[rectang]

Trying to find a silver lining and think positively...

Will a future administration have an opportunity to build something new and better from scratch which would not have been possible due to institutional resistance before it was all burnt down?

[simonw]

If we're really, really lucky.

Destroying institutions is one heck of a lot easier than building new ones.

[Tanoc]

It's not even about rebuilding. Some things when destroyed can never be recreated, like trust, oceanliners, or the practice of Dísting. The initial event of destruction creates an expectation that it will happen again. Once it does happen the process accelerates itself until the full expectation is that whatever thing, concept, or practice can never exist again as anything more than a fleeting revival.

[SXX]

Institutional longevity is what differs developed countries from failed or failing states. Whole point of having institutions is to make sure rules dont change every 4, 6 or 8 years.

Some amazing new administration can come up with tons of good ideas, but they will only become real institutions if they survive for decades to come. Institutions are not just government agencies, law or people. Tradition and longevity are probably even more important.

Do you want to build a company in a country where all the law, tax code and regulations are replaced with amazing but brand new one every 4 years? Probably not?

And changing rules are much worse for scientific research because most often it span decades or even generations of scientists. People will just choose to go live and work somewhere more stable.

[selectodude]

That’s the best case scenario - requires a lot of people currently involved in this to be jailed or executed before we can even begin to move on though. I’m not super optimistic.

[BLKNSLVR]

Let us not say executed.

It's a harsher punishment that they live to see the rebuild of what they turned to ash.

[datsci_est_2015]

Let us not hesitate to seek justice.

I fear that the capture of American media and the DOJ is too far gone, and that following through with proper punishment for the naked corruption of this regime would be unpopular. “Let bygones be bygones.”

Oh, to live in an America where white-collar crimes and financial treason were actually punished…

[rectang]

I'm very much with you for "punish" and "jail", but if you are insisting on execution like commenters upthread, we will part ways there.

[datsci_est_2015]

The punishment for treason can be death. Risking the lives of American intelligence agents and military operators for financial gain is plainly treasonous. I am not convinced beyond a doubt that that has not happened in this government.

[rectang]

With your focus on death as punishment — the day after an apparent assassination attempt no less — it seems we have less in common than I supposed. I’m not with you after all.

[juniperus]

Describing the political machinations of institutional academia as a category where summary executions are applicable is the type of thing that led to the Soviet Union instituting Lysenkoism for decades and other profoundly anti-intellectual absurdities since all the academics were just randomly killed for a generation. We don't need that. That's hysterical emotional overreaction which is the opposite of rational academic behavior. The NSF will just get funding in the next administration, this isn't the end of the world. If they just hasten the grant awarding pipeline in 2028, it'll be a blip in the scheme of things lol, these grants can be like 5 years long. You're talking about a field of very smart people, everyone is just being more frugal and putting off big purchases and doing research that isn't expensive and things aren't blowing up lol.

[gorbachev]

Even if so, it doesn't matter, because 4 - 8 years later it'll be reversed again. And because it takes longer to rebuild than dismantle, it will never be the same.

This is the cycle now. 180 degree turns in policy every 4 or 8 years. There's no long term planning.

China and Russia must be enjoying this.