7 ms·

It's interesting to watch what's going on. I would hope that everyone would understand that the financial situation the US (and other countries, to be sure) fi

It's interesting to watch what's going on. I would hope that everyone would understand that the financial situation the US (and other countries, to be sure) finds itself navigating is simply untenable. Without a doubt, it is not a formula for long term success or excellence even stretching the bounds of imagination. With USD $36 trillion in debt and (I don't remember) a $2 trillion annual deficit, the picture, as they say, is solidly etched on the wall. This is a predictable train wreck. In many ways, this is not unlike what Argentina has been doing. The reduction of the size and cost of government is an important and necessary lever to pull. The latest revelation, the fact --fact-- that US government worker retirement processing is handled by hand and managed in an underground facility (mine) where over 700 workers process --again, by hand-- retirement matter and records are kept on paper in envelopes is, well, unimaginably stupid, costly and damaging. Like this, thousands, if not tens or hundreds of thousands of issues, big and small. Anyone who's ever run a non-trivial business fully understands that every so often to need to engage in forensic analysis to make sure you are not burning cash that could be put to better use. Like paying for a bunch of servers you haven't used for over a year (I've done that!), etc. I am, frankly, quite surprised by some of the reactions out there. The hatred is what is most surprising to me. Frankly, I am pretty sick and tired of this constant culture of hatred. Don't these people understand that we are in serious trouble? We have a sick population (need healthcare reform), terrible education results (need education reform) a massively bloated government that is spending us into bankruptcy (over 400 federal agencies, need to chop that down significantly) and, in general, a focus away from innovation and excellence and towards bullshit. I often use the joke of the high speed train in California. We can't even build a new train a few hundred miles long. That's what the US has become. This has to change.

dashundchen 2y ago
I will repeat this because the party line you are repeating is so tired and debunked. If the debt and spending are so important, why is the first priority of the GOP Congress to renew and expand the Trump tax cuts, which the government is estimating to cost at least $4.5 trillion dollars and will mostly accumulate to the top 0.1%? It's also estimated that it will explode the federal debt. The same party and admiistration who racked up $8 trillion in national debt during Trump's last term through irresponsible 2017 tax cuts and inflation pumping PPP helicopter money, are now telling you the debt is such an issue the country can't pay for anything else. But taking on trillions more in debt for billionaires is of such urgency it must be passed through reconciliation.
- robomartin 2y ago
  > the party line you are repeating is so tired and debunked. I am not repeating a fucking party line! I am not a republican or a democrat. I am one of those pesky independents who refuse to cargo-cult and align with nonsense purely out of party alignment. Fuck me! Why is this so partisan and so irrational? If your family finances were the equivalent of federal drunken sailor spending we are seeing, you would not hesitate to call it insane. And yet, just three weeks into this and with such overwhelming evidence of insane spending this is somehow a "party line". Wow. Tax cuts are incredibly important for economic stimulus and prosperity. And so is reducing government in size and spending. Why hasn't it happened before? A combination of incompetence and inertia I guess. I don't know. During his first term Trump had the entire federal government against him and he had no experience navigating any of it. People fucked him right and left. And then he had a global pandemic. Please. Get off it. I mean, look how the government is using the money we are sending. Really look at it. Look at what DOGE is uncovering. And we are just three weeks into this. Why are we paying so much for so little? Why are we paying for 1000 workers to go into a mine to process retirements by hand, on paper, stored on paper and in envelopes instead of, I don't know, having excellent affordable healthcare and drugs for everyone? Why are we spending more money than anyone in the world for education and yet, we are ranked 40th? And that's the tip of the iceberg. If we don't fix this now, this nation is on a path straight to hell. It's about math. This has nothing to do with any political party. Like I asked: How much longer? Where it the threshold? You can believe anything you want my friend, sadly that does not change reality. More taxes, regulations, wasteful and incompetent government isn't a path to better things, quite to the contrary. So, let's agree to disagree and see what happens in a few years if they let this team do what we desperately need to be done. Next time you have a discussion with someone who might not fit into your world view, you might want to consider not diminishing them by throwing the tired "party line" or "Fox News" derogative and maybe, just maybe, consider the idea that other people are actually able to exercise critical thinking. And maybe, just maybe, you might want to consider the idea that other people might come from a perspective that is both multicultural and multinational, having lived under different cultures and political systems --which creates perspective and understanding others might lack. I am also looking forward to seeing what RFK is going to do to our healthcare and health, both being an absolute abomination. This is the moment. Be a part of the solution or the problem, your choice.

dashundchen 2y ago

I will repeat this because the party line you are repeating is so tired and debunked. If the debt and spending are so important, why is the first priority of the GOP Congress to renew and expand the Trump tax cuts, which the government is estimating to cost at least $4.5 trillion dollars and will mostly accumulate to the top 0.1%? It's also estimated that it will explode the federal debt. The same party and admiistration who racked up $8 trillion in national debt during Trump's last term through irresponsible 2017 tax cuts and inflation pumping PPP helicopter money, are now telling you the debt is such an issue the country can't pay for anything else. But taking on trillions more in debt for billionaires is of such urgency it must be passed through reconciliation.

robomartin 2y ago
> the party line you are repeating is so tired and debunked. I am not repeating a fucking party line! I am not a republican or a democrat. I am one of those pesky independents who refuse to cargo-cult and align with nonsense purely out of party alignment. Fuck me! Why is this so partisan and so irrational? If your family finances were the equivalent of federal drunken sailor spending we are seeing, you would not hesitate to call it insane. And yet, just three weeks into this and with such overwhelming evidence of insane spending this is somehow a "party line". Wow. Tax cuts are incredibly important for economic stimulus and prosperity. And so is reducing government in size and spending. Why hasn't it happened before? A combination of incompetence and inertia I guess. I don't know. During his first term Trump had the entire federal government against him and he had no experience navigating any of it. People fucked him right and left. And then he had a global pandemic. Please. Get off it. I mean, look how the government is using the money we are sending. Really look at it. Look at what DOGE is uncovering. And we are just three weeks into this. Why are we paying so much for so little? Why are we paying for 1000 workers to go into a mine to process retirements by hand, on paper, stored on paper and in envelopes instead of, I don't know, having excellent affordable healthcare and drugs for everyone? Why are we spending more money than anyone in the world for education and yet, we are ranked 40th? And that's the tip of the iceberg. If we don't fix this now, this nation is on a path straight to hell. It's about math. This has nothing to do with any political party. Like I asked: How much longer? Where it the threshold? You can believe anything you want my friend, sadly that does not change reality. More taxes, regulations, wasteful and incompetent government isn't a path to better things, quite to the contrary. So, let's agree to disagree and see what happens in a few years if they let this team do what we desperately need to be done. Next time you have a discussion with someone who might not fit into your world view, you might want to consider not diminishing them by throwing the tired "party line" or "Fox News" derogative and maybe, just maybe, consider the idea that other people are actually able to exercise critical thinking. And maybe, just maybe, you might want to consider the idea that other people might come from a perspective that is both multicultural and multinational, having lived under different cultures and political systems --which creates perspective and understanding others might lack. I am also looking forward to seeing what RFK is going to do to our healthcare and health, both being an absolute abomination. This is the moment. Be a part of the solution or the problem, your choice.