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4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

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Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#301

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Nobody knows. But the only things guaranteed are: Ironic that you jump from “nobody knows” to statements where you’re absolutely sure that it’s worse. Your “guarantees” aren’t even consistent with the language of the authorization. They aren’t giving these services carte blanche to define their own laws and processes. They’re just allowing someone else to execute part of the process. It’s hard to have these convers…

Cost of FedEx from NYC to LA: Cheapest price for 1 lb letter is $60.37 before taxes https://www.fedex.com/en-us/online/rating.html Cheapest price on USPS for 1 lb letter is $9.70 after taxes. https://postcalc.usps.com/Calculator/MailServices?country=0&... That is 7x for a standard 1 lb envelope. The claims are not as egregious as you think. You are not the only one shipping goods around. There is a market that USPS s…

There is actually a law that requires FedEx and UPS to charge more for some parcels ( https://pe.usps.com/text/qsg300/Q608.htm ). It was created after Lysander Spooner created the American Letter Mail Company ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Letter_Mail_Company ) and delivered mail between large cities for 10% of the cost of the US post office.

The argument is always that a private mail company would deliver mail to the cheapest places first (like the American Letter Mail Company did) and the US post office would get stuck with the unprofitable mail. But that could be addressed by just requiring any mail company to deliver to all addresses. Instead we have a law that just requires companies charge more than the post office.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#302
post #153

I understand wanting to make the organization more efficient, but i don't think this is what's happening here. I think this is the classic republican strat of gutting federal agencies, pointing to the inefficiencies caused by the loss of institutional knowledge, and using that as an excuse to privatize to their friends. The fact that Elon's DOGE suggested these cuts lines up

It's not worth making this point anymore. Bannon et al have been explicit for decades now they want to destroy the federal government. It's ideological, that's it quite simply.

All these discussions about efficiency, even more so the debt given they just blew up the debt to never before seen levels just shows that sincerity is not deserved when talking to Rs.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#303
post #153

I understand wanting to make the organization more efficient, but i don't think this is what's happening here. I think this is the classic republican strat of gutting federal agencies, pointing to the inefficiencies caused by the loss of institutional knowledge, and using that as an excuse to privatize to their friends. The fact that Elon's DOGE suggested these cuts lines up

It's not worth making this point anymore. Bannon et al have been explicit for decades now they want to destroy the federal government. It's ideological, that's it quite simply. All these discussions about efficiency, even more so the debt given they just blew up the debt to never before seen levels just shows that sincerity is not deserved when talking to Rs.

It is worth making the point: a lot of people simply don’t see it (yet?) for what it is and still support the people doing it.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#304

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

The flip side of that complaint is Democrats stuffing government bureaucracies with do-nothing jobs for their buddies. Both sides play in this cesspool. It would be nice if we as a nation could just do the work that needs to be done for the people without all of those games but it never has really been that way.

Citation sorely needed. Take the both sidesism somewhere else.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#305
post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

> Precedent was set 6.1.2020 When he lost and left?

6.1.2021* is when Trump tried to launch a coup after he lost the election. And he lost the coup too. Then he got his ass bounced under the worst approval he has ever had.

Stop trying to rewrite history for your cult leader.

* If the comment was about the mistyped 6.1.2020, that's just lame.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#306

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Nobody knows. But the only things guaranteed are: Ironic that you jump from “nobody knows” to statements where you’re absolutely sure that it’s worse. Your “guarantees” aren’t even consistent with the language of the authorization. They aren’t giving these services carte blanche to define their own laws and processes. They’re just allowing someone else to execute part of the process. It’s hard to have these convers…

Cost of FedEx from NYC to LA: Cheapest price for 1 lb letter is $60.37 before taxes https://www.fedex.com/en-us/online/rating.html Cheapest price on USPS for 1 lb letter is $9.70 after taxes. https://postcalc.usps.com/Calculator/MailServices?country=0&... That is 7x for a standard 1 lb envelope. The claims are not as egregious as you think. You are not the only one shipping goods around. There is a market that USPS s…

How long did you spend submitting numbers into the FedEx and USPS calculators to try to come up with a scenario to make this point?

I never claimed FedEx was always cheapest. I explained that I use a service which quotes all 3 providers because the cheapest service varies by package and by destination.

I don’t understand how anyone could even believe that FedEx remains a viable company by charging 7-10X more than competitors. The entire line of argument is illogical.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of this is efficiency. Our local NOAA office has lost their sparse janitorial staff. That doesn't make the agency more efficient. That just means an overworked person making 6 figures now has to figure out how to procure toilet paper and get the bathrooms fixed. It's obstructing people eager to do important work while marginally reducing cost, that's all it is.

I don’t think it actually reduces costs if someone better paid is now doing it instead.

It's not about reducing costs, it's about funding the tax breaks for the rich.

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#308

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

"As an example, they gutted NC DMV." When did that happen? I didn't see anything saying they were taking anything away. I saw they increased pay by 5%, authorized retention bonus, and are supposed to add about a 5% increase in the number of license workers. You could just increase pay by $20k and add another 100 workers, but that ignores concerns about operational inefficiency and outdated technology. It will be inte…

The population of NC has grown about 30% in the last 20 years, but staffing has been capped. Wait times to get a license are ridiculous. https://www.wral.com/consumer/5onyourside/ncdmv-long-waits-d...

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Is the privatized NC DMV any better than the public one? I was just at the Delaware DMV getting my 2 vehicles inspected and registration renewed, and while not an entirely horrible experience, it did seem like there were a lot of inefficiencies and complacentcy. I've also noticed the difference in the US post offices around me and the FedEx stores and wonder why the post offices aren't nicer customer experiences.

When I lived in North Carolina a few years ago, it was common for local private companies to get a contract with the state to run offices that issue license plates, while only the state ran the offices that issue drivers licenses and everything else. The private companies are highly regulated. They can’t charge whatever price they want, and I’m sure they get the plates from the state. They really just handle the paperwork.

I personally had better experiences getting license plates than getting drivers licenses. But they are very different transactions, and issuing license plates seems much simpler to me. And I had good experiences getting a drivers license in smaller towns; the only time I waited for hours in an NC DMV was in a large city. And I would choose that experience again over the California DMV, or the Nevada DMV, but not the New Jersey DMV (which they call the MVC).

Re: 4k NASA employees opt to leave agency through deferred resignation program

#310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As an example, they gutted NC DMV. So quality of service and wait times deteriorated. Then they go out and say that government doesn't work - must be sold to their private owner buddies. They’re suggesting the DMV is privatized? Can you share a link?

It's the first result on Google for "NC privatize DMV". https://www.carolinajournal.com/nc-house-moves-toward-privat... > The North Carolina House has officially taken a first step toward privatizing the infamously mismanaged Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), as issues and customer complaints have persisted for years. > The proposed budget released on Monday includes a provision that would begin the process of privat…

This is the setup in Louisiana and you end up with things like Orleans Parish having 1-2 OMV offices leaving tag agents a necessity
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