Matthew Loftus 🧻
@matthewloftus.bsky.social
I'm a family doctor teaching & practicing at a mission hospital in Kenya. our family website is: https://matthewandmaggie.org/ and you can sign up for family email updates there!
Reposted by Matthew Loftus 🧻
we’re about to find out if loving SimCity makes you a better mayor
Mamdani was asked in 2002 by NY Mag what he wanted for Christmas and said SimCity 3000
Mamdani was asked in 2002 by NY Mag what he wanted for Christmas and said SimCity 3000
June 25, 2025 at 2:58 PM
we’re about to find out if loving SimCity makes you a better mayor
Mamdani was asked in 2002 by NY Mag what he wanted for Christmas and said SimCity 3000
Mamdani was asked in 2002 by NY Mag what he wanted for Christmas and said SimCity 3000
I wrote about how the official statements of RFK Jr. and his HHS add up to an obsession with control, a suspicion of germ theory, and a medicalized Prosperity Gospel. We need to deconstruct MAHA and rebuild it.
mereorthodoxy.com/maha-medical...
mereorthodoxy.com/maha-medical...
MAHA, Medicalization, Karma, and Control
Clean living is more likely to lead to a healthy life. How likely is the question.
mereorthodoxy.com
October 28, 2025 at 1:53 PM
I wrote about how the official statements of RFK Jr. and his HHS add up to an obsession with control, a suspicion of germ theory, and a medicalized Prosperity Gospel. We need to deconstruct MAHA and rebuild it.
mereorthodoxy.com/maha-medical...
mereorthodoxy.com/maha-medical...
I fully expected George Santos to be President one day. Dare I hope that he might be our generation's Chuck Colson?
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
George Santos has a newfound mission: prison reform
Republican Representative George Santos wants to work on prison reform now that Trump has commuted his sentence
www.bbc.com
October 20, 2025 at 4:13 AM
I fully expected George Santos to be President one day. Dare I hope that he might be our generation's Chuck Colson?
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Everyone knows that a relationship with your primary care doctor is good. Did you know that relationship decreases mortality over time? I'm at @thedispatchmedia.bsky.social today:
thedispatch.com/article/prim...
thedispatch.com/article/prim...
When Your Doctor Gets to Know You
Health gets better when you and your doctor have a relationship.
thedispatch.com
October 15, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Everyone knows that a relationship with your primary care doctor is good. Did you know that relationship decreases mortality over time? I'm at @thedispatchmedia.bsky.social today:
thedispatch.com/article/prim...
thedispatch.com/article/prim...
"When he was beneath our tree, we ambushed him, beating him mercilessly with our fists and rifle butts. In a frenzy, I stabbed him repeatedly with my bayonet.
'Allahu Akbar,' I muttered in pride as we walked away from his mangled body."
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/09/enem...
'Allahu Akbar,' I muttered in pride as we walked away from his mangled body."
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/09/enem...
I Was the Enemy Jesus Told You to Love - Christianity Today
As an extremist Muslim, I beat a Christian boy and left him to die. His faithful prayers for me led to my salvation.
www.christianitytoday.com
September 29, 2025 at 8:37 AM
"When he was beneath our tree, we ambushed him, beating him mercilessly with our fists and rifle butts. In a frenzy, I stabbed him repeatedly with my bayonet.
'Allahu Akbar,' I muttered in pride as we walked away from his mangled body."
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/09/enem...
'Allahu Akbar,' I muttered in pride as we walked away from his mangled body."
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/09/enem...
As one who is guilty here, @robinsonmeyer.bsky.social
is right: "The fact is that almost nobody can control themselves around the glowing little demon. [...] The way that we manage temptation as a society is through manners, expectations, and peer pressure."
www.theargumentmag.com/p/youre-bein...
is right: "The fact is that almost nobody can control themselves around the glowing little demon. [...] The way that we manage temptation as a society is through manners, expectations, and peer pressure."
www.theargumentmag.com/p/youre-bein...
You're being rude. Put away your phone.
New manners for a post-smartphone society
www.theargumentmag.com
September 10, 2025 at 12:30 PM
As one who is guilty here, @robinsonmeyer.bsky.social
is right: "The fact is that almost nobody can control themselves around the glowing little demon. [...] The way that we manage temptation as a society is through manners, expectations, and peer pressure."
www.theargumentmag.com/p/youre-bein...
is right: "The fact is that almost nobody can control themselves around the glowing little demon. [...] The way that we manage temptation as a society is through manners, expectations, and peer pressure."
www.theargumentmag.com/p/youre-bein...
they don't call it the everything app for nothing
September 6, 2025 at 8:38 AM
they don't call it the everything app for nothing
Nothing like logging in here and seeing a totally normal, sensible opinion not even being argued against but being jeered as though anyone with decent morals and intelligence could never agree with such a thing.
