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Given that the Kids at DOGE are all computer experts, this reeks of a calculated move.

consp 2y ago
I think expert is not the right word for what looks like mostly rookies.
krferriter 2y ago
Absolutely not. They are not broadly experts, and they are not making these decisions after careful consideration, as evidenced by their continual acts of stupidity and basic errors and cutting things despite having no idea what it is they are cutting. Musk got in an argument with someone who said DOGE cut funding for a cancer treatment program, and Musk was calling the person a liar, and the person provided evidence and Musk admitted it was an accident. They are a clown car of idiots who vastly overestimate their own knowledge and underestimate how much good the government actually does. They think they can just slash and burn and there will be no negative consequences because they think the government is worthless.
- chris_wot 2y ago
  Until, like Ayn Rand, they actually need the government. Then they'll be complaining how the government doesn't provide services.
  - riffraff 2y ago
    My knowledge of Ayn Rand stops at having read a book (and considered it silly), when did she need the government and complained about it?
    - chris_wot 2y ago
      She was an Objectivist. She considered social security to be "legalized plunder". Then when she needed it, she decided to take it. One of her wonderful worldviews was to rejects altruism as a moral imperative, arguing that individuals should live for their own rational self-interest. Social security, based on the idea of supporting others, contradicts this principle.
      - Nevermark 2y ago
        It takes strong and complex social glue to create a place where millions can safely follow their own self-interest. Which means anyone whose wisdom matches their self-interest is going to understand that different things have very different efficiencies at different scales. And some things happen to be dramatically more efficient/person and more effective, the larger the scale they can be coordinated at.
        InsideOutSanta 2y ago
        >It takes strong and complex social glue to create a place where millions can safely follow their own self-interest. This exactly. All of these people who profess to believe in objectivism could easily move to a failed state and do anything they want to with zero government intervention. But they don't do that. They want all of the benefits of a working government with none of the things required to actually create a working government.
        cratermoon 2y ago
        Side note: if they wait a little bit, they may end up not needing to move anywhere after all.
      - jay_kyburz 2y ago
        It is in your self interest to have a strong social safety net, because one day you might need it too.
        ndsipa_pomu 2y ago
        Also, even if you don't need it yourself, it's far nicer to live in a society where people's basic needs can be met otherwise we end up living in some kind of Mad Max apocalyptic wasteland where people with nothing and nothing to lose roam the country looking for targets.
      - Tainnor 2y ago
        > One of her wonderful worldviews was to rejects altruism as a moral imperative, arguing that individuals should live for their own rational self-interest. Social security, based on the idea of supporting others, contradicts this principle. This position was already pointed out by Plato (in the Gorgias IIRC) as being inconsistent. Political systems are made up by people - if a society, in particular a democratic one, has certain systems in place, then this is probably because it was (at least believed to be) in the people's self interest.
    - orwin 2y ago
      What's funny, and it might be because of the translation, but I first thought her book where all entrepreneurs are hidden away in a sort of parallel country was a dystopian satire and a joke about some people sense of self importance. Then I learned about her (and when the book was written too) and realised her book was to be read as it was written, 'seriously'. Which makes it silly, but a funny story.
    - aaronbrethorst 2y ago
      Medicare and social security after a lung cancer diagnosis (from being a heavy smoker) https://www.openculture.com/2016/12/when-ayn-rand-collected-social-security-medicare.html https://www.openculture.com/2016/12/when-ayn-rand-collected-...
- drivingmenuts 2y ago
  Sorry, I really should have said "experts" with the rabbit ears. But it still reeks.
chris_wot 2y ago
They've done their degrees and masters in Computer Science, and many of them dropped out. But they focused on AI, so I'm assuming this makes them great at statistics, but does this mean they are great at security? Given the way they've gone through a variety of departments, I'd say they aren't. The DOGE crew are incompetent. Witness their firing of all the people who look after the nuclear stockpile and Ebola research.
yowzadave 2y ago
They are clueless kids at their first job, following the orders of their hero. You think they’ll resist when the boss tells them, “cut everything”?
shakna 2y ago
No. [0] I wouldn't say they are computer experts. [1][2] [0] https://www.404media.co/anyone-can-push-updates-to-the-doge-gov-website-2/ https://www.404media.co/anyone-can-push-updates-to-the-doge-... [1] https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5355895/doge-musk-nlrb-takeaways-security https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5355895/doge-musk-nlrb-... [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-03-14/doge-staffer-broke-treasury-rules-in-transmitting-personal-data https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-03-14/doge-staf...
RALaBarge 2y ago
Hang out around here for a while and you will realize quickly that us tech bros mostly just know tech stuff. Our perceived intelligence in topics which we don't spend our time on is called hubris and we are swimming in it at all times.

