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   Cory Doctorow (pluralistic@mamot.fr)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:40 JST Cory Doctorow

   Today's threads (a thread)

   Inside: Anyone who trusts an AI therapist needs their head examined; and more!

   Archived at: https://pluralistic.net/2025/04/01/doctor-robo-blabbermouth/

   #Pluralistic

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   • Embed this notice
     GhostOnTheHalfShell (ghostonthehalfshell@masto.ai)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:32 JST GhostOnTheHalfShell

     in reply to

     • JWarner
     • lemgandi
     • cerement
     • Phosphenes

     @cerement @Jeanniewarner @Phosphenes @lemgandi @pluralistic

     obscene morbid wealth is a mental illness, cured by a regular diet of antitrust and curbs on stock ownership in a companies, limiting both total size and the number of companies owned.

     Perhaps the most useful measure is one of scale so whether it’s scraped under one company with that’s a giant conglomerate or a rat’s nest of shell companies, the amount any one person or their allies can have control over must have a definite limit.

   • Embed this notice
     cerement (cerement@social.targaryen.house)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:34 JST cerement

     in reply to

     • JWarner
     • lemgandi
     • Phosphenes

     @Jeanniewarner @Phosphenes @lemgandi @pluralistic

     - IF you can afford a therapist
     - IF you can find one available
     - your next hurdle is the conservative stigmatization of mental health as a moral failing rather than a societal failing – you need a mental health professional to get you over the hurdle of needing to seek out a mental health professional

     Steve's Place repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     JWarner (jeanniewarner@wandering.shop)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:35 JST JWarner

     in reply to

     • lemgandi
     • cerement
     • Phosphenes

     @cerement @Phosphenes @lemgandi @pluralistic Who can even get one if they're on Kaiser? There's a mental health professionals shortage, which is not going to get any better with defunding all the universities, canceling student debt forgiveness, etc. where are new psychologists going to come from, we ponder.

     I presume this means that Republicans are fine with everybody being crazy so that they can blame gun violence on that.

   • Embed this notice
     cerement (cerement@social.targaryen.house)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:37 JST cerement

     in reply to

     • lemgandi
     • Phosphenes

     @Phosphenes @lemgandi @pluralistic

     which brings us right back to one of the points Cory makes: who can actually afford an in-person, private therapist nowadays? (at least in the US)

   • Embed this notice
     lemgandi (lemgandi@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:38 JST lemgandi

     in reply to

     @pluralistic Loved this when I read it on your site. You didn't mention on-line therapy companies like betterhelp and teladoc, which have their own set of risks. Search for "teladoc privacy scandals" for an eyeful.

     The only safe therapy option is in-person visits with an actual therapist who will respect your privacy. Anything else is fraught with truly ugly risks.

   • Embed this notice
     Phosphenes (phosphenes@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Apr-2025 05:48:38 JST Phosphenes

     in reply to

     • lemgandi

     @lemgandi @pluralistic

     Even in person, your records all go into a computer, which WILL be leaked some way, legally or illegally.

     I never tell therapists anything private anymore. Generally avoid them where possible. Bad idea? Yes, but few other choices.