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Posted
20 hours ago, InkaUtexas said:

Live from the Oval Office, wearing his hat, talking now about his role.

Stammering. Has his kid with him.

Finally saw that this morning. Surreal and infuriating. I can't see how this is sustainable with Musk doing all the talking and Trump sitting idly by.

Posted
8 hours ago, UpperWestside said:

Not that this hasn’t been said plenty, but man when they didn’t execute every single traitor at the end of the Civil War, well, that was not our finest moment. Should have lined up the lot of them from Lee on down to every officer in the traitor army and had them hung. Those old confederate states are mostly worthless husks that are net takers and they always will be.

Wonder what the alternate timeline looks like where Lincoln says well bye to the CSA states. Presumably we establish trade for textiles and tobacco.  How long to they stick with slavery?  Do they survive as a country or end up begging back into the union?  Is there a migration between the countries to align with beliefs?  How would it affect the fledgling auto industry in Detroit?  The market crash and depression?  Castro and Cuba/ussr?  WWI and II?  Oil and gas discoveries (Pennsylvania vs Texas I guess).  

Posted
54 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Oil and gas discoveries (Pennsylvania vs Texas I guess).  

CA has produced almost 20x as much oil as PA.  CA is the 2nd largest oil producer in the country all-time.

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Posted
Quote

State of play: If Musk is as committed to transparency as he claims to be, he should testify before the subcommittee, Stansbury said.

 

"Come and testify in front of the American people under oath, because we want to know what you're up to," she said.

First subcommittee for DOGE with club foot leading for the Republicans and Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), the top Democrat on the House's DOGE subcommittee (made the statement above).

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Posted (edited)

Are we in a position where the richest man in the world can commit any crime he wants, and you can't charge him with anything because Trump will just pardon him?

Edit: Not state crimes I guess, so not literally any crime he wants.

Edited by Red Five
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Posted
9 minutes ago, Red Five said:

Are we in a position where the richest man in the world can commit any crime he wants, and you can't charge him with anything because Trump will just pardon him?

Edit: Not state crimes I guess, so not literally any crime he wants.

No, those too.  Imagine the scenario -- Musk commits a crime in New York, and somehow foolishly goes to NY and gets arrested.

Trump will deploy his personal armed troops to go free Musk, by any means necessary.  Yes, including shooting any NY personnel who get in the way.  Trump will declare the actions of NY "anti-democratic terrorist actions."

Thus, his actions will be an exercise of "presidential power," and he will have full immunity, both during and after his presidency (spoiler -- there won't be an "after," because he is being anointed king).

The rule of law is over.

Rule of the gun is all that's left.  That's it.  Those are the two options, and the regime has opted out of option 1.

Posted

So did Elon's shitbag in training really say to Trump in that Oval Office shitshow that Trump wasn't the President and he should leave? Or are people doing some fun editing to get clicks? I will not post anything, but I saw and listened to a video in Instagram or Threads where it sure seemed like it.  But then again, I know how people are fond of manipilating things, thus the reason I take anything on any form of social media with a massive grain of salt.

That being said, I hope it is fucking true. Fuck both of these massive losers.

Posted (edited)

so the guy in charge of doge - the wealthiest man in the world whose wealth is largely predicated on his equity value in tesla - is rooting out corruption and waste by accepting a $400 million order from the united states state department to purchase armored cars from...tesla?  the single largest line item in the 2025 state dept. procurement budget.

https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FY25-Procurement-Forecast.xlsx

that should go well.

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Edited by sidis
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Posted

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/02/largest-data-breach-in-us-history-three-more-lawsuits-try-to-stop-doge/

“Largest data breach in US history”: Three more lawsuits try to stop DOGE 

Doge and Musk face three more lawsuits over "brazen ransacking" of private data.

Quote

 

 

The US DOGE Service's access to the private data of ordinary Americans and federal employees is being challenged in several lawsuits filed this week.

Three new complaints seek court orders that would stop the data access and require the deletion of unlawfully accessed data. Two of the complaints also seek financial damages for individuals whose data was accessed.

