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Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

nytimes.com

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Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#71

Post by jezclaremurugan »

abritinthebay wrote: post #63
jliptzin wrote: post #53

Today I filed my tax return showing all the money that came in and every minute expense required to make that money. Why can't we hold the government to the same standard? There should be one (huge) annual spreadsheet published showing how much money came in (federal, state, and local levels), with a detailed accounting of where every penny went, just like I am required to do for my business to claim deductions.

Realistically? National security. I know that sounds like a cop-out but if you think about it, it makes sense that the government has to classify some things. The question is where does the line get drawn. I agree it's too far to one side right now but the extreme you suggest is far far on the other extreme.

Why can't military spends be in one classified bucket and the rest be open and 100% transparent? I don't think information on how much is spent on roads, healthcare, police, education will affect security.

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#72

Post by Clownshoesms »

jliptzin wrote: post #53

Today I filed my tax return showing all the money that came in and every minute expense required to make that money. Why can't we hold the government to the same standard? There should be one (huge) annual spreadsheet published showing how much money came in (federal, state, and local levels), with a detailed accounting of where every penny went, just like I am required to do for my business to claim deductions.

I agree, I think absolute transparency should be a given with any democratic government. One reason, aside from national security to a hopefully minor degree, is to cover their behinds when stupid things are done (and they're done an awful lot in the public service).

I think if we had a crystal-clear/omniscient view of the wastage that goes on in various governments, we'd be collectively appalled.

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#73

Post by tomcam »

roymurdock wrote: post #48

I have found this website very helpful in the past few years when researching government financial info: http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/total_spending_chart I reached out to the website developer/maintainer/creator, Chris Chantrill, telling him I appreciated his work on the site and asking if he needed help (seems like a 1 man operation?) - here's how he responded: Thanks! I started the site in 2007 when "I coul…

Delighted to learn about this stunning resource. Comparing the two will be illuminating.

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#74

Post by adventured »

tommoor wrote: post #59

The UK gov supplies a very simple chart that shows where your taxes have gone, it looks like this: https://imgur.com/a/pr6LQ Although the real thing shows how much money you personally contributed to each sector - I removed for the screenshot.

The US already has numerous breakdowns on where the money goes in segments. For example, I can tell you how much of the budget & tax revenue goes to the military, Social Security, medicare, veterans housing, interest on the public debt, and on and on. We have vast, freely available public data on spending. That's not what Ballmer is doing.

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#75

Post by nhebb »

SamReidHughes wrote: post #62
westoncb wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Could you elaborate on that?

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Mn1N0ssZsUs

He was featured on the A&E show Biography, and one of his high school math teachers said that Ballmer never once got a math problem wrong, which I found incredible in the true sense of the word.

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#76

Post by atmosx »

jliptzin wrote: post #53

Today I filed my tax return showing all the money that came in and every minute expense required to make that money. Why can't we hold the government to the same standard? There should be one (huge) annual spreadsheet published showing how much money came in (federal, state, and local levels), with a detailed accounting of where every penny went, just like I am required to do for my business to claim deductions.

A bitcoin-type ledger with known account numbers would be great for public offices. Even though you can have a nefarious category like "Office Contractor Expenses" which acts like a black hole but at least there can be some sort of minimal scrutiny.

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#78

Post by [deleted] »

Clownshoesms wrote: post #70
roymurdock wrote: post #48

I have found this website very helpful in the past few years when researching government financial info: http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/total_spending_chart I reached out to the website developer/maintainer/creator, Chris Chantrill, telling him I appreciated his work on the site and asking if he needed help (seems like a 1 man operation?) - here's how he responded: Thanks! I started the site in 2007 when "I coul…

The UI is actually making me feel angry, for some reason I can't put my finger on.

[deleted]

Re: Steve Ballmer serves up a data trove about government spending in the US

#80

Post by nhebb »

kuyan wrote: post #15
taurath wrote: post #10

It sounds pretty great, but I'm very worried about what actually comes out of it given the media landscape. People will use the data in ways that benefit them - even the CBO's reports are highly politicized. If we can't start taking "real, true" data at face value and using it to drive actual policy again, this is just another drop in the bucket.

> even the CBO's reports are highly politicized Can you source that?

CBO reports are done within the confines of the request, opening them up to a garbage in, garbage out scenario. The reports are supposed to be non-partisan, but a report request can be crafted in such a way that it's essentially weaponized non-partisanship.
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