Comment Re:Trump is a Kleptocrat (Score 0) 228
The USA started out as a federal republic but has since degenerated into a kleprocratic neo-feudalist banana-republic run by a criminal mafia oligarchy
I, too, believe we need to end the Fed.
Comment A little background (Score 0, Troll) 56
Analysis of OMB Memoranda M-22-18 and M-23-16
Who's criticizing these memoranda?
Industry and vendor concerns (from the implementation period):
Suppliers and vendors faced variations in conformity assessment expectations from agency to agency, with each agency potentially taking different approaches to the self-attestations. The attestation requirements had to be obtained for every major version change, creating ongoing compliance burdens.
Officers of companies signing the attestation form faced potential criminal liability under 18 U.S.C. 1001 for willfully providing false or misleading information, which created significant legal exposure for vendors.
The Trump administration (January 2026):
OMB's January 2026 memorandum noted that M-22-18 imposed unproven and burdensome software accounting processes that prioritized compliance over genuine security investments and diverted agencies from developing tailored assurance requirements. This was the stated reason for rescinding the policy.
Implementation examples:
Successes:
Challenges:
Hardware security keys cost $20-$50 per user plus licensing fees, creating budget challenges especially for small and medium-sized businesses, along with logistical challenges distributing keys to remote workforces.
Current status:
Important: Both M-22-18 and M-23-16 were rescinded in January 2026 through memorandum M-26-05, which adopted a risk-based approach instead of the universal attestation requirement. Agencies can now choose whether to use CISA's Common Form or develop their own approaches.
Conclusion:
These were technically sound policies with real security merit, but execution had legitimate friction - vendor burden, legal liability concerns, timeline slippage, and agency-by-agency variation. The rescission suggests the new administration viewed the compliance costs as outweighing benefits, though software supply chain security remains a stated priority.
Comment Re:Kewl story, what about the other countries? (Score 1) 146
We know what to do; the tech we're revisiting now is from the 70s.
Comment 50 years of stagnation (Score 1) 146
Comment Re:No shit (Score 0) 104
Comment Re:Crypto is *not* that "alternative" (Score 1) 50
Comment Re:Current Stage: The Great Grift (Score 1) 50
- The market sets the price.
- Government can't inflate away the value.
Unless we go back to some backed currency, like a gold standard, the government will just spend and inflate away the value of its money, impoverishing the masses; we need an alternative.
Comment Re:!free, good riddance (Score 1) 93
Comment Re:Taxes are a government requirement (Score 1) 93
Comment !free, good riddance (Score 1) 93
I believe these were all simple returns, returns that could easily have used any of the existing free filing services, at no cost to the taxpayer.
These aren't just startup costs; the IRS estimated the running costs to be between $64M and $249M annually (so probably around $750M annually).
Comment Re:How about we do the opposite? (Score 1) 129
Comment Re:they can't climb steps (Score 1) 56
Comment Re:And what is actually more valuable to us? (Score 1) 153
"cloud computers" connect the world, making this critical communications infrastructure available everywhere, while reducing redundancy (better for the environment).
"reusable rockets" will make humanity a multiple planetary species, and this increase in redundancy might be what we need to pass through the Great Filter.
It's debatable which are more important and socially useful, but I'm glad not everyone is doing what Europe's doing, so we have both.