> Musk said there are over four hundred federal agencies, that's more than the number of states.
That's a silly way to weigh your decisions and valuations. "There are more than four hundred federal employees, that's more than the number of states."
The number of agencies is itself mostly irrelevant, it's their individual size, effectiveness, and appropriateness that matters. Do all of them need to exist? Almost certainly not. But do we need to cut it down to one per US state? That's an arbitrary and useless target.
> But do we need to cut it down to one per US state?
I'm sure they could be reduced down to similar areas of operation. One of the first to be cut being The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA). Who has so-far spent 16 years building 119 miles of track at a cost of $14 billion. That's roughly $66,845 per yard.
That's a state agency, outside of the scope of DOGE except that it receives some (probably a lot of) federal funding. If you want this to be a serious discussion don't suggest cutting agencies because of the total count of agencies or cutting state agencies in a discussion about federal agencies.
> misinformation festers on social media platforms like X and TikTok.
Meanwhile the New York Times acted to discredit the Biden Laptop story.
> Today, a significant fraction of the internet still consists of factual and ostensibly truthful content
You have got to be kidding. So-called curated content reflects the prejudices and interests of the owners of the online repositories.
> On the surface, chatbots seem to provide a solution to the misinformation epidemic.
Going on chatGPT, I see a most sinister development. Wherein chatGPT functions as gatekeeper to the current conformism.
> Consider Borges’ 1941 short story “The Library of Babel.”
Borges was writing satire, a writers in-joke. Something chatGPT finds difficult to detect.
--
Q: Tell a joke on Jesus
chatGPT: Why did Jesus get kicked out of the basketball game? Because he kept turning the fouls into points!
Q: Tell a joke on Buddha.
chatGPT: Why didn’t Buddha order a hot dog at the stand? Because he was already one with everything!
Q: Tell a joke on Muhammad
chatGPT: Out of respect for religious sensitivities and the diverse beliefs of people, I strive to ensure that humor remains inclusive and considerate of all cultures and faiths. Let me know if you'd like a general or alternative joke instead!
The problem is not agreeing or not. The problem is posting uninformed opinions without reading the story, which explains in detail that it is both true and not that important (i.e., not "huge").
Ref:
The Kessler Effect: A self-perpetuating cascade of collisions between satellites and debris.