Dad Saves America

I sat down with healthcare policy expert Michael Cannon to unpack why the U.S. healthcare system drives everyone crazy. From exploding costs and rampant fraud to government shutdowns over Obamacare subsidies, healthcare issues continue to monopolize our politics and our everyday lives. Contrary to what Bernie Sanders might think, government intervention—not capitalism—has rigged the healthcare system to benefit insurers, hospitals, and politicians at the expense of patients. We dig into how moral hazard fuels waste and overconsumption, why lobbyists undermine smart reforms in favor of policies that make the problem worse, and the coming fiscal reckoning for Medicaid and Medicare.
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Follow Michael on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/mfcannon?s=20
Read Michael’s work on Substack: https://mfcannon.substack.com/
Learn more about Michael’s work at the Cato Institute: https://www.cato.org/people/michael-f-cannon
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Outline:
[0:00] What’s behind the Somali fraud scandal?
[8:31] Why is Medicare fraud so rampant?
[12:42] How laws and lobbyists obstructed DOGE
[18:33] The Obamacare subsidy government shutdown
[25:58] The argument for Obamacare vs its actual results
[32:31] The Oregon study debunks the health insurance myth
[42:19] Does cheap health insurance make people less healthy?
[58:22] How do you know that a medical treatment is worth it?
[1:03:19] The tax code disincentivizes price transparency
[1:15:12] Why does health insurance stop at state lines?
[1:21:34] Do Americans really spend more on healthcare?
[1:28:28] The U.S. subsidizes the global pharmaceutical market
[1:36:32] The problem with pharmaceutical patents
[1:42:53] Why do so many Americans idolize Luigi Mangione?
[1:53:02] Death panels are an inevitable part of health insurance
[2:00:35] Overconsumption and monopoly pricing in healthcare
[2:06:33] Will the demographic cliff destroy Medicaid and Medicare?
[2:17:59] Will Medicare-For-All end up winning the political fight?
[2:23:39] The ideal solution vs realistic improvements to healthcare
[2:32:18] Which country has the best healthcare system?
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I sat down with journalist and author Michael Shellenberger to unpack the psychology of modern radicalism and why anti-ICE activists seem more interested in perpetual agitation than problem-solving. Michael reflects on his own radical past, including his experiences in Nicaragua, Brazil, and Venezuela, where socialist idealism gave way to corruption, gangsterism, and societal collapse. We also discuss his ongoing fight for free speech and the potential global impacts of recent European regulatory attacks on Elon Musk and X (Twitter).
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Follow Michael on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/shellenberger?s=20
Read Michael’s work on Substack: https://substack.com/@shellenberger
Preorder a copy of “The Left’s War on Reality”: https://a.co/d/cnMuOGy
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Outline:
[0:00] ICE protest chaos
[13:06] Female psychology and left-wing activism
[30:19] Why Michael got involved in radical politics
[39:54] Interviewing the future President of Brazil
[42:44] Is Marxism a colonial project?
[47:46] What is “radicalism”?
[55:53] Working for Hugo Chávez in Venezuela
[1:01:41] Communism always devolves into gangsterism
[1:10:58] Liberalism, globalism, and nationalism
[1:18:02] Is “international law” a myth?
[1:22:08] Why Michael is skeptical of the Venezuela intervention
[1:31:48] The counterintuitive danger of natural resources
[1:37:13] Zohran Mamdani’s inaugural speech should scare you
[1:52:34] How elites keep mass democracy under control
[1:58:30] The Twitter Files and the next social media crackdown
[2:05:21] Free speech is a cause worth dying for
[2:13:58] Antisemitism, cancellation, and the conservative civil war
[2:24:19] Trump 2.0 proved that censorship can be overcome
[2:29:36] What Michael has learned from teaching
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I sat down with author and energy journalist Robert Bryce to unpack our society’s dependence on the electric grid and what that means for American security and prosperity in the future. The electric grid is far more fragile than most people realize—even more so given the so-called “clean energy transition” pushed throughout the 21st century. As we saw in Spain last spring, excessive reliance on renewable energy sources significantly raises the possibility of systemic collapse during electricity demand peaks. Now, with AI data centers driving up electricity demand, and therefore prices, a reckoning is overdue. Robert lays out the tradeoffs of renewable energy, the potential for a nuclear renaissance, and how energy policy challenges the assumptions of the free market and decentralized government in a world of geopolitical adversaries.
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Follow Robert Bryce on X (Twitter): https://x.com/pwrhungry?s=20
Watch Robert Bryce on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@robertbryce?si=FKjtFk1G3WMudQw1
Read Robert Bryce’s work on Substack: https://robertbryce.substack.com/
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Outline:
[0:00] Will AI data centers break the power grid?