September 1, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Nothing like logging in here and seeing a totally normal, sensible opinion not even being argued against but being jeered as though anyone with decent morals and intelligence could never agree with such a thing.
Excellent essay by Brewer Eberly about how he (and others) are opting out of the medical-industrial complex to provide the care their patients need:
www.plough.com/en/topics/li...
www.plough.com/en/topics/li...
The Return of the Family Doctor
The direct primary care model aims to put relationships over profit.
www.plough.com
September 1, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Excellent essay by Brewer Eberly about how he (and others) are opting out of the medical-industrial complex to provide the care their patients need:
www.plough.com/en/topics/li...
www.plough.com/en/topics/li...
I wrote for @christianitytoday.bsky.social about the good, the better, and the Instagrammable of short-term missions trips: www.christianitytoday.com/2025/08/hone...
Be Honest About Your Motives for Mission Trips - Christianity Today
Short-term missions are complicated and often done poorly. But with wisdom and transparency, a medical missionary explains, they can be hugely helpful.
www.christianitytoday.com
August 26, 2025 at 12:51 PM
I wrote for @christianitytoday.bsky.social about the good, the better, and the Instagrammable of short-term missions trips: www.christianitytoday.com/2025/08/hone...
Good reporting from @mepaynl.bsky.social
on what it takes to bring a pedophile to justice in Uganda:
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/08/chil...
on what it takes to bring a pedophile to justice in Uganda:
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/08/chil...
What It Takes to Prosecute a Child Rapist in Uganda - Christianity Today
Assertive parents and a Christian ministry take on the country’s hamstrung criminal justice system.
www.christianitytoday.com
August 25, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Good reporting from @mepaynl.bsky.social
on what it takes to bring a pedophile to justice in Uganda:
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/08/chil...
on what it takes to bring a pedophile to justice in Uganda:
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/08/chil...
Y'all know I try not to be promiscuous with "this is a pro-life issue" but this is absolutely a pro-life issue. Cutting Medicaid is going to hurt vulnerable, living children and encourage scared mothers to abort children they can't afford to care for.
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/21/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/21/o...
www.nytimes.com
August 21, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Y'all know I try not to be promiscuous with "this is a pro-life issue" but this is absolutely a pro-life issue. Cutting Medicaid is going to hurt vulnerable, living children and encourage scared mothers to abort children they can't afford to care for.
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/21/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/21/o...
This is the best thing I think I've ever read about psychosomatic illnesses, and I'll be sharing it with my residents: "One way I explain functional neurological disorder to patients is that it’s a software problem that looks like a hardware problem."
www.theamericanconservative.com/what-long-co...
www.theamericanconservative.com/what-long-co...
What ‘Long Covid’ Means
Long Covid is a real disease, but that doesn’t mean its sufferers are right about everything.
www.theamericanconservative.com
August 20, 2025 at 10:15 AM
This is the best thing I think I've ever read about psychosomatic illnesses, and I'll be sharing it with my residents: "One way I explain functional neurological disorder to patients is that it’s a software problem that looks like a hardware problem."
www.theamericanconservative.com/what-long-co...
www.theamericanconservative.com/what-long-co...
Gilbert Meilaender once said that he wants to be a burden on his loved ones. I wrote for @thedispatchmedia.bsky.social
about the joy of dependence, even when that dependence is due to mental illness:
thedispatch.com/article/depe...
about the joy of dependence, even when that dependence is due to mental illness:
thedispatch.com/article/depe...
Dependence Is Normal
Needing someone else, no matter the reason, is a reminder of our humanity.
thedispatch.com
August 18, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Gilbert Meilaender once said that he wants to be a burden on his loved ones. I wrote for @thedispatchmedia.bsky.social
about the joy of dependence, even when that dependence is due to mental illness:
thedispatch.com/article/depe...
about the joy of dependence, even when that dependence is due to mental illness:
thedispatch.com/article/depe...
The next step after this is simply killing the baby who never walks and the adult who will never be able to live independently. If a society is dedicating to preventing suffering, then often the last option is simply killing the sufferer.
August 15, 2025 at 5:23 PM
The next step after this is simply killing the baby who never walks and the adult who will never be able to live independently. If a society is dedicating to preventing suffering, then often the last option is simply killing the sufferer.
Reposted by Matthew Loftus 🧻
The big A.I. companies’ business model
August 13, 2025 at 11:44 AM
The big A.I. companies’ business model
A lot of activism (and online discourse in general, really) is about 95th percentile high-conscientiousness/high-agency people assuming that (a) most of the population is as HCHA as they are & (b) all those HCHA people will act as they do given the right information.
