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DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

theatlantic.com

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Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#191

Post by fooker »

maCDzP wrote: post #110

European here, giving my two cents on how this looks from the other side of the Atlantic. Heh In my country there are laws stopping agencies doing a simple SQL join between two databases, even within the same government agency. There is a separate agency that handles the requests when agencies want to join information. I am not an expert in the matter. But my gut is telling me that our experiences with east Germany a…

Which country and what law are you referring to?

Laws rarely include technical language like SQL joins.

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#193

Post by eecc »

kioleanu wrote: post #147
maCDzP wrote: post #110

European here, giving my two cents on how this looks from the other side of the Atlantic. Heh In my country there are laws stopping agencies doing a simple SQL join between two databases, even within the same government agency. There is a separate agency that handles the requests when agencies want to join information. I am not an expert in the matter. But my gut is telling me that our experiences with east Germany a…

Which law are referring to? I work in such an agency and I’ve never heard of such a thing

Well, in Italy the "IRS" (Agenzia delle Entrate) is not allowed to cross-check banking statements with its own data from Tax Returns.

Whenever anyone proposes to allow it, the members of the informal "Party for Tax Evasion" scream and denounce the descent towards "Taxation Fascism". It's so pathetically cheeky, that it feels a bit endearing (how dare them, what rascals!)

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#194

Post by viraptor »

fooker wrote: post #191
maCDzP wrote: post #110

European here, giving my two cents on how this looks from the other side of the Atlantic. Heh In my country there are laws stopping agencies doing a simple SQL join between two databases, even within the same government agency. There is a separate agency that handles the requests when agencies want to join information. I am not an expert in the matter. But my gut is telling me that our experiences with east Germany a…

Which country and what law are you referring to? Laws rarely include technical language like SQL joins.

They obviously didn't mean the laws prevent sql joins directly. Those prevent data aggregation, which in practice prevent various technical implementations of that.

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#195

Post by cinntaile »

maCDzP wrote: post #110

European here, giving my two cents on how this looks from the other side of the Atlantic. Heh In my country there are laws stopping agencies doing a simple SQL join between two databases, even within the same government agency. There is a separate agency that handles the requests when agencies want to join information. I am not an expert in the matter. But my gut is telling me that our experiences with east Germany a…

I think the advantages of this in a digital age are vastly overblown. If an extremist government comes to power they won't care and they can just do the SQL join. Let it go to court, the extremist government will decide anyway so the outcome is already predetermined.

Compare this to a physical storage of paper documents that need to be SQL joined, the effort required is several magnitudes more.

What it is good for is data breaches, it effectively limits the data that can be leaked at once.

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#196

Post by ReptileMan »

DonHopkins wrote: post #159
ReptileMan wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very few countries have as strong executive branch as the USA.

[flagged]

>The CCP through the NPC enacts unified leadership, which requires that all state organs, from the Supreme People's Court to the president of China, are elected by, answerable to, and have no separate powers than those granted to them by the NPC

This is the situation in China. In theory NPC is their governing body.

[insert random ad hominem attack here]

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#197

Post by bluescrn »

kzrdude wrote: post #141
scarab92 wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

That's an empty argument. I think people hate musk, if they do, for the things he does and has done. It's not the other way around. Judging people for their actions is a fair way to look at it.

> I think people hate musk, if they do, for the things he does and has done.

No, they hate Musk for the things he says and has said (And things he allows other people to say on his platform).

Some people treat actions more seriously than words. Others choose to treat words more seriously than actions.

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#199

Post by InsideOutSanta »

femto wrote: post #183
InsideOutSanta wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are laws, but you will get fired if you try to follow them, and lawsuits to remedy that take time. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/usaid-sec...

Is it true to say that in practise there are no laws here? If anyone in DOGE breaks the law, can't the President just issue a blanket pardon? If the President himself breaks the law, he argues that it was in the course of his official duties [1]. [1] https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-939_e2pg.pdf

I'm assuming this is what they're betting on.

Re: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data

#200

Post by cmurf »

maCDzP wrote: post #110

European here, giving my two cents on how this looks from the other side of the Atlantic. Heh In my country there are laws stopping agencies doing a simple SQL join between two databases, even within the same government agency. There is a separate agency that handles the requests when agencies want to join information. I am not an expert in the matter. But my gut is telling me that our experiences with east Germany a…

[flagged]
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