The US DOGE Service, Elon Musk, the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and OPM Acting Director Charles Ezell were named as defendants in one suit filed yesterday in US District Court for the Southern District of New York.

"The Privacy Act [of 1974] makes it unlawful for OPM Defendants to hand over access to OPM's millions of personnel records to DOGE Defendants, who lack a lawful and legitimate need for such access," the lawsuit said. "No exception to the Privacy Act covers DOGE Defendants' access to records held by OPM. OPM Defendants' action granting DOGE Defendants full, continuing, and ongoing access to OPM's systems and files for an unspecified period means that tens of millions of federal-government employees, retirees, contractors, job applicants, and impacted family members and other third parties have no assurance that their information will receive the protection that federal law affords."

The lawsuit names Musk as a defendant "in his capacity as director of the US Doge Temporary Service," which was created by President Trump and has a mandate lasting until July 4, 2026. The temporary organization is separate from the US DOGE Service, which used to be called the US Digital Service. DOGE, of course, is a reference to the popular meme involving a Shiba Inu and in the government context stands for the Department of Government Efficiency.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit include the American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO; the Association of Administrative Law Judges; and individuals who are current or former government workers. The legal team representing the plaintiffs includes lawyers from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the State Democracy Defenders Fund, and two law firms.

Data access for “Musk and a cadre of loyalists”

Another lawsuit filed Monday in US District Court for the District of Maryland said that DOGE gained access to records of both government employees and people outside of government:

For example, Defendants Treasury Department and Secretary of the Treasury [Scott] Bessent have improperly disclosed to DOGE representatives the contents of the Federal Disbursement System, which is the government's mechanism for sending payments it owes to individual Americans (as well as other payees). That system contains records relating to every American who receives (among other things) a tax refund, social security benefit, veterans pay, or a federal salary. To facilitate these payments, the system maintains highly sensitive information about millions of Americans, including Social Security numbers, date of birth, bank account information, and home addresses.

The lawsuit in Maryland was filed by the American Federation of Teachers, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, the National Federation of Federal Employees, and six individuals. In addition to the Treasury Department and Bessent, defendants include OPM, Ezell, the Department of Education, and Acting Secretary of Education Denise Carter.

"Defendants are permitting Elon Musk and a cadre of loyalists imported from his private companies to help themselves to the personal information of millions of Americans, in violation of [the Privacy Act's] legal requirements," the lawsuit said.

Yet another lawsuit was filed Monday in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and one unnamed resident of the district ("Doe 1") who is a federal government employee. The EPIC lawsuit's defendants include OPM, Ezell, the US Treasury Department, Bessent, the US DOGE Service, and the US Doge Service Temporary Organization.

"This action arises from the largest and most consequential data breach in US history, currently ongoing at the US Department of the Treasury and US Office of Personnel Management. This unprecedented breach of privacy and security implicates the personal information of tens of millions of people, including nearly all federal employees and millions of members of the American public," the lawsuit said, alleging that defendants "have allowed the unlawful misuse of critical data systems housed in OPM and the Treasury Department, endangering plaintiffs and millions of other Americans."

This includes tax return information, the lawsuit said. In late January, a longtime Treasury Department official announced his retirement shortly after a clash with DOGE over access to the Fiscal Service payment system that collects and disburses trillions of dollars.

The EPIC lawsuit described this incident and alleged that "basic security failures have resulted in the unlawful disclosure of personal data—including Social Security numbers and tax information—belonging to tens of millions of individuals stored in Bureau of Fiscal Service systems and the unlawful disclosure of personal data belonging to millions of federal employees stored in Enterprise Human Resources Integration."

Musk may or may not be acting US DOGE administrator

The EFF and EPIC lawsuits both list the "Acting US DOGE Administrator" as a defendant, indicating that it is not clear who holds this position. But the EPIC lawsuit says that Musk "is either the Acting USDS Administrator or otherwise exercising substantial authority within USDS."

We sent inquiries about the lawsuits to DOGE, the White House, OPM, Treasury Department, Education Department, and Department of Justice. OPM and the Education Department declined to comment. We will update this article if we get any comments about the lawsuits.

