A Nudge too far

There is a fine line between being a clever, benevolent technocrat or entrepreneur on one hand and a controlling, supercilious asshole on the other.

Title in reference to the book, of course.

It's hard to define the line (or more likely, several lines) that you can cross to get from one to the other because, well, people. But I can tell you one way to get to the wrong side of the line: slide from making the choice you prefer easy into actively standing between me and the choice I want. That's asshole territory plain and simple.

Authorization is part of a safety mechanism, but not a goal.

My better half ran a news show tonight and the anchor was interviewing a policy wonk on the subject of Covid19 vaccinations for kids (both teens who are currently eligible under a emergency use authorization and younger kids). On the whole I thought the interviewee very good. Knowledgeable, reasonable in her balancing of competing desires and risk, and in touch with the effects of this pandemic on communities. Not that I was one hundred percent on board with her point of view but at least I could see where she was coming from.

Then right at the end of the segment, the guest triggered a pet peeve of mine.

You may imagine me turning green and bulging out into the looming shape of Semantics Hulk. Or something.

Anyway, this lady said something like "We want to make sure the vaccine is authorized and is safe and effective."

A fine sentiment, except that authorization is not—should not be—a goal in and of itself. The only reason that authorization is desirable is because it forms part of a process which is suppose to ensure the "safe and effective" part. Those are the (only!) real goals.

More on bureaucratic language

My wife and I got the Janssen (AKA Johnson&Johnson) vacinne today. No significant side effects at this point.

But I want to talk about the paperwork. The fact-sheet that I was required to acknowledge receipt of included language like

There is no U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved vaccine to prevent COVID-19.

The Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine is an unapproved vaccine that may prevent COVID-19.

And several more variations on the same theme.

Now, on one hand the point is clear: the FDA has not completed its (lengthy) approval process and has just given permission to use these things because the pandemic represents an emergency situation.

But on the other hand the expectation is that hundreds of millions of Americans (not to mention billions of people in other parts of the world) will receive one or the other of these vaccines. So what is the difference between the current situation and approval? Nothing outside the structure of the bureaucracy's regulatory structure.

Not that I think there is anything malicious or even dishonest about this business. It's just that organizations create their own cognitive structure and then live in them even when they lose fidelity with the real world. In other cases that can be a problem.

Counterproductive software policy

In the Time Before (tm) I used to make regular pilgrimages to one of my employer's offices nearly an hour away. On these and other drives where I have signficant blocks of time alone I listen to podcasts in the car.¹ Today I was dispatched to do the once-a-month in-person shopping that our household needs despite copious (not to say excessive) use of internet shopping and local grocery delivery. I feel there is enough driving in that to justify story time.

Now the default podcast app on my iPhone doesn't interface well with my car's bluetooth audio system. Sometimes it thinks it's connected and running but no sounds comes from any device and it can't be fixed without rebooting the phone. So I tried Radio Public which isn't ideal but works a lot better with the car.²

Of course, sometime I start driving without remembering to start the app. So ... "Hey, creepy Siri." ... "Start Radio Public." And then Siri tells me that she can't do that while I'm driving.

Of course, I'm trying to do it by voice because I'm driving: the point is to keep my hands on the wheel and my eyes on the road.

I appreciate that Apple is concerned about the role of phones in distracted driving, but surely voice control is less distracting (not to mention more leagally acceptable) than diddling the screen with your fingers.³ This particular policy seem to be defeat its own purpose.

Anyone know of a podcast app for iThings that I can control by voice while driving?

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¹ Escape Pod, Clarkesworld, and Drabblecast if you care.

² It would be very easy to convince me that this is the car's fault, but so what? I can't easily upgrade the car's entertainment system.

³ I know, I know. Don't call you Shirley.