"does the plan have to be this #cruel to the most vulnerable #Americans? As I see it, the cruelty is a feature, not a bug.

After all, gratuitous, seemingly gleeful #cruelty has been a hallmark of DOGE’s operations...

We’re mostly talking about poorly socialized young #men suddenly given the power to ruin other people’s lives, taking their cues from a leader who has declared that “the fundamental weakness of Western society is #empathy.”
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/smears-sadism-and-social-security

"Why do this? The alleged justification is to combat fraud. But... fraudulent benefit claims are not, in fact, a serious problem.

So what the #Musk is going on here? This plan would save some money, not by eliminating #fraud, but by effectively cutting off aid to #Americans who are legally entitled to that aid, & specifically those who need it most. But I don’t think the savings are the point."
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/smears-sadism-and-social-security

Smears, Sadism & Social Security

Why #ElonMusk wants to make seniors suffer
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/smears-sadism-and-social-security

"Under [Musk's] plan, beneficiaries would still be able to call the #SSA. But they would have to verify their identity either over the #internet or through in-person visits to field offices.

Bear in mind that we’re talking about older and/or disabled #Americans, many of whom are unable to access the internet & physically unable to visit SSA offices"

Outgoing Commerce Official Shreds Elon Musk’s Starlink in Final Email

An official working on broadband expansion brutally condemned #Musk.
https://newrepublic.com/post/192819/commerce-official-elon-musk-starlink

" #ElonMusk intends to get rich at the expense of rural #Americans...

“Stranding all or part of rural #America with worse #internet so that we can make the world’s richest man even richer is yet another in a long line of betrayals by Washington,” Feinman wrote"

@arstechnica

This also screws over the tens of thousands of #Americans that have already been working for a couple of years to design & create these advanced networks, of which *I* am one.

#Starlink is more expensive, slower & has a single point of failure. That failure of course being #elonmusk

The People Trump and DOGE Hurt
https://joycevance.substack.com/p/the-people-trump-and-doge-hurt

"when fair #housing groups lose... funding, a lot of people suffer as a result...

This isn’t about making #government more effective. It’s about #cruelty. That’s the point... leaving families without a #safety net and putting countless lives and futures at risk. The freeze would have devastating consequences for millions of #Americans, regardless of political affiliation."

Elon Musk's social insecurity

The billionaire's reckless claims seem intended to manufacture outrage to justify an end to what he refers to as an “entitlement program.”
https://contrarian.substack.com/p/elon-musks-social-insecurity

"Ronald Reagan called #SocialSecurity “a secure & stable base so that older #Americans may live in dignity.”

#ElonMusk calls it a “Ponzi scheme.”
...
differences of opinion between #Musk & #Trump, the White House... pledging not to cut Social Security, #Medicare or #Medicaid benefits"

DOGE Is Pressuring Social Security to Make Another Massive Cut

#DonaldTrump & #ElonMusk want to make it harder for people to access their Social Security benefits.
https://newrepublic.com/post/192667/doge-pressures-social-security-cut-phones

"The #SocialSecurity Admn might slash the telephone service that millions of retired & disabled #Americans use to apply for & access their **earned** benefits...

#Doge is pressuring the agency... and in response, the #SSA is considering ending its #phone service"

Elon Musk Finally Admits Social Security Is on the Chopping Block

The #DOGE chief has revealed his true goals in a #FoxNews interview.
https://newrepublic.com/post/192579/elon-musk-social-security-medicare-entitlements

"Trump has said he won’t touch #SocialSecurity or #Medicare, but Musk’s entitlement math makes it clear that both those programs, as well as #Medicaid, are on the chopping block. Millions of older #Americans—many of them red-state #Republicans—will lose the vital benefits"

@BioSchweiz

#DefenseUnion #CEUM

You are asking an absolutely decisive question: who can lead Europe?

Alas, so far there is no-one one the horizon. I recently phased it differently, looking at #DeGaulle's European policy:

"Alas, #Macron is no visionary, precognitive leader like Président #CharlesDeGaulle was. With today's hindsight, he rightly distrusted the #Americans:..."

https://mastodon.social/@HistoPol/114135212003602551

@Veza85UE @Snowshadow

The DOGE Helpline

Comms from Armageddon
https://snyder.substack.com/p/the-doge-helpline

"The scene: an office in the #WestWing ... with a "DOGE Helpline" sign on the door. Four consumer relations specialists take phone calls.

Rep 1 "...The point is to create the conditions for the survival of the fittest. That's #American, right?"

Rep 2 "We... create an #environment of desperation and hatred of Americans. #Americans will show their best side in these situations"

Neera Tanden and John Fetterman: They're Playing With People's Lives
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/neera-tanden-and-john-fetterman-theyre

" #DonaldTrump is hurting the #American people. The #DOGE cuts are not only waging war on #jobs, they're also harming the American public and undermining the #safety, #health, and #economic well-being of everyday #Americans. And by cowering to his favorite bully in #Moscow, #Trump is prepping the #US to be a subservient partner of #Russia."