10 ms·
Much too quiet here on HN on this post Science underpins technology, people. If you want to see the US rapidly lose its place in the tech world over the next
by gttalbot 1y ago
Much too quiet here on HN on this post
Science underpins technology, people.
If you want to see the US rapidly lose its place in the tech world over the next decade, this is a great way to go about it.
- jvanderbot 1y agoYes of course. The problem is what can be done? The usual arrangement of letter writing or donating and voting is just more of the same cycle. I'm not by any means in favor of what's going on, but some steam has to be let out of the system. And the real problem is trust in our institutions. What can be done about that?
- adamtaylor_13 1y agoMy thoughts exactly. I certainly have throes of people on Facebook complaining about this, but what shall I, the individual, do about this? I have my causes to which I devote great time and personal effort, but if I stopped my life for every minor disaster I would spend my life shaking my fist at my computer. I quite like my life and I don’t intend to spend it getting rage baited by never-ending news cycles. Give me an action to take, not an emotion to feel.
- BenFranklin100 1y agoHow old are you? What is happening now at the NSF and NIH will knock the US off its technological perch in less than 15 to 20 years. We are already fighting to maintain an edge as it is. What this means to you personally and other tech workers is that many of the well-paying tech jobs will be going elsewhere.
- harimau777 1y agoAt this point I'm not sure that's a bad thing. It would be kind of great to be able to get a decent job somewhere that isn't a dystopia.
- BenFranklin100 1y agoWhatever buddy.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- saulpw 1y agoIt's not a bad thing...for those other countries. As an American you're not going to be able to get those jobs. You think a Chinese company is going to want to hire a remote American worker, who is 10 time zones away, doesn't speak the language, doesn't know the culture, and who wants to work only 40 hours a week? Maybe not even if you're willing to work for $20/hour.
- intended 1y agoWhy would there be decent jobs? And what makes you think there wont be only more dystopia if this descent isn’t arrested? Like, it can ALWAYS be worse.
- davidw 1y agoI'm nearly 50 and have watched politics swing back and forth all my life. That's not what is currently happening. It's not a minor disaster. It's something we'll take generations to recover from, if ever. We can't do much, individually. Find people in your community working on stuff you care about and get out there and pitch in. Get involved. Make sure your local school district isn't banning books or being cruel to trans kids. Make sure you have good city councilors. A friend of mine made this in the area where I live: https://deschutesgrassroots.com/ https://deschutesgrassroots.com/
- MaysonL 1y agoCall and write your Congresspeople. Picket a Tesla dealer. Get vaccinated.
- trhway 1y agoIn addition i'd also suggest looking at deep roots of why half the country is cheering it up. They don't want their country to go down the drain. Then why? It was pretty illustrative how MAGA was cheering the stopping of condoms money to Kenya in the Trump's speech. It looked like a caricature example of the government waste. Well, condoms there is one of the most effective ways to slow down HIV spreading. I'd bet MAGA wouldn't want more people there to get HIV. I'd bet MAGA just didn't know it. To me the "[not]know" is the root keyword in all that destruction happening now.
- brookst 1y ago> I'd bet MAGA wouldn't want more people there to get HIV That is incredibly charitable. Kudos, I guess, but not at all in line with what I’ve seen.
- jvanderbot 1y agoIf it were free, I guarantee every single maga republican I know would be ok with it. It's an issue of tradeoffs, and the tradeoffs were never clearly articulated even to me the most staunch supporter of foreign aid. We've just accepted it and all such programs because we can see, because we trust, that the analysis was done and is valid. Government does not currently have that level of trust with half the country, and worse has active distrust.
- harimau777 1y agoAt this point, I'm not sure it matters that much. You can't convince people who want to be ignorant.
- 20after4 1y agoI think you drastically underestimate people's hatred. MAGA do indeed want for more people in Kenya to get AIDS.
- johntitorjr 1y agoMass protests and non-violent civil disobedience. I hope that we don't reach a point where going beyond that is required.
- bloomingkales 1y ago[flagged]
- grandempire 1y ago> on the wrong side of history I don’t think history is a progression of superior morals or thinking, or that there are ethical “sides” to it.
- bloomingkales 1y agoSure, go back in time and talk to the Abolitionists or those who opposed Civil Rights. It's not gray, that's a big misconception. Dang is completely wrong about censoring and flagging discussion on a fucking coup in America. If the discussion devolves a million times, then let it devolve a million times. It's necessary. Whatever, it's only month three, not too late.
