DOGE reductions ARS

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nuttiest said:
Admittedly I don't keep up on this news. In the agencies where there is seemingly a workforce deficit, are new positions being added, or it is just cut everywhere?
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It seems like just cuts at the moment, but most of these departments are necessary so they'll be dismantled, waste rooted out then reassembled. The idea is to cut bureaucracy and corruption, not to destroy the country and the world with it.

People need to appreciate the long game, something we here know about, right?
 
Gosh, I can’t believe I just read the whole thread since signing out to paint lumber for more benches!

Whew!

It could be wise to recall this old saying before weighing in.

“A person convinced against their will, is of the same opinion still.”

I’m out
DSD sends
 
Deep Sea Diver said:
Gosh, I can’t believe I just read the whole thread since signing out to paint lumber for more benches!

Whew!

It could be wise to recall this old saying before weighing in.

“A person convinced against their will, is of the same opinion still.”

I’m out
DSD sends
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Another good one is "you can't convince someone that has already made up their mind"

People are too entrenched in their beliefs and unwilling, even to a point to see the other side. I believe it is the reason we will always be divided in our opinions. I am not sure there is anything that can change that.
 
Does everyone want peace and happiness to play with their trees? Yes.

Its ok to disagree on the way to get there as long as we are respectful and engaging in good faith.

I know political viewpoints come into sharpness on topics such as this, but a forum such as this with people of generally kind heart, is one of those places where divides can be bridged.

Often, all sides of the argument have valid elements to their position. We should be looking for ways to unify these elements towards what is normally a similar ultimate goal.

We want to ensure that the National Arboretum is funded and properly supported. Donations are one way. Another way is simply to point out the importance of the arboretum and message/mail/tweet/etc your representatives about how much the Arboretum means both to us as a community, but also to the Nation and the world. Few public installations have such timeless and historically important specimen. I will be drafting a letter to my state senator and representatives. When complete, anyone who would like to sign on and share it is welcome.

These are the type of things which can actually make a difference when it comes to funding.
 
Woocash said:
The problem is, something DOGE is highlighting, that when the traditional organisations for providing news are part or wholly funded by USAID and other organisations with vested interests for providing a certain narrative, then no one can trust what they say and if you can't trust the so called institutions to tell you the truth then where do you go for it? I fully agree with what you say though.

Like many people, I'm not pro trump so much as anti BS and when time after time after time again the accusations and twisted narratives are disproven or exposed with just a little bit of digging then all it does is further galvanise people against the establishment.

To be honest I think they lost us during COVID. I was all in until then.
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So covid broke your brain and made you a conspiracy nutter for life. There's so many people like that. Including very famous people. It is really sad.
You know that researchers into pandemics knew pandemics would cause this because the covid19 pandemic? I knew this would happen. I just hadn't realized how bad it would be.
And how much both social media and the US president would amplify this. We knew this from earlier pandemics. The American flu pandemic of 1918-1920 actually had most of the same conspiracies. But us scientists had this naïeve thought that being educated and knowing more about science would somehow convince ordinary people.
And that the main problem would be to convince uneducated people in third world countries. Oh, how arrogant were we to think we could convince ordinary people through fact and reason.
It is also crazy that one of the few things Trump did well, namely speed up the development of a vaccine (that were mostly European btw), is now something Trump has to deny.
And now a anti vaxxer total nut is in charge of the NIH while babies are getting sick with measles.

There's actually a movie made about this. It is called Contagion. It literally has the whole conspiracy nutter stuff in it. It just underestimated how stupid people would be.

I honestly suggest you talk to a therapist. And talk about how you feel about the 'they lost me during covid' thing. Because nothing I can say will convince you otherwise. In fact, it will just make you more angry.
You need to talk to a professional about this.
 
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When people say they are taking a break from this site after reading this thread, you'd think people would be able to step back and think, maybe I'm hurting this community by continuing. Know what, I have my personal beliefs, I plan on keeping them personal, because shit like this is exactly the problem with the world today. All this does is serve to divide this community. Maybe just stop typing, no one wins in these debates, declare a draw. We are here to talk about trees. Congratulations on derailing this thread into a degenerative pile of horse shit that has served no purpose but to divide this community. This was about helping ARS and the National Arboretum. All hobbies are our way to escape from the stress of the world around us, and you are poisoning it. I don't give a shit about your ideals, beliefs, politics or lifestyle choices, they are yours, I have mine, I dont have to agree with yours and that is OKAY. I stopped reading after 3 pages of this cancer.
 
Maybe you should start caring about the politics of those around you. And call them out personally IRL if their politics are questionable.
There is a reason why certain politicians are deliberately causing so much distress, but getting away with it.
 
Glaucus said:
Maybe you should start caring about the politics of those around you. And call them out personally IRL if their politics are questionable.
There is a reason why certain politicians are deliberately causing so much distress, but getting away with it.
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Why does a politician in another country cause you so much distress? Maybe you should spend the time you waste worrying about other people's problems and worry about your own. I'm a barber, if I called people out I would be jobless, and then maybe I would have time to worry about the issues of other cultures and people like you do. Ironically, if anything, forcing someone to listen to hate filled speech such as yours, or anyone's, only turns them further away. You've called people names, and expect them to grasp your ideologies? Anyone with half a brain would realize with the way you speak that they wouldn't want to be anywhere near you, hell people said they are leaving the site because of this thread. Do you take a dump on the couch and ask people to come sit on it next to you? Maybe if you'd show some love towards people, rather than insult them and degrade them for believing different from you. Grow up and quit acting like a child who got his toy taken away. If everyone left the world slightly better than when they came into it, maybe the public bathroom wouldn't be so nasty. You are smearing shit on the walls sir. Clean it up and maybe people wouldn't avoid the public bathroom you turned this into. No one cares about you or your beliefs in here, we come here to enjoy the art of bonsai, and the peace it brings us. Do you scream your beliefs in the middle of the movie theater? No, because someone would probably punch you in the throat. Not because of your beliefs, but the fact it isn't the place to scream anything, the audience doesn't want to hear it. So shut the fuck up and sit down.
 
I am going to shut this thread down. The reality is that there is a lot of fear and uncertainty in the country right now, and the die is cast. 21 months until the next election... at which point the public will get to say whether they agree or not.
 
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