The Rational View podcast with Dr. Al Scott

Why does the United States spend more on healthcare than any other advanced nation while producing some of the poorest health outcomes?

In this episode of The Rational View, I speak with Dr. John E. McDonough about the history behind America's uniquely expensive healthcare system and the argument at the center of his new book, America's Wrong Turn: US Health Care in the Neoliberal Era.

John E. McDonough, DrPH, MPA, is Professor of ...

I initially found the idea of “decolonizing science” troubling. Does it mean treating personal revelation as equal to evidence? Does it require rejecting the scientific method because it developed largely within European institutions?

Rather than argue against a caricature, I spoke with Innu astrophysicist Dr. Laurie Rousseau-Nepton.

We discuss what decolonization actually means in science, how culture influences the qu...

Is being a billionaire morally defensible?

In this episode, Dr. Al Scott digs into extreme wealth, corporate power, executive pay, inherited fortunes, and the way modern capitalism rewards people at the top.

He looks at how much a billion dollars actually represents, why CEO compensation has exploded, how companies squeeze workers and customers in the name of growth, and why basic necessities still feel out of reach in societies wi...

This episode is a fun book review with a new author who provides a comprehensive review of astrology, the source of generic horoscopes and perhaps serves as a gateway drug to astronomy for the anti-science crowd. We’ll find out about the history of this occult practice and why people believe that the month of their birth might have an impact on who they should date.

Carlos Orsi is an award-winning Brazilian journalist with mo...

Welcome to The Rational View, where we apply evidence and critical thinking to the biggest issues of our time. Trump declared on election night, "I'm not going to start wars. I'm going to stop wars," while warning that a victory by Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate at the time, would lead to "World War III." He has repeatedly referred to himself as the "President of Peace" and is obviously unable to deal with the fact that Pr...

This podcast is my opinion on the Republican regime’s anti-democratic and corrupt behaviour. As Steve Bannon said they are going to push against all of the guardrails and flood the zone with questionable behaviour. They are doing this because they are only popular with a small minority of Americans, and if everyone voted they would be out. No surprise. Pam Bondi is slow-walking the court-ordered release of the Epstein files a...

In keeping with its Donroe doctrine, the Republican Regime recently captured the president of Venezuela and ferreted him away in a New York prison to face charges on drug trafficking and weapons possession. Open flaunting of international law is now a thing as all of the guardrails are being tested in a full court attack on democratic institutions and international law and order.

Welcome to 2026! I’ve taken some time off from...

In this episode I want to dig into a source of injustice in the world—hidden markets—where who you know is often more important than what you know. My guest has spent his life highlighting these hidden systems that silently maintain inequity. Strap in for The Rational View on hidden markets.

Judd B. Kessler is an award-winning teacher and the inaugural Howard Marks Endowed Professor of Business Economics and Public Poli...

In this episode I am continuing to look at pathways to save us from the slow motion economic collapse of late stage capitalism. Today we’ll be talking to an author who has a roadmap to a new system the calls Dynamic Capitalism. Let’s see if we can find a Rational View to a solution.

A passionate advocate for entrepreneurship and long-time venture capitalist, Seth Levine, works with venture funds and companies around the...

In this episode I’m going to be diving into a topic of interest to everyone in the nuclear energy field. It is a scandalous expose on the history of the dreaded ALARA principle regarding radiation exposure regulations (As Low As Reasonably Achievable), based on the idea that no amount of radiation is safe. What is the scientific basis behind this idea and is it supported by the evidence, or has there been a massive multi-deca...

In this episode I’m going to dig down into the roots of the religious right and show you just how long they have been planning their coup. For decades, a well-funded network of religious and political operatives has been quietly working to dismantle democracy and replace it with Christian theocracy.

Matthew Boedy is a professor of rhetoric at the University of North Georgia. He holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of ...

In this episode I’m going to explore modern society’s car culture. We all know that the energy use that supports cars is a huge contributor to the greenhouse effect and climate change. We know that the resources society devotes to transportation are significant, and yet they are also the lifeblood of commerce. They represent freedom. The automobile manufacturing industry directly employs and sustains hundreds of thousan...

In this episode I’m digging into the state of healthcare in the United States: the only country in the developed world that believes health care is best delivered as a luxury product. Everywhere else, people go to the doctor when they’re sick. In America, you go only if you’re sick and your credit score is feeling strong. They treat hospitals like casinos: you walk in, take your chances, and hope you don’t l...

In this episode I’m going to fact check some polarizing memes on current issues in the news. I’m going to help you to identify fake memes and to question the possibility of AI-generated videos. Did you just read something that confirms your worst fears about the opposition and gets your blood pumping? Are you angry? Stop for a moment and think before you hit like and share. I want to remind you to pause and verify any t...

In this episode I’m interviewing a scientist who is trying to revolutionize computing by replacing power hungry silicon gates with highly efficient biological neurons. For a present-day silicon-based computer to approach the processing power of a human brain would take MegaWatts of power—we are seeing some of these inefficiencies looking at AI systems that require massive amounts of energy to run. A human brain can do t...

Have you ever heard someone spouting off on social media that the climate is always changing?  Apparently this carries great weight amongst people who don’t want to admit that humans are involved in the accurately predicted warming trend that we are currently experiencing. I just recently encountered someone on social media claiming that the climate is self-correcting and we don’t need to worry about how much CO2 w...

In this episode I am taking us on a journey to seek truth amidst a sea of fake news with a person who has published a book on the topic. Hopefully we can get a lifeline to find out how to separate the wheat from the crap.

Infodemiologist, Dr. Pauline W. Hoffmann is an associate professor in the Jandoli School of Communication and a New York State senior public health fellow with the Cattaraugus County Health Department working on s...