Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Societal disruption: Artificial intelligence

Societal disruption: Artificial intelligence
Getty Images

Kevin Frazier is an Assistant Professor at the Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University. He previously clerked for the Montana Supreme Court.

Who decided the world should be disrupted by AI? Do you recall receiving a voter pamphlet on the pros and cons of AI development and deployment? Was I the only one who missed election day?


The truth of the matter is that the most impactful decisions about AI are being made by a few people with little to no input from the rest of us. That's a recipe for unrest if I've ever heard one.

A couple dozen AI researchers think there's a chance that AI could lead to unprecedented human flourishing. So, they have taken it upon themselves to develop ever more advanced AI models. At the same time, they have freely admitted that they increasingly have limited control over the technology itself and its potential side effects.

Is it any surprise that more than a few folks feel disenchanted with a governing system that purports to give power to the people but, in practice, empowers computer scientists to more or less unilaterally throw society into a potential doom loop?

It's as if we've been asked what we wanted for dinner, answered, "Thai," and then we're told we could decide between Pepperoni or Canadian Bacon. That's not a choice. That's not power. That's democratic gaslighting.

A functioning democracy should not leave decisions that may create irreversible harm for generations to a room of computer scientists.

In addition to allowing a small set of AI labs to introduce humankind-altering technology with no input from you and me, now our elected officials are asking these same unrepresentative and unelected tech leaders for advice on how best to regulate this emerging technology.

News from D.C. last week included headline after headline about Senator X consulting with tech leader Y. Missing from the headlines and, more importantly, from those meetings– representatives of the communities– foreign and domestic– who are going to bear the brunt of the good, bad, and ugly generated by AI.

It's again worth noting that some of us, perhaps many of us, think AI should not have been introduced at this point or at least not at this scale.

If you’re still with me and you still agree with me, you might be lamenting the fact that it’s already too late. We’re at the “Pepperoni” or “Canadian Bacon” stage of this decision making process, so whatever influence we wield now over the development of AI will have an insignificant impact on its long-term trajectory. Worse, there’s a chance that if we succeed in halting the deployment of AI models, China or [fill in the blank “bad guy” country] will just keep advancing their own models and eventually use those models against us in some war or economic contest.

Such arguments are flimsier than cheese-filled crust. I’d rather live in a U.S. that has strong communities where people perform meaningful work, still use their critical thinking skills, and trust their social institutions than a U.S. that leads the world in A.I.

In fact, I’d bet on that version of the U.S. to outlast and outcompete any other country that thinks technology is the key to human flourishing.

We need to shift the narrative from “how do we shape the development of AI?” to “when and under conditions should we permit limited uses of AI?” In the interim, it’s fine for our officials to consult AI experts and leaders but voters, not tech CEOs, should be the ones determining when and how AI changes our society.

Read More

Could Trump’s campaign against the media come back to bite conservatives?

US President Donald Trump reacts next to Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk, after speaking at the public memorial service for right-wing activist Charlie Kirk at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on September 21, 2025.

(Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Could Trump’s campaign against the media come back to bite conservatives?

In the wake of Jimmy Kimmel’sapparently temporary— suspension from late-night TV, a (tragically small) number of prominent conservatives and Republicans have taken exception to the Trump administration’s comfort with “jawboning” critics into submission.

Sen. Ted Cruz condemned the administration’s “mafioso behavior.” He warned that “going down this road, there will come a time when a Democrat wins again — wins the White House … they will silence us.” Cruz added during his Friday podcast. “They will use this power, and they will use it ruthlessly. And that is dangerous.”

Keep ReadingShow less
A stethoscope lying on top of credit cards.

Enhanced health care tax credits expire at the end of 2025 unless Congress acts. Learn who benefits, what’s at risk, and how premiums could rise without them.

Getty Images, yavdat

Just the Facts: What Happens If Enhanced Health Care Tax Credits End in 2025

The Fulcrum strives to approach news stories with an open mind and skepticism, striving to present our readers with a broad spectrum of viewpoints through diligent research and critical thinking. As best we can, we remove personal bias from our reporting and seek a variety of perspectives in both our news gathering and selection of opinion pieces. However, before our readers can analyze varying viewpoints, they must have the facts.

There’s been a lot in the news lately about healthcare costs going up on Dec. 31 unless congress acts. What are the details?

The enhanced health care premium tax credits (ePTCs) are set to expire at the end of 2025 unless Congress acts to extend them.

Keep ReadingShow less
Congress Bill Spotlight: No Social Media at School Act

Rep. Angie Craig’s No Social Media at School Act would ban TikTok, Instagram & Snapchat during K-12 school hours. See what’s in the bill.

Getty Images, Daniel de la Hoz

Congress Bill Spotlight: No Social Media at School Act

Gen Z’s worst nightmare: TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat couldn’t be used during school hours.

What the bill does

Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN2) introduced the No Social Media at School Act, which would require social media companies to use “geofencing” to block access to their products on K-12 school grounds during school hours.

Keep ReadingShow less
A portrait of John Adams.

John Adams warned that without virtue, republics collapse. Today, billionaire spending and unchecked wealth test whether America can place the common good above private gain.

John Adams Warned Us: A Republic Without Virtue Cannot Survive

John Adams understood a truth that feels even sharper today: a republic cannot endure without virtue. Writing to Mercy Otis Warren in April 1776, he warned that public Virtue cannot exist in a Nation without [private virtue], and public Virtue is the only Foundation of Republics.” For Adams, liberty would not be preserved by clever constitutions alone. It depended on citizens who could restrain their selfish impulses for the sake of the common good.

That insight has lost none of its force. Some people do restrain themselves. They accumulate enough to live well and then turn to service, family, or community. Others never stop. Given the chance, they gather wealth and power without limit. Left unchecked, selfishness concentrates material and social resources in the hands of a few, leaving many behind and eroding the sense of shared citizenship on which democracy depends.

Keep ReadingShow less