I once recovered from my political day job by participating in laughing game evenings in the house of a person who is now releasing tens of thousands of federal employees.
For Steve Davis,, Elon Musks Right hand in the so -called Department of Government Efficiency (Dog), life has always been a game. A puzzle that had to be solved. Regardless of a larger vision or a value system.
But unfortunately how I do The New York Times toldis my friend, who was once a funny lateral thinker, now a drone. Blindly arise compared to a corrupt billionaire on a self -enhancing power rush.
Most Americans have never heard of the man who affected their lives
Even worse for millions of Americans is that Steves currently does not allow him to question the obvious mistake in the game that Musk has given him. This game only gives points for cutting dollars in the federal budget. Even if higher financial costs – plus the costs for human suffering – are transferred to American families and companies.
Most Americans have never heard of the man who affects their lives. Americans should know the following about Steve Davis. In particular, Republican Congress members, who between the ideal of “government efficiency” and the enormous resistance that their voters express every day, be caught.
Steve is eccentric. His former apartment in Washington, DC, looked like a start-up. With a table tennis table and a drinking machine to the delight of the guests. Once he organized a dinner party with a narrow that announced the guests at the door, a magician and playful Justin bieze plate.
“I don’t know anything about politics”
I missed the opportunity to invest what Steve described as “fun money” in his bar named Thomas Fooler. Customers were able to shoot each other with spray guns. And the drink prices were left to chance. Surprisingly, the bar failed quickly.
Steve Mied political conversations and said again and again: “I don’t know anything about politics.”
He was more interested in playing games late into the night with friends. Frequently invented new rules, respected those who were fast enough to keep up with them and stuck against those who stumbled.
He was the only employee of Elon Musk for years Spaceex in Washington. To get his first job as an engineer, Musk allegedly asked Steveto reduce the costs for a $ 120,000 items. Steve managed to reduce the costs to $ 3,900. (It is not known whether this new part ultimately passed the costs to customers.)
Steve Davis worshiped Musk
Friends were hardly reminded of Steve’s job. An exception was an annual scavenger hunt, which he organized in Mr. Yogato. His yoghurt business where people received discounts by dancing, knewing lyrics and His field-Quiz questions. The winning teams of the scavenger hunt received objects that had been shot into space, or won Tesla test trips.
I last heard from Steve in 2023 and I can’t remember having seen him personally since 2018 when he left Washington to move to Texas to be closer to the SpaceX rocket starting area. The few times that I asked Steve on Musk a decade ago, her relationship seemed to be distant. But that changed, as did his innocent play of play.
In a recently published book with the title “Character Limit” is reported that Musk worked with many blenders, but Steve “went one step further” and “revered” Musk.
He finally became Musk’s loyal problem solver. Steve described the Relationship with Musk as “Look here, Davis, do it!”
“I just want to see how the rocket stands out”
When Steve met with regulatory obstacles, Musk is supposed to him supposedly have insulted and threatened with discharge. Traumatic rules of the game that Steve would apparently carry around with him. When asked about his vision of the colonization of space he repliedthat this question is “for the elons of this world. I just want to see how [die Rakete] Submissed “. A scary, automated setting if you use it to the current Trump government.
Allegedly Steve Musk stayed with his newborn baby in the Twitter headquarters after buying Twitter. Court files According to Steve Musk crowded Twitter’s employees to violate rental contracts. And asked them to violate local approval laws, while Twitter dismissed thousands of employees and refused to pay out the outstanding funds. Everything to achieve Musk’s cost reduction target.
When Musk started hundreds of millions in the candidacy of Donald Trump To invest, pulled Davis to Pennsylvania. The games started quickly with one Probably illegal daily millions of gifts to voters in undecided states. And with $ 47 gifts for signatories of a petition.
The rules of the Doge game are ridiculous
At that moment it is tragic that Steve’s loyalty towards Musk blindly makes him blind to what is in front of his eyes. The rules of the Doge game are ridiculous. She reinforce Inefficiency and worsen people’s lives.
Let us assume that it costs $ 10 to fill a huge pothole. This repair could prevent damage of thousands of dollars of family cars and delivery vans from companies. This is the definition of efficiency and a great use of government funds for the common good. But in Musk’s Doge game, only the reduction of the costs in the government’s balance sheet counts. Not the actual saving of money for the Americans.
In a similar way disgusted Doge thousands of employees of the Social security. Closes the Telephone support lines social insurance. And closes many Offices of the Social security.
For millions of grandparents, this probably means that checks are being received late. New applicants have difficulties in registration. And seniors with walking aids have to cover long distances in order to receive help in securing their earned services.
Taxpayers will pay these invoices for Medicare
Those who rely on their pension checks will suffer from increased medicinal bills if they cannot afford food or medication. Taxpayers will pay these invoices on Medicare.
In order to make the “efficiency” game even more absurd, Doge castrates the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which prevents banks and credit card companies from rashing Americans. The CFPB already has the Americans over 20 billion dollars saved. Of which a Jota is not taken into account in the rules of the Doge game. (This move shoots the financial guard exactly when Elon Musk in the financial services industry Entry. Certainly efficient for at least one billionaire.)
In addition, there are cuts in flight safety, food control, nutritional aid for children, health care for veterans, medicaid and clean water. Like the author Ezra Klein recently said: “Efficiency what? I want efficiency for a goal. For a future vision that is not terrible.”
Insider trading with stocks in the congress
But Steve focused on the game, the riddle of the whole – not on the vision.
I received news from real grief of those who knew Steve in innocent times. What really breaks our heart is that old Steve Davis – the brilliant, creative Steve Davis – could do inspiring work. If he had self -confidence to question Musk’s rules.
Imagine how huge companies and the super -rich taxes deal. And let the rest pay for it. Imagine insider trading with shares in the congress, the bloated military budget and corporate funding that flows when government insiders become lobbyists. Or the price driver of credit card companies, banks, health insurance companies and in the supermarket. Imagine the millions of hours that Americans lose red traffic lights with poor timers.
Artificial intelligence of the worst kind
Much of these problems could be solved by an intelligent engineer who uses technologies such as artificial intelligence. If it is about solving these problems, Steve could improve the quality of life of millions of people with his mind.
But instead we have artificial intelligence of the worst kind. Brilliance, blinded by loyalty. A game out of control. And every day Donald Trump hands over the keys to Elon Musk, who then hands over to my former friend. And the Americans are the losers.
Adam Green is a co -founder of the progressive change institutes.