I think expert is not the right word for what looks like mostly rookies.

Absolutely not. They are not broadly experts, and they are not making these decisions after careful consideration, as evidenced by their continual acts of stupidity and basic errors and cutting things despite having no idea what it is they are cutting. Musk got in an argument with someone who said DOGE cut funding for a cancer treatment program, and Musk was calling the person a liar, and the person provided evidence and Musk admitted it was an accident. They are a clown car of idiots who vastly overestimate their own knowledge and underestimate how much good the government actually does. They think they can just slash and burn and there will be no negative consequences because they think the government is worthless.

chris_wot 2y ago
Until, like Ayn Rand, they actually need the government. Then they'll be complaining how the government doesn't provide services.
- riffraff 2y ago
  My knowledge of Ayn Rand stops at having read a book (and considered it silly), when did she need the government and complained about it?
  - chris_wot 2y ago
    She was an Objectivist. She considered social security to be "legalized plunder". Then when she needed it, she decided to take it. One of her wonderful worldviews was to rejects altruism as a moral imperative, arguing that individuals should live for their own rational self-interest. Social security, based on the idea of supporting others, contradicts this principle.
    - Nevermark 2y ago
      It takes strong and complex social glue to create a place where millions can safely follow their own self-interest. Which means anyone whose wisdom matches their self-interest is going to understand that different things have very different efficiencies at different scales. And some things happen to be dramatically more efficient/person and more effective, the larger the scale they can be coordinated at.
      - InsideOutSanta 2y ago
        >It takes strong and complex social glue to create a place where millions can safely follow their own self-interest. This exactly. All of these people who profess to believe in objectivism could easily move to a failed state and do anything they want to with zero government intervention. But they don't do that. They want all of the benefits of a working government with none of the things required to actually create a working government.
        cratermoon 2y ago
        Side note: if they wait a little bit, they may end up not needing to move anywhere after all.
    - jay_kyburz 2y ago
      It is in your self interest to have a strong social safety net, because one day you might need it too.
      - ndsipa_pomu 2y ago
        Also, even if you don't need it yourself, it's far nicer to live in a society where people's basic needs can be met otherwise we end up living in some kind of Mad Max apocalyptic wasteland where people with nothing and nothing to lose roam the country looking for targets.
    - Tainnor 2y ago
      > One of her wonderful worldviews was to rejects altruism as a moral imperative, arguing that individuals should live for their own rational self-interest. Social security, based on the idea of supporting others, contradicts this principle. This position was already pointed out by Plato (in the Gorgias IIRC) as being inconsistent. Political systems are made up by people - if a society, in particular a democratic one, has certain systems in place, then this is probably because it was (at least believed to be) in the people's self interest.
  - orwin 2y ago
    What's funny, and it might be because of the translation, but I first thought her book where all entrepreneurs are hidden away in a sort of parallel country was a dystopian satire and a joke about some people sense of self importance. Then I learned about her (and when the book was written too) and realised her book was to be read as it was written, 'seriously'. Which makes it silly, but a funny story.
  - aaronbrethorst 2y ago
    Medicare and social security after a lung cancer diagnosis (from being a heavy smoker) https://www.openculture.com/2016/12/when-ayn-rand-collected-social-security-medicare.html https://www.openculture.com/2016/12/when-ayn-rand-collected-...
drivingmenuts 2y ago
Sorry, I really should have said "experts" with the rabbit ears. But it still reeks.

chris_wot 2y ago

They've done their degrees and masters in Computer Science, and many of them dropped out. But they focused on AI, so I'm assuming this makes them great at statistics, but does this mean they are great at security? Given the way they've gone through a variety of departments, I'd say they aren't. The DOGE crew are incompetent. Witness their firing of all the people who look after the nuclear stockpile and Ebola research.

yowzadave 2y ago

They are clueless kids at their first job, following the orders of their hero. You think they’ll resist when the boss tells them, “cut everything”?

shakna 2y ago

No. [0] I wouldn't say they are computer experts. [1][2] [0] https://www.404media.co/anyone-can-push-updates-to-the-doge-gov-website-2/ https://www.404media.co/anyone-can-push-updates-to-the-doge-... [1] https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5355895/doge-musk-nlrb-takeaways-security https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5355895/doge-musk-nlrb-... [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-03-14/doge-staffer-broke-treasury-rules-in-transmitting-personal-data https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-03-14/doge-staf...

RALaBarge 2y ago

Hang out around here for a while and you will realize quickly that us tech bros mostly just know tech stuff. Our perceived intelligence in topics which we don't spend our time on is called hubris and we are swimming in it at all times.