[emagdnim2100]

disappointing to see so many “hacker” news comments complaining about lack of credentials or system-specific expertise.

yes, existing government systems are insanely complex - that’s part of the problem! the essential complexity is not higher than that of a brain-computer interface, or an interplanetary rocket.

we don’t even know what these kids’ mandate is (also disappointing). but if your general premise is “smart outsiders who are good at engineering are always the wrong people to rework complex, inefficient systems,” i’d like to think you’re on the wrong site.

[whoknowsidont]

The problem with these types of comments is your filtering reality through some sort of weird hero-complex you're clinging to. It's not realistic and it's harmful.

The people involved in this are not qualified or capable in _any_ manner to be doing what they're doing. They are sycophants.

Worse, it's putting an entire nation in jeopardy.

This isn't "smart, young spirits defy all odds and save the day!" it's really "hitler youth comes in and starts thrashing about until daddy gets his way."

[alfalfasprout]

Yep. You can move fast and break things in a SAAS startup or some dumb LLM as a service startup.

But the stakes are much higher in what they're touching. And the way they're being brought in is selecting for loyal sycophants, nothing else. If they disagree musk will axe them in seconds.

[l0t0b0r0s]

You're making swathing character attacks and claiming that you are qualified to know who is qualified. If anyone has a hero complex its you with your emotional argument and alarmism.

Very compelling argument, definitely not partisan rhetoric.

[vzqx]

I'm open to outsiders improving inefficiencies. The concern is that these are kids, barely out of college. They don't have the domain-specific knowledge required to rework these complex systems, no matter how smart they are. Plus, given Musk's track record, they were likely chosen more for their loyalty to Musk than for their technical acumen.

[tgv]

> the essential complexity is not higher than that of a brain-computer interface, or an interplanetary rocket.

Sorry, but that's such an absurd comment. These kids don't even know anything about rocket building, let alone they're able to build a rocket from first principles. Second, the US government is much more complex than a rocket; it cannot be understood by a single person. Third, you can waste rockets, but a whole nation depends on one goverment. You can't just experiment with it. Fourth, there are lives at stake. It's not just a payload, or one or two astronauts who know what they signed up for, that are at their mercy.

[lm28469]

> yes, existing government systems are insanely complex - that’s part of the problem! the essential complexity is not higher than that of a brain-computer interface, or an interplanetary rocket.

Yeah, and why don't we build concentration camps again? They're super efficient in term of work per unit of food. Colonies are also super nice, lots of free stuff!

Some people should open history books, life isn't about refactoring everything, making things as simple as possible, &c. It would be comical if it wasn't the very first thing you learn as an engineer

If you think a rocket is more complex than hundreds of years of infinitely complex people making decisions and compromises through democracy you're completely out of touch with reality, and if you genuinely think we can just burn it all down because some nerd unilaterally thinks he found a better way to do it you're just plain dumb.

[kelnos]

"Smart" isn't enough when dealing with systems like these. I want smart and experienced.

[jeffbee]

There is zero evidence that any of these guys are even average.

[drawkward]

Thank you!

[drawkward]

Disappointing seeing so many "smart" people on this site thinking that a government shoild be run like a business.

[bagels]

Qualified or not, it's crimes, unconstitutional, and fascist.