> Austerity is probably not the answer. We need to redefine the economy and quick.
It isn't. But the dog and pony show going on is also not the right answer. Look at the president and the party - be honest - do you really think this group actually cares to fix anything in the country, with dignity and respect for humans?
Asking myself: are the cuts practical and soundly made, done intelligently? The answer is overwhelmingly: no, absolutely not, absolutely never. Cutting small little beautiful things that make the world better down won't have any net impact, yet picking fights with NOAA and CFPB and other good forces is the main course time after time.
DOGE was the hint of austerity and everyone shit themselves and freaked out about all the government layoffs and cost cutting. The same thing is happening in Argentina--the Peronists are on the rise again because nobody has the patience for any shred of a libertarian style of governance to work. Oh, and corruption, but we'll see about that. It would actually piss me off royally if Milei goes down because he couldn't resist having his own hand in the till. A lot is at stake, just the entire future of the human race and all that.
If DOGE were at all intelligent or backed by a law or anything other than Musk's weird drug addled personal preferences, I might agree. But it isn't. DOGE did things irrationally, and did things that potentially impact every citizens' personal security.
I'll take getting nothing done, if that means the tax records and social security records stay secret. I'll also take nothing getting done over an un-elected, previously-illegal effort like DOGE. You have no idea what I think of the place we're in, but as far as government policy goes, nothing changing is a great default. Make a case for the change, including a cost/benefit breakdown, then we can talk.
Musk was using the government as a playground and a platform to build his personal brand. Nothing he did was “serious”. If they wanted to reduce the deficit, they’d close the carried interest loophole for hedge funds instead of running around on stage with chainsaws. That’d save around 1.3B per year which is far more than all the DOGE cuts combined. And, it wouldn’t cost a bunch of jobs.
It isn't. But the dog and pony show going on is also not the right answer. Look at the president and the party - be honest - do you really think this group actually cares to fix anything in the country, with dignity and respect for humans?