You Bet Your Sweet FAA?

 

So, let me just express what I will consider my "conservative" reservations about the DOGE team "plugging in" to "upgrade our aviation system." I just don't know that a team of even extremely bright and committed young people, running on high optimism and little sleep, are going to do miracles sorting out air traffic control--especially if they approach this with a "move fast break stuff ethos."

I might be catastrophizing, but I worry that the guy who promised us driverless cars is thinking of something like air traffic control--without controllers.

Call me "analog"--a throwback. I believe in the human element.  I believe in lived experiences mattering for something. When I see something like this, I do think of what can go wrong, that an experienced knowledgeable expert in a given field, might think about, that even a very talented novice will not. 

Look, consider the mentality that deleted a bunch of pages and tried to ban a list of words that are essential and have multiple meanings, based on the perception that those words were some kind of "DEI" or "political correctness."  Banning "women"--wow! So what are we doing about studies into maternal health care, ignoring women? That feels wrong. Or "diversity"--what about ecological diversity, or a diversity of crops--that word can be used multiple ways.

"Cultures" is supposedly problematic? What if someone works in a lab and regularly takes "cultures" to test for pathogens? The idiocy--it burns! Techies might fixate on the code or the mission, and forget or not know the practical, real-world aspects of the applications they are working on.

This is why I hope like hell they are consulting with experienced hands and listen carefully when somebody tries to tell them the important word: "No." I hope they don't go too fast looking for solutions without really engaging with the problems and recognizing that failure is a matter of life or death.

Just like they have already probably interfered with matters of life or death and haven't fully absorbed that. And will, in the eventual experience of hopefully a long, aware and conscience-informed life.