And the number of federal employees has been steadily going down, relative to the size of the US population, since like the '60s.
Yeah, it’s two very much overlapping reasons to expel him - along with the fact that he never should have been admitted in the first place.
Also… “Some in the scientific community are adamant science should not be politicised, and have argued revoking Musk’s fellowship could undermine trust in science”… WTF? Yes, it would undermine trust in science to eject the guy… undermining trust in science. (And if ejecting a Nazi is “political” and people claim it undermines their trust in science, those people never really trusted science in the first place.)
Steady now. “I’m apolitical” is basically the “I was just following orders” for people with STEM degrees. Can’t mess that up for no good reason. Slippery road and all that. Why, you’re going to propose that, I don’t know, supplying dictators with deadly viruses should have consequences next, and somesuch nonsense.
Gather round while I sing you of Wernher von Braun,
A man whose allegiance, is ruled by expedience.
Call him a Nazi, he won’t even frown.
“Ha, Nazi Schmazi,” says Wernher von Braun.
Don’t say that he’s hypocritical,
Say rather that he’s apolitical.
“Once the rockets are up,
Who cares where they come down?
That’s not my department,”
Says Wernher von Braun.
Some have harsh words for this man of renown,
But some think our attitude
Should be one of gratitude,
Like the widows and cripples in old London town,
Who owe their large pensions to Wernher von Braun.
You too may be a big hero,
Once you’ve learned to count backwards to zero.
“In German oder English I know how to count down,
Und I’m learning Chinese,” says Wernher von Braun.
IIRC, this book ends with a visit to Rolling Stone, as the author considered it a reliable source in the (late 70’s / early 80’s)? as opposed to the film in which they went to NYT or some shit.
Yep, Rolling Stone wasn’t only about music. Hunter S Thompson famously covered Nixon’s reelection campaign and other writers covered California and national news, too, like Manson, Patty Hearst, and Iran-Contra. It was sometimes blurry between the writers and their subjects (see Thompson, and Wolfe’s coverage of astronauts), but they had plenty of news features.
Maye Musk is beyond disgusting, using that tag. She is truly an awful human being who created an awful offspring. Now we know where Leon learned his shit, and it wasn’t just from his father.
Andy and Charles talk about the litigation over the blanket USAID contractual “pause” through the lens of Andy’s former job as a federal civil trial attorney and how DOGE is probably wreaking havoc throughout the DOJ civil branches.