August 14, 2025 at 4:50 PM
A lot of activism (and online discourse in general, really) is about 95th percentile high-conscientiousness/high-agency people assuming that (a) most of the population is as HCHA as they are & (b) all those HCHA people will act as they do given the right information.
"The distance between the winning Obama coalition and the campaign-by-meme Democrats we have now might well be the distance between Obama’s “I am my brother’s keeper” and Walz’s “mind your own damn business.”"
unherd.com/2025/07/will...
unherd.com/2025/07/will...
Will Democrats defend society?
unherd.com
August 2, 2025 at 1:00 PM
"The distance between the winning Obama coalition and the campaign-by-meme Democrats we have now might well be the distance between Obama’s “I am my brother’s keeper” and Walz’s “mind your own damn business.”"
unherd.com/2025/07/will...
unherd.com/2025/07/will...
"Should pastors use Artificial Intelligence to help write their sermons?"- sounds urbane, philosophical, important
"Should pastors let a word guesser machine teach their flock?"- far more accurate, makes you sound stupid for even asking the question
"Should pastors let a word guesser machine teach their flock?"- far more accurate, makes you sound stupid for even asking the question
July 31, 2025 at 1:25 PM
"Should pastors use Artificial Intelligence to help write their sermons?"- sounds urbane, philosophical, important
"Should pastors let a word guesser machine teach their flock?"- far more accurate, makes you sound stupid for even asking the question
"Should pastors let a word guesser machine teach their flock?"- far more accurate, makes you sound stupid for even asking the question
Reposted by Matthew Loftus 🧻
Someone on here compared AI produced material as "digital asbestos " which in a few decades' time we will have to work out how to eradicate from the fabric of research.
From my own academic research, even pre LLMs there was a huge danger of zombie factoids that begin in a respectable publication by mistake and then get reprinted for decades because no one is backtracing to the original source. Once bad info gets into the system it can take years to clear it out.
I've seen numerous examples of this in recent days - we're at a point where some reporters are using LLMs as a source and not even remotely properly factchecking, but also where LLM generated material is making its way into other material and being unknowingly reproduced by others.
July 30, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Someone on here compared AI produced material as "digital asbestos " which in a few decades' time we will have to work out how to eradicate from the fabric of research.
Strange that one of the best things that a privileged upbringing can buy you is... self-control. "Across the developed West, obesity has become strongly correlated with poverty. I fear that so, too, will be the tide of post-literacy."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/o...
Opinion | Thinking Is Becoming a Luxury Good
www.nytimes.com
July 29, 2025 at 6:32 AM
Strange that one of the best things that a privileged upbringing can buy you is... self-control. "Across the developed West, obesity has become strongly correlated with poverty. I fear that so, too, will be the tide of post-literacy."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/o...
Reposted by Matthew Loftus 🧻
Stephen Sondheim introduced his childhood pal Tom Lehrer in 1998 for an exceedingly rare stage performance, part of a tribute to Cameron Mackintosh.
(This will always be my favorite Lehrer song. Interestingly, he here changes one word: "squirrel" becomes "sparrow.")
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf-e...
(This will always be my favorite Lehrer song. Interestingly, he here changes one word: "squirrel" becomes "sparrow.")
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf-e...
Tom Lehrer - Poisoning Pigeons In The Park (live, 1998).
YouTube video by Arnesen
www.youtube.com
July 28, 2025 at 3:11 AM
Stephen Sondheim introduced his childhood pal Tom Lehrer in 1998 for an exceedingly rare stage performance, part of a tribute to Cameron Mackintosh.
(This will always be my favorite Lehrer song. Interestingly, he here changes one word: "squirrel" becomes "sparrow.")
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf-e...
(This will always be my favorite Lehrer song. Interestingly, he here changes one word: "squirrel" becomes "sparrow.")
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf-e...
Reposted by Matthew Loftus 🧻
Some thoughts on the sorts of policies that produced this map: kenopalo.substack.com/p/a-historic...
July 24, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Some thoughts on the sorts of policies that produced this map: kenopalo.substack.com/p/a-historic...
Taking artificial dyes out of Froot Loops and using cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup in Coca-Cola is the land acknowledgements of public health & nutrition.
Coca-Cola said it will add a cane-sugar version of its trademark cola to its U.S. lineup this fall, confirming a recent announcement by President Donald Trump.
Coca-Cola reports weakening global sales volumes in second quarter
Coca-Cola reported better-than-expected earnings in the second quarter as higher prices overcame weaker sales volumes.
bit.ly
July 24, 2025 at 3:11 AM
Taking artificial dyes out of Froot Loops and using cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup in Coca-Cola is the land acknowledgements of public health & nutrition.