Washington Blues: A Government Town Faces a Gloomy Future
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For years, Washington, D.C., was insulated from many of the economic forces that decimated many older U.S. cities. Now, as Elon Musk’s mass layoffs shake everything from employment to real estate, the region faces the prospect of decline.
https://www.propublica.org/article/washington-dc-trump-musk-federal-government-cutbacks-gloomy-future?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mastodon-post

Good afternoon. It's 12PM, Thursday, 13th March. The headlines: US special envoy Steve Witkoff is in Moscow for #ceasefire discussions, while a US delegation also travels there. Poland seeks US nuclear arms as a deterrent against #Russia. The #UK Prime Minister pledges to cut #government regulatory expenses. #Germany's #Bundestag considers easing its debt rules. The CEO of Roblox speaks to the BBC about the firm. #BBC #News

Old joke: a new leader of a far off country is congratulated at their inauguration by their predecessor. Their predecessor mentions they’ve written the new guy 2 letters, and left them in the presidential desk. “Open letter one when you have your first unsolvable problem, and letter two when you have your second.”

1/3

Can't be repeated enough:
"Elon Musk is not engaged in an “efficiency drive”. He is not trying to save money. He is trying to cripple the state and destroy the public sector, since oligarchs of his ilk think these are by nature a waste of money and that their functions should be privatized. Media should report it as such."
https://www.ft.com/content/6d938875-d9c8-47b1-9116-eef577d2cb98?shareType=nongift
#Musk #DOGE #Trump #government #politics #USA

https://www.europesays.com/1908680/ New Ravalli County representative named after Montana House resignation #Government #house #legislature #MontanaLegislature #Politics #RavalliCounty #representative #Republican #RepublicanParty #RonMarshall #TerryNelson

There's not much we can do since Schumer appears to have decided to shutdown the government. The Democrats have done nothing but screw up since they let an ill Joe Biden do a stupid, needless debate with Trump last year.

#news #america #musk #government

https://futurism.com/elon-musk-government-shutdown

Government intervention in crypto markets is a stark departure from bitcoiners' historical skepticism. The executive order creating a 'strategic bitcoin reserve' benefits the cryptocurrency industry, but how does it serve the national interest?
Molly White’s recent article goes into the details and breaks it down, as always. Highly recommended: https://www.citationneeded.news/crypto-reserves-no-public-good-no-principles/ #cryptocurrency #government #bitcoin

I had to learn a lot about parliamentary government when studying for Canadian citizenship so I have all the passion of the recently-converted but I think we're all getting a lesson on which is the superior* approach right now.

*Not perfect, of course. And I'm still holding my breath for the Canadian election.

“The President Wanted It and I Did It”: Recording Reveals Head of Social Security’s Thoughts on DOGE and Trump
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In a recording obtained by ProPublica, acting Social Security Commissioner Leland Dudek portrayed his agency as facing peril, while also encouraging patience with “the DOGE kids.”

https://www.propublica.org/article/recording-reveals-leland-dudek-thoughts-trump-doge-social-security?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mastodon-post

We can have one of two things — but not both.

We can either have a society that tolerates (celebrates?) millionaires and billionaires polluting the planet and destroying the biosphere...

Or we can have a planet with a healthy biosphere but with fewer millionaires and NO billionaires at all.

Your choice.

It is effectively impossible for democracy and billionaires to co-exist.

https://jacobin.com/2021/06/billionaires-wealth-increase-covid-democracy-pandemic
https://inthesetimes.com/article/democracy-billionaires-wealth-inequality-socialism
https://inequality.org/article/billionaires-vs-democracy/