Unless you live under a rock, you should be outraged and alarmed about a series of developments where Elon Musk and his cadre of youthful operatives are aggressively infiltrating federal agencies, seizing access to the most sensitive personal information of American citizens.
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Over the weekend, the New York Times reported that Musk's so-called "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) is poised to obtain taxpayer data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The Times also revealed that Musk and his team have forced the resignation of the head of the Social Security Administration (SSA) after she refused requests from Musk to gain access to sensitive government records.
To believe that Musk and his "minion of minors" don't already possess our personal information is to not just be naive, you’d be utterly foolish. We know nothing about what Musk and these tech thieves are doing behind America’s back. And if you think they’re going to pause or stop their aggression because someone, like a federal judge for example, tells them “no,” I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you, or worse an obnoxious Tesla truck.
According to the Times reporting, the IRS is preparing to grant DOGE access to sensitive taxpayer data, including tax returns and personal financial records. This move, ostensibly aimed at identifying waste and fraud, places unprecedented power in the hands of Musk's team, notably Gavin Kliger, a 26-year-old software engineer appointed as a senior adviser at the IRS.
And at the risk of sounding like a bitter old man, am I the only one who’s horrified that some bratty and arrogant 26-year-old AI enthusiast knows what my income was last year?
The potential for misuse of this data is staggering, yet the administration assures us that Kliger will “maintain confidentiality.” What a joke, a cruel joke, a vicious joke and a lie. We now know the only reason Donald Trump wanted to be re-elected was for retribution against all his perceived enemies and those he’s yet to make.
And there’s absolutely no other reason for anyone associated with Trump and Musk wanting access to our tax information than to help Trump get revenge. “Confidentiality” is a hollow promise given the reckless abandon with which DOGE has operated thus far, and how far Trump has pushed his campaign of retribution.
The acting head of the SSA, Michelle King, was compelled to resign after denying Musk access to private financial records of American citizens and Social Security recipients. Musk's audacious claim that the SSA database included over a million beneficiaries aged 150 to 159 years was swiftly debunked by former SSA commissioner Martin O'Malley. Musk’s assertion only serves as a pretext for this hostile takeover of one of America’s crown jewels of government agencies.
Musk’s brazen power grab underscores his determination to bulldoze through any resistance in his quest for dominion over our most intimate data. A court order? About as meaningless to Musk as his trans daughter.
Musk's minions have not stopped at the IRS or SSA. They have forcefully entered the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), defying security protocols to access computer systems critical to weather forecasting and environmental monitoring. Such reckless intrusion not only jeopardizes the integrity of vital data but also endangers public safety.
Moreover, DOGE operatives have seized control of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), locking out employees from systems containing personally identifiable information of millions of federal workers. These actions have prompted lawsuits and widespread outrage, yet Musk's team continues to operate with impunity.
Despite court orders and legal challenges, Musk's conceit and the overconfidence of his youthful cohort remain unchecked. Their disdain for judicial authority and democratic norms is palpable. Sen. Ron Wyden aptly described these actions as a "coup," with Musk's involvement in federal affairs raising profound concerns about privacy and the erosion of constitutional safeguards.
If you’re not paying attention, you’re in for a big surprise when a democratic and safe society is turned into an Orwellian one.
In this dystopian reality, we may soon yearn for the days when identity theft was perpetrated by faceless criminals in the shadows. At least then, victims had recourse through government agencies dedicated to consumer protection. However, under the Trump-Musk regime, these very agencies are being dismantled.
They’re shutting down agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), for instance. The CFPB has experienced widespread layoffs and the suspension of critical programs. This systematic erosion of protective institutions leaves citizens vulnerable, with no safety net to catch them if banks screw them over, credit card companies charge exorbitant junk fees, and soon when their identities and personal data are exploited by a revenge-seeking Trump administration, err autocracy.
History teaches us that autocracies thrive on the possession of damaging information about their populace. Totalitarian regimes have historically used personal data to stifle dissent, blackmail opponents, and maintain an iron grip on power. The East German Stasi, for example, maintained extensive files on citizens, using the information to intimidate and control the population.
Don’t be naive. Musk and his minions of minors already have unfettered access to our medical records, tax information, and more. And they could easily employ similar tactics like those of the Stasi. Imagine the chilling effect on free speech if criticizing Musk or Trump could result in the exposure of your private health issues or financial troubles? Or slams you with an IRS audit.
The consequences of this unchecked access are dire. Journalists, commentators, and ordinary citizens alike could find themselves targets of coercion. Their personal lives were weaponized against them for daring to speak out.
Let’s say you post something negative about Trump or Musk on a social platform. Who knows how Musk and his equally socially obsessed minions of minors would react to your “offensive” post or comment? They could bring your personal information up immediately, and threaten to disclose damaging information about you if you don’t “shut up” about them.
The very fabric of our democracy is at stake, as fear and intimidation replace open discourse and dissent.
It is imperative that we, as a society, express our collective outrage at Musk and his minions' invasive and unauthorized perusal of our personal information. We must demand accountability, transparency, and the restoration of checks and balances designed to protect our privacy and freedoms.
Anything less is a surrender to the whims of those who would exploit our data for their own authoritarian ends. Don’t assume that Musk and DOGE are waiting for permission to access your tax records and medical histories. They’re already rifling through it. What are you going to do about it?
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