Stop the Idiocracy: DOGE

Monday, August 24, 2026

Weathering in the dark

A darkly whimsical editorial illustration depicts American weather forecasting as an institution collapsing into chaos and obsolescence. Inside a vast, decaying meteorological centre, antiquated instruments, dead computer terminals, tangled wiring, cobwebs and scattered papers surround a handful of exhausted women struggling to keep the operation functioning. At centre, a bewildered forecaster studies contradictory information on her phone whilst sheltering beneath an umbrella from rain inexplicably falling indoors. Beyond her, the weather itself has become absurdly unpredictable: snow, lightning, torrential rain, brilliant sunshine, tornadoes and drifting weather balloons coexist in the same impossible sky. Broken clocks, frozen machinery and neglected equipment reinforce the central metaphor — a once-sophisticated forecasting apparatus starved of expertise, maintenance and resources until Americans can no longer reliably know what tomorrow's weather will bring.

image generated via ChatGPT

Weather forecasting in the former United States is set back decades by the Trump regime. {The Independent 24 August}

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/doge-noaa-weather-usa-b3035937.html

Rapidly descending to the status of a Third World s**thole —

FTA: Experts told Forbes that there are simply fewer weather monitoring instruments being used today than before agencies like the NOAA suffered cuts under the Trump administration

According to the report there are fewer buoys measuring wave conditions than in 2024, and fewer weather balloons being launched to collect data on air pressure, temperature, humidity, and windspeed.

That data feeds weather models, which