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Holy shit.
Just wow, wow, holy shit:
Completely rewriting a multi-million line COBOL codebase that has life-or-death consequences for real people in the space of a few months, using gen AI?
I’ve been writing software for 40-some years, and I have to say: this may be, without exaggeration, the stupidest software-related idea I’ve ever heard from leadership.
https://www.wired.com/story/doge-rebuild-social-security-administration-cobol-benefits/
I urge you to listen to the riveting and wonderful radio feature about what happens when you try to build a make-or-break project on a ridiculously tight timeline:
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/the-worst-video-game-ever/
The page has summary text, but listen if you can. I’ve heard very few instances of a developer speaking so candidly and with such self-awareness about what it feels like to be part of a failing software project.
Listen. Then imagine that instead of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, it’s social security for the entire USA.
I always give that story as an assignment to my Software Design and Development students. One of the things we talk about is that if the developer •hadn’t• managed to build the game, if the project had collapsed at any point before release, it probably would have saved the company.
The worst possible outcome here is that these DOGEbags manage to build •something• and actually think it works.
@inthehands that would be not just disastrous for social security itself but for the entire software industry. The damage could happen even if they fail to actually replace anything but simply say they did it. A bunch of managers and investors are suddenly going to have absolutely absurd beliefs about what's possible in development. So many people are so credulous towards Musk because they want to believe him.
i don't GAF about the software industry, if they failed to actually replace anything but just said they did, that would be fine, Social Security as is works very well
the problem is they're going to break what's working & leave those of us who have worked since age 16 and not yet even reached the full retirement age of 67 with NOTHING to live on when we can't work after we made 50 years of contributions
everything else is a distraction
@peachfront @inthehands I don't think the magical thinking I'm referring to will be confined to the software industry, and that will have real consequences to workers more generally.
it may but they'll get over it (my husband is a programmer, it was ever thus that managers had unrealistic expectations)
thus my greater concern for people who can't work> you can't long survive being denied access to money for food & meds
+ even if we assume Elon is a fool, the actual programmers know generally how long stuff takes to do>these tech bros appear to be INTENTIONALLY working to deniably genocide old people for their personal profit
so that's my focus
@peachfront @inthehands oh yeah I don't like when people overfocus on what affects middle class people who can fend for themselves (and yeah people who can't work are more vulnerable to people who are, which is often a blind spot for people).
@peachfront @thomasjwebb @inthehands well as one of those old people it’s curiously weird feeling to read this and know for sure that these people have no concern at all about potentially millions of people dying after not getting their benefits while they fuck around with computer software. Really, nothing to see here just old people scrounging through dumpsters for food like the good old days.
@peachfront @thomasjwebb @inthehands
I firmly believe one of the main goals of the musk/trump admin is to steal as much money as they can from the govt/taxpayers.
Not content with not paying taxes themselves to begin with, they're going to fleece us all.
@504DR @thomasjwebb @inthehands
i think so too
@peachfront @thomasjwebb @inthehands
What they can't steal, they'll grift.
$75,000 to $200,000 corp sponsorships for the annual WH Easter Egg Hunt.
@peachfront @thomasjwebb @inthehands I believe the word you’re looking for is THEFT.
Not only of the $$ you had to set aside from your paycheck every pay period, but your employer(s) had to as well.
As dumpy would say, “theft like you’ve never seen before. The biggest theft. Like you can’t imagine”
But…we can imagine, because it’s very personal to each of us.