221–230 of 774 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I imagine everyone else at NASA who respects themselves would have left for SpaceX a long time ago not everyone wants to work for a company that is well known for grinding 20-somethings into the dust with an extremely poor work-life balance.
Not to mention the ethical questions about working for a company that is privately owned by a megalomaniac who’s demonstrated an interest in playing king of the world.
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…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I imagine everyone else at NASA who respects themselves would have left for SpaceX a long time ago not everyone wants to work for a company that is well known for grinding 20-somethings into the dust with an extremely poor work-life balance.
Not to mention the ethical questions about working for a company that is privately owned by a megalomaniac who’s demonstrated an interest in playing king of the world.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> NASA needs an overhaul. This isn’t how I would do it, but that’s not how things work in the real world. SLS is the elephant in the room and is a complete disaster. It’s a jobs program limping along decades old technology when the commercial options are better. It’s more accurate to say that Congress needs an overhaul. Over the years NASA administrators have pushed back on SLS to the fullest extent you’d expect, but…
It’s going to kill institutional knowledge and be so expensive to repair after regime change.
I’m trying to think how I feel about this. I’ve been obsessed with space for a long time, remember traveling to see my first rocket launch of the shuttle in 2006. Follow the commercial development closely since then. Their science missions are inspiring, but not as inspiring as they ought to be. NASA needs an overhaul. This isn’t how I would do it, but that’s not how things work in the real world. SLS is the elephant…
SLS is elephant in the room - but Mars Sample Return is arguably even worse Money for SLS is separate part of the budget, its mismanagement causes reputational damage - MSR budget is part of NASA probe budget, mismanagement there causes stall, worse performances and cancellations for AWFUL amount of other projects
MSR is a fine enough concept though, I think Rocket Lab's proposal to get it done is sound and the government should take them up on the offer. If nothing else, the money to Rocket Lab for MSR development would help to make Rocket Lab a more viable SpaceX competitor, which should pay off for the US government in the long run.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
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…
I’m reading the bill. This is saying they’ll authorize private services to renew licenses in parallel with the public DMV.
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
[flagged]
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 interesting to see if the privatized pilot increases efficiency or not. I wouldn't hold my breath, but we'll see.
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.
Nobody knows. But the only things guaranteed are:
- service prices will rise because now shareholders will seek a return every year.
- AI powered elevator music phone service where you must wait 30 mins before reaching a human.
- Fees and costs for every interaction.
- Workers will be encouraged to do work fast - by providing less service to people, asking people to come over and over again
- More lobbying to reduce license and registration durations because they need people to constantly renew to collect fees and profits.
About FedEx, I don't know why you think US post offices are bad. I personally find USPS to be astonishingly high quality and decent humans. FedEx is decent quality but 10x higher prices than USPS.
I always wonder how many caught up in these federal mass firings voted for Trump. I can't imagine they could've foreseen this outcome. USAID was probably a stronghold of Dem voters, but what about the Dept. of Agriculture, or the Forest Service?