This week's lawsuits add to the mounting litigation over DOGE and Musk's access to government records. Last week, a federal judge approved an order that temporarily blocks DOGE access to Treasury payment systems and records until there's a ruling on a motion for a preliminary injunction. The Department of Education was also sued Friday by a California student association over DOGE's access to student financial aid and loan data.

EFF: “Brazen ransacking” of Americans’ data

The EFF said on its website that the "brazen ransacking of Americans' sensitive data is unheard of in scale. With our co-counsel Lex Lumina, State Democracy Defenders Fund, and the Chandra Law Firm, we represent current and former federal employees whose privacy has been violated. We are asking the court for a temporary restraining order to immediately cease this dangerous and illegal intrusion. This massive trove of information includes private demographic data and work histories of essentially all current and former federal employees and contractors as well as federal job applicants."

The EFF said the OPM database is one of the largest collections of employee data in the US, given that the federal government is the nation's largest employer.

"In addition to personally identifiable information such as names, Social Security numbers, and demographics, it includes work experience, union activities, salaries, performance, and demotions; health information like life insurance and health benefits; financial information like death benefit designations and savings programs; and classified information [in] nondisclosure agreements. It holds records for millions of federal workers and millions more Americans who have applied for federal jobs," the EFF said.

The EFF said "DOGE's unchecked access puts the safety of all federal employees at risk of everything from privacy violations to political pressure to blackmail to targeted attacks," adding that Musk last year "publicly disclosed the names of specific government employees whose jobs he claimed he would cut before he had access to the system."

A Washington Post report last week said that some federal "officials have raised concerns that DOGE associates appeared to violate security protocols by using private email addresses or not disclosing their identities on government calls."

The individual plaintiffs in the EFF's lawsuit include federal employee Vanessa Barrow, a New York resident who works at the Brooklyn Veterans Affairs Medical Center. "As a federal employee since September 2008, Ms. Barrow's sensitive personal and employment information was included in the OPM records that Defendants disclosed and continue to disclose," the lawsuit said.

Seeking financial damages

The lawsuit has two other named plaintiffs who are former federal employees, and 100 Doe plaintiffs who are current and former employees or contractors of the US government. Plaintiffs, including members of the unions that are part of the lawsuit, are entitled to financial payments because they "have sustained and will continue to sustain actual damages and pecuniary losses directly traceable to Defendants' violations," the lawsuit said.

The separate lawsuit filed by EPIC in Virginia said that case's single Doe plaintiff is entitled to statutory damages of $1,000 per each act of unauthorized inspection and disclosure, and punitive damages "because the Treasury Department and DOGE's unlawful disclosure of their confidential return information was either willful or a result of gross negligence."

"Taxpayers have a private right of action to seek damages under 26 U.S.C. § 7431 for the knowing or negligent unauthorized inspection or disclosure of returns or return information in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 6103," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit filed in the District of Maryland by unions and several individuals said the "plaintiffs include veterans who receive benefit payments as provided by law, current and former federal employees whose confidential employment files reside in the Office of Personnel Management's system, and teachers, first responders, and health care workers whose pathway to careers in public service included relying on student loans to fund their own educations."

All of these plaintiffs had personal data "improperly disclosed to DOGE representatives in a manner completely divorced from the legitimate purposes for which it was maintained and in violation of their privacy rights," the lawsuit said. The plaintiffs are said to be "concerned that the breach may well result in serious personal, social, and economic harm, from being targeted for harassment and threats to doxxing, swatting, and identity theft."

Military veterans worried about data access

Plaintiff Donald Martinez of Colorado served in Iraq for the Army and now receives Social Security disability insurance and other government benefits. "Especially because of his previous military service in a geographically sensitive area and involvement in high-level negotiations because of which he received death threats from terrorists, Plaintiff Martinez is worried that unauthorized access and disclosure of his personal information held within the federal government will compromise his personal safety and security," the lawsuit said.

Plaintiff Christopher Purdy of Georgia served in the Army National Guard and was deployed to Iraq and currently leads a nonprofit advocacy group. Purdy is "very worried that Musk and DOGE may use their unauthorized access to his personal information to stop his VA disability payments, a major source of income in his household," the lawsuit said.

