[Themaintainers] Why does the IRS need $80 billion? Just look at its cafeteria.

[Camille Acey]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2022/irs-pipeline-tax-return-delays/?itid=hp-top-table-main-t-2

While this article smacks of the flagrant conflation of "old" with "bad"(e.g. COBOL is sturdy legacy tech that has withstood the test of time!), it also highlights the state's chronic underinvestment in its own critical infrastructure. This quote was particularly eye-opening

> The technology dates to the 1970s — though this particular machine was updated in the ’90s to make it Y2K-compliant. The company that once manufactured SCAMPS no longer exists; when the machine breaks down, an IRS employee fabricates replacement parts on-site. “Only one guy knows how to fix the thing,” says John Desselle, a mailroom department manager.

$80 billion is great, but I do wonder whether people like the ones highlighted here will have any say as to how its spent!

Camille
Camille Emefa Acey https://camilleacey.com

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/You cannot buy the revolution. You cannot make the revolution. You can only be the revolution. It is in your spirit, or it is nowhere/.
- Ursula K. Le Guin
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