[ExI] does a us default take down the internet? was: RE: New way to enumerate prime number

[Adrian Tymes]

On Tue, Oct 8, 2013 at 6:32 AM, spike <spike66 at att.net> wrote:

> Excellent thanks.  Sounds like the early internet designers thought of this
> and made arrangements ahead of time.
>

They thought of nuclear war, wherein the US government might be physically
unable - not just unwilling - to perform its duties.


> For those following the US government threatened shutdown, I don't
> understand why no one proposes the most obvious solutions.  Clearly we have
> far too many government workers and they are paid too much, with too little
> to do, so they occupy their time reading our email.  So start with an
> across
> the board 10% pay cut for all federal employees, then some of them get
> pissed off and leave, so you have fewer of them, so the expenses go down
> twice.


Employees aren't the primary expense.  Besides, many of them are unionized
and under contract; it would be flat-out illegal for the government to do
what you say, not to mention it would get many of those in Congress, who
have been bystanders as the two sides "negotiate", thrown out of office.

The easiest solution to getting the budget down is to withdraw our troops
from the Middle East immediately, and otherwise cease military expenditures
over there.  (And don't start new ones - e.g., maybe sell arms to the
rebels in Syria, but don't send "advisors" who we'd have to protect.)  That
would have consequences, though.
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