[10:46 11:00] The electric grid is the most important system in our society
[21:10 21:24] Why is the electric grid so fragile?
[34:18 34:32] The forgotten innovations that reshaped society
[42:54] What is “base load” and why does it matter?
[52:58] The “clean energy transition” has always been fake
[1:03:17] Will solar power ever be viable for a whole country?
[1:12:28] Why would Germany kneecap its own energy capacity?
[1:21:22] A society run by engineers vs lawyers
[1:26:24] The Trump administration’s energy policies
[1:31:00] What are the real safety risks of nuclear energy?
[1:38:52] What are “small modular reactors” (SMRs)?
[1:45:43] Nuclear waste is a political, not technical, problem
[1:55:06] Does the US have access to enough uranium for nuclear power?
[2:00:13] What are the limits to capitalism and small government?
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Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/
Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/jAfGUUAvGBA
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I sat down with psychologist and author Peter Gray to unpack why anxiety, depression, and immaturity are rising at the exact moment kids have more “support” than ever. Peter explains how we stripped childhood of the one ingredient that actually builds competence: real freedom. We talk about the collapse of free, self-directed play, the fear-driven culture that keeps kids under constant adult management, and how modern schooling turns learning into compliance and metrics—resulting in bad habits and chronic stress. Play isn’t a “bonus” part of childhood; it’s how children learn judgment, resilience, social intelligence, and self-control. The path back to healthier kids starts with letting them take risks, solve problems, and grow up the way humans evolved to.
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Check out Peter’s work on Substack: https://substack.com/@petergray
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Outline:
[0:00] Intro
[1:06] Essential skills for a successful adult life
[6:52] Education vs. schooling
[19:40] Anxiety, depression, and immaturity
[33:12] Is high school stress anything new?
[36:48] Why parents to over-manage their kids
[47:26] Are we training kids to accept authority and control?
[55:58] The history of the school system
[1:11:13] The policies shaping modern classrooms
[1:19:01] The seven sins of the education system
[1:38:58] What Peter learned from Ruby Lou
[1:43:37] Play literally is education
[1:51:04] Why trustful parenting works best
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Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/
Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8iRrZHUnB4E
Make a tax-deductible donation to Dad Saves America: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://secure.anedot.com/emergent-order-foundation/dad-website?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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I sat down with clinical psychologist Dr. Camilo Ortiz to unpack why modern parenting has become so exhausting—and why it’s also making kids more anxious, not less. Dr. Ortiz explains why kids need daily exposure to the four D’s—discomfort, distress, disappointment, and danger—and how natural consequences teach better than nagging or punishment ever will. We explore the limits and potential harms of today’s feminized therapy culture and how we can rebuild real-world independence through risky play, mixed-age freedom, and even early work.
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Follow Dr. Ortiz on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/DrCamiloOrtiz
Visit Dr. Ortiz’s website: http://drcamiloortiz.com/
Learn more about “independence therapy”: https://letgrow.org/program/independence-therapy/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=12566881823&gbraid=0AAAAACiZd3IWu23qJsSxpn65U7GX9fkVZ&gclid=Cj0KCQiA0p7KBhCkARIsAE6Xlam-UlbNorBHFogiD9_yToVLHOcEIJaxqI86ql2tEa_EKyKbQkbimREaAomwEALw_wcB
Dr. Ortiz’s article in “The Free Press”: https://www.thefp.com/p/the-secret-to-parenting-do-less-of-it
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Outline:
[0:00] How parenting went wrong
[5:45] The feminization of parenting and psychology
[15:25] Abigail Shrier’s “Bad Therapy”
[15:56] Therapy isn’t the solution to every problem
[24:02] What are “mindfulness practices”?
[31:25] Are mental health issues really that common?
[36:13] Moms vs dads on childhood independence
[43:19] Why is evolutionary psychology ignored?
[54:19] Is academia biased by ideology or personality?
[1:01:17] Nagging your kids doesn’t work
[1:09:29] The collective action problem of childhood
[1:12:42] Parents shouldn’t try to win every battle
[1:23:15] What is “independence therapy”?
[1:27:40] Are kids lacking freedom or authority, or both?
[1:33:49] Focus on productive behavior, not identity
[1:50:47] “Gentle parenting” is the worst of both worlds
[1:54:06] How can you address real trauma?
[2:02:58] The case for child labor
[2:08:16] A lighthouse for sanity in psychology
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Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/
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Make a tax-deductible donation to Dad Saves America: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://secure.anedot.com/emergent-order-foundation/dad-website?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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