The Trump executive order establishing DOGE said its goal was "modernizing federal technology and software to maximize efficiency and productivity." It said that US agencies must give DOGE "full and prompt access to all unclassified agency records, software systems, and IT systems."

An incident this week may add to concerns about Musk's understanding of government systems. On Monday, he criticized a user on X for stating that the US government uses SQL.

"This retard thinks the government uses SQL," Musk wrote. The federal government is in fact a heavy user of SQL in multiple forms, including Microsoft SQL server and MySQL Enterprise Edition for Governments.

Musk's comment came in a discussion of another post in which Musk claimed without evidence that a lack of de-duplication in the Social Security database "enables MASSIVE FRAUD!!" because "you can have the same SSN many times over." The comment that earned Musk's rebuke was, "TIL Elon has never used SQL."

 

 

1 minute ago, sidis said:

so the guy in charge of doge - the wealthiest man in the world whose wealth is largely predicated on his equity value in tesla - is rooting out corruption and waste by accepting a $400 million order from the united states state department to purchase cars from...tesla?  the single largest line item in the 2025 state dept. procurement budget.

https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FY25-Procurement-Forecast.xlsx

I thought Trump said the federal government was forbidden from purchasing EVs? 

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Posted
15 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/02/largest-data-breach-in-us-history-three-more-lawsuits-try-to-stop-doge/

“Largest data breach in US history”: Three more lawsuits try to stop DOGE 

Doge and Musk face three more lawsuits over "brazen ransacking" of private data.

 

I thought Trump said the federal government was forbidden from purchasing EVs? 

30 year leases. No upgrades or resell options.

What Tesla can they really uparmor? armor is fucking heavy. It takes some massive modifications to the vehicle.

Posted
4 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

30 year leases. No upgrades or resell options.

What Tesla can they really uparmor? armor is fucking heavy. It takes some massive modifications to the vehicle.

From a powertrain stand point, there is plenty of muscle available in most of those to carry additional weight. So I guess that is something. The problem is that there is no real way to offset the range hit by doing that. If you up armor an ICE vehicle, you can include a bigger gas tank. Adding additional batteries is much more difficult and expensive. But given that Elon has billed the Cybertruck as "bullet proof", I guess the state department is buying of bunch of those stupid things. 

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Posted
13 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

From a powertrain stand point, there is plenty of muscle available in most of those to carry additional weight. So I guess that is something. The problem is that there is no real way to offset the range hit by doing that. If you up armor an ICE vehicle, you can include a bigger gas tank. Adding additional batteries is much more difficult and expensive. But given that Elon has billed the Cybertruck as "bullet proof", I guess the state department is buying of bunch of those stupid things. 

Does this mean we get a remake of clear and present danger with Harrison ford and team being ambushed in a convoy of cyber trucks instead of Yukons? 

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Posted
15 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

From a powertrain stand point, there is plenty of muscle available in most of those to carry additional weight. So I guess that is something. The problem is that there is no real way to offset the range hit by doing that. If you up armor an ICE vehicle, you can include a bigger gas tank. Adding additional batteries is much more difficult and expensive. But given that Elon has billed the Cybertruck as "bullet proof", I guess the state department is buying of bunch of those stupid things. 

It is not just the added weight of armor plates and glass, it is also the added wait to the chassis and shit.

I am curious to know what the unit delivered cost is going to be. I watch DOS procurement pretty damn close. This was never advertised as an open solicitation. Yet it does not say sole sourced anywhere.

 

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Posted
41 minutes ago, sidis said:

so the guy in charge of doge - the wealthiest man in the world whose wealth is largely predicated on his equity value in tesla - is rooting out corruption and waste by accepting a $400 million order from the united states state department to purchase armored cars from...tesla?  the single largest line item in the 2025 state dept. procurement budget.

https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FY25-Procurement-Forecast.xlsx

that should go well.

ezgif.com-optimize-2-1.gif

giphy(31).gif.6468a55ba3eb4c216126eefcb440d35b.gif



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