www.theatlantic.com/health/archi...

“Today’s sober-curious, by contrast, post on Instagram about how Dry January has reduced their inflammation, sharpened their jawline, and improved their sleep score. The sanctity of the home, or the overall moral health of society…appears to be less of a concern.”

“In the latter half of the 19th century, young people signaled their moral virtue by taking temperance pledges.”

Booze isn’t inherently bad in today’s version (health risks not withstanding), so much as self-optimization has become a moral imperative.

This new temperance movement (if you can call it that) doesn’t have the same ambitions as the one that ushered in Prohibition, but they both share a strong moral orientation.

But again, these outliers don’t reflect how most students experienced the course, and so shouldn’t be the basis for making major changes or questioning our effectiveness in the classroom.

To be sure, we shouldn’t ignore the outliers. A very positive comment reminds us that we’re making an impact. A very negative comment can show us an important truth even if it doesn’t feel good to receive it.

And if we’re not careful, we may start redesigning an entire course because one student hated it, or keeping everything the same because one student loved it.

“Perhaps as they get more familiar with AI, the scientists will get happier with using it, but there are no guarantees.

‘A key, creative part of the process was automated,’ said Toner-Rodgers. ‘People just might be unhappy with that permanently.’”

“While many AI optimists believe the technology will reduce the number of tedious tasks people have to perform, the scientists felt that it took away the part of their jobs—dreaming up new compounds—they enjoyed most.”

theconversation.com/ballot-measu...

All of which is to say, social trends and tendencies are real. But we shouldn’t overlook how politics shapes those same tendencies and trends.

The movement also faces pushback, particularly from public officials in red states, even if the majority of folks support legalization.

And now there’s an industry doing its own advocacy work as well.

Marijuana is the case I know best. Libertarianism has played a role, but only as part of a broader advocacy campaign that made strategic use of the courts, the media, and the ballot box.

Marijuana legalization, gambling legalization, gun rights expansion, and vaccine pushback are all the result of successful political mobilization.