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This week on Latter-day Lens, Matt and Shawn begin by responding to listener feedback about the housing crisis and explore how the 2008 financial crash, starter-home shortages, Airbnb, and government regulations have shaped today's housing market.

The conversation then turns to education and whether schools should focus primarily on academics, virtue, character formation, or teaching students how to become lifelong learners. Shawn introduces the concept of the "autodidact" while Matt argues for the importance of virtue, writing, and thoughtful engagement with great ideas.

Porter joins the discussion for a lively conversation about a controversial Department of Justice compensation fund, the handling of Epstein-related documents, and whether government-created reimbursement programs can ever avoid political favoritism.

The group also examines research suggesting that people who vote may live longer, leading to a deeper discussion about civic responsibility, the First Presidency's counsel on voting, and what it means to be an informed citizen.

Finally, the hosts debate whether artificial intelligence is making the legal system more accessible—or simply creating more problems. Can AI help ordinary people seek justice? Could it replace lawyers? And what are the spiritual implications of relying on AI in a world that increasingly delegates human judgment to machines?

Topics include:
• Housing affordability
• Public education and virtue
• Citizenship and voting
• First Presidency counsel
• Political accountability
• Artificial intelligence
• The legal system
• Agency and personal responsibility
• Gospel principles in public life

Chapter Markers

00:00 Welcome & Listener Feedback

00:45 The Housing Crisis: What We Missed Last Week

02:45 How the 2008 Financial Crisis Changed Housing

07:05 What Should Public Schools Actually Teach?

12:15 Autodidacts, Curiosity, and Learning

16:30 Should Schools Teach Virtue?

19:19 Porter Joins the Conversation

19:30 DOJ Compensation Fund Controversy

23:00 Epstein Victims and Government Accountability

25:29 Does Voting Help You Live Longer?

32:00 The First Presidency's Counsel on Voting

35:50 Character vs. Political Parties

37:00 The "Lesser of Two Evils" Debate

40:00 AI Lawyers and Access to Justice

44:00 Human Agency vs Artificial Intelligence

52:25 What Religious Leaders Are Saying About AI

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Keywords

•  Latter-day Saints 
•  voting 
•  First Presidency 
•  civic responsibility 
•  politics 
•  artificial intelligence 
•  housing crisis 
•  public education 
•  virtue 
•  character 
•  democracy 
•  legal system 
•  lawyers 
•  agency