- grandempire 1y ago> civil right. Abolitionist Notice that your ability to label things with a strong moral charge refers to a handful of historical events from the past 200 years. Everything before that gets really fuzzy, is multi-faceted, and doesn’t evoke emotion.
- bloomingkales 1y agoLike what? Do you mean like should we or shouldn't we enslave people to build the Pyramids? Is that what you mean? Like, that's just how it was back then and so its like, okay? So like, that's just how it is now days, so like, whatever Dang is doing with this is like, morally alright? Put a bow on this for me.
- grandempire 1y agoIf someone came up to you and said “I supported X side in the hundred years between England and France” 1) are they on the wrong or right side of history? 2) would anyone in 2025 have their moral sensibilities hurt?
- ModernMech 1y agoChain yourself to a Tesla dealership. I'm serious. Getting Elon Musk to cry about how unfair he's being treated on TV amidst the damage he's doing will do more to hasten his departure than any letter or check you can write.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- fallingknife 1y agoThe institutions have lost trust by sneaking political decisions through under the guise of science. Science can tell you what will happen if you make a certain decision, but it can't tell you what decision to make because that is a fundamentally non scientific question. They can regain trust by acting in a trustworthy manner.
- jvanderbot 1y agoYeah I agree with this. If these tradeoffs were articulated and then everyone was allowed to personally buy "foreign aid bonds" then people could put their money to work in what mattered to them. Instead the whole country funds programs that half of them don't trust, regardless of who is in charge.
- SecretDreams 1y agoI've noticed on HN that any post involving less wholesome takes on the US admin and/or doge leadership become brigaded quite heavily with more lower quality discourse than the normal fare. It's a really interesting phenomenon. And I'm kind of surprised the community allows it.
- davidw 1y agoTBH, politics is and should be taken elsewhere because it is much more important than most of what we discuss here and therefore could easily crowd out everything else.
- SecretDreams 1y agoBut there's a strong intersection between STEM, policy, and downstream innovation/employment - not to mention any ethical dilemmas along the way. Not discussing and/or allowing bots to overrun any such discussion and drown out dissent has never in the history of man left to immediately better times in STEM.
- davidw 1y agoI'm not sure what the right answer is: if HN were to change its policy and focus on the authoritarian assault on the US in all its forms, it would easily crowd out everything else, and draw in a bunch of people interested in only politics. It's sure hard to ignore. IDK, maybe some enterprising person should start a "hackers for democracy" web site where we can share ideas or something.
- SecretDreams 1y agoI don't think removing the rule is the play. Could be nice to relax it Fridays or the weekend. TGIF rules.
- lolinder 1y ago> draw in a bunch of people interested in only politics. This is already happening. I'm finding myself visiting the site less and less and enjoying my time here less and less because every single thread is getting hijacked by people who just want to talk politics. That I largely agree with the general mood is exactly the problem: I don't need HN to work me up into even greater despair, I come here to engage my mind on useful things and talk about complex ideas with interesting people. But the interesting people are increasingly retreating from the nonstop anger cycle that's been feeding this site's engagement this year.
- jmclnx 1y ago>If you want to see the US rapidly lose its place in the tech world over the next decade, this is a great way to go about it. Too late, unless DOGE is stopped now and Trump is impeached, the US will lose its lead in tech and health (pharma) and many other industries. Pure and simple. Already the smartest of the smart are leaving the US for Europe and probably China. If this is allowed to continue, in 6 months to a year, the US will be isolated and a third rate economy. All it will have is a first class war machine, which will not bode well for the world.
- jimbokun 1y ago> All it will have is a first class war machine And that won't last for much longer after losing those other sectors, either, as military dominance is a function of economic and technological superiority.
- lolinder 1y ago> Much too quiet here on HN on this post This whole topic has been done to death on HN, and this post doesn't contribute much that hasn't already been discussed extensively. Science underpins technology, but we've had 2-3 DOGE-related topics pinned to the front page at a time nonstop since the inauguration and the subject is bleeding incessantly into every other submission on the site. Rest assured you'll have another 500+ comment rage fest in the near future, probably this week. This one just doesn't have enough going to feed the rage spiral—it's pretty blase compared to the dosage we've worked ourselves up to.
- bloomingkales 1y ago[flagged]
- ModernMech 1y agoIf things go for much longer it'll be too late. In many ways it already is. Scientists I know are changing careers. Thinking of moving. Other countries are thinking about how they can take advantage of the brain drain. Even if things turn around today so much damage has been done already that it'll be felt for a long time.
- bloomingkales 1y agoThe only hope we have is that Trump is a true circus ring master. He cancels the previous admin things and reinstates them with his name and a republican spin.