to passing on any cost reductions to plan holders or anywhere among their hundreds or thousands of subsidiaries, is ridiculous.

That is not their culture.

Remember. These are the same companies , when they were on the other side, tiering and other similar rules were passed for their PBMs, they sued and found other ways to charge new fees.

The administration has to go much further and make sure these changes are not gamed.

Not just by the insurers. Also by the hospitals.

They need to remove all confidentiality clauses from ALL contracts signed between insurance companies and at least non profit hospitals, if not all providers.

And require all of these contracts to be posted right next to the pricing hospitals post on their website. With the fines moved to 1m dollars per day for non adherence. Make it so it’s not a business decision to not adhere

The ONLY way you are going to know the carriers and hospitals followed through and adhered by the rules, without gaming them , is by making them publish their contracts.

With pricing. Terms. Everything.

Taxpayers are subsidizing both sides. Insurance conglomerates get 70 pct of their revenue from taxpayers.

Non profits keep billions that would go to taxpayers. They literally have more in cash than Medicare has in cash reserves.

We all have every right to see those contracts.

This will increase competition and cut costs more than anything.

[Wall Street Journal Opinion @WSJopinion]

AI is a boon to ambitious recent grads. The opportunities for entry-level employees are new and different, writes @andreaejavor
https://t.co/lD6tPXon9O

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@ianbremmer Not easy trying to be popular.

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@altcap Who?

[Fareed Zakaria @FareedZakaria]

The fight between Washington and Anthropic is not really about one company. It is the first visible battle over who governs artificial intelligence.

It should not be regulated through improvisation and raw power, but rules and institutions: We need a Fed for AI.

My take:

[Mark Cuban @mcuban]

Wealth does not equal power. Tom Steyer spent $342m on his presidential race and $216m on his gubernatorial race. Where he didn’t finish in the top 2.

I’m not a fan of Elon’s politics by a long shot. But I’m pretty confident ever dollar he spent on his chosen candidates was wasted

He had far more power from his algorithms on this platform. And that’s the point

Social media Algorithms have far more influence on how we all think than any amount of money anyone can spend.

I’ll add. You don’t see a lot of energy from anyone to end citizens United. It would be impossible to get a constitutional amendment, but there are multiple efforts (I’ve given money to them ) , to make changes at the state level.

I haven’t seen more than lip service given to support these efforts.

I haven’t seen many politicians ( a few exceptions (mamdani, talarico, trump) that even understand (or their teams) how social media algos work, let alone trying to neuter them via their actions

[Mike Levin @MikeLevin]

The Trump administration just paid Invenergy $765 million to cancel four wind projects. That brings the running total to roughly $2.5 billion in taxpayer money spent to stop energy from being built.

Think about that.

At a time when electricity demand is rising, the Trump administration is spending billions to reduce the amount of power that could reach the grid.

Trump has spent years attacking wind turbines as ugly and inefficient. He is entitled to his opinions about how they look. He is not entitled to make taxpayers finance those opinions.

Seven states have already sued over earlier agreements. Federal courts have repeatedly found legal defects in this administration’s efforts to halt offshore wind development. The administration has cited national security concerns while providing little public evidence to support them, and judges have said they were not convinced.

Strip away the politics and what remains is hard to defend.

Billions in taxpayer money paid to private companies to cancel planned energy projects during a period of rising demand.

Governments usually spend money to build things.

This administration is spending billions to make sure some things never get built.
https://t.co/rB2naxc27j

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@ron_cassie @justin_fenton 30% of the US population that we all have to live with.

[WhiteCrow @JohnSmi07667885]

@TANSTAAFLUSA @ChrisVanHollen Shut up you fool. I'm tired of this defence of Israel and its crimes. Israel has starved and buthered hundreds and thousands of woman and children. Just as 70 years of a brutal occupation are no excuse for Oct7th. Neither is October 7th any excuse for a genocide.

[MinnieD'Arc @ArcMinnied]

@TANSTAAFLUSA @ChrisVanHollen As nothing has entered in 2 months, how could Hamas confiscate the “vast majority” of nothing? You’ve swallowed a lot of Israeli propaganda without questioning why the US taxpayer is forced to give 100s of billions to a foreign country: Israel.

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@TANSTAAFLUSA @ChrisVanHollen Where do they put it?

[Beatrix Kiddo @0184Kimmoore]

@ChrisVanHollen Yes, we are complicit! There's not enough pressure on Netanyahu to stop! The US supports with military aid, money and supplies. We even have at least one state (Ark) buying $50 million in Israel issued bonds.
All of this when we should be supporting Ukraine!

[Senator Chris Van Hollen @ChrisVanHollen]

Let food into Gaza NOW! Netanyahu & his govt are starving 2M civilians. This is day 76 of the blockade. Trucks with food are waiting to get in but are blocked. Children have already died from withholding food.

The U.S. is complicit in this gross violation of international law. https://t.co/ELgYPvfaPz

[António Guterres @antonioguterres]

The situation for Palestinians in Gaza is beyond description, beyond atrocious & beyond inhumane.

A policy of siege & starvation makes a mockery of international law. The blockade against humanitarian aid must end immediately.

This is a moment for moral clarity & action.

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@TheTNHoller Children are dying of starvation.

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@ShaykhSulaiman @LauraLoomer Children are dying of starvation.

[Gordon Steen @ecocollaborator]

@BtSIsrael Children are dying of starvation.

[Odette Ramos @odetteramos]

The Walters Art Museum opened their new permanent exhibit Arte LatinoAmericano today! It has historic and contemporary works from across Latin America including one from my constituent Edgar Reyes! Celebrating our community now is an act of defiance! Come see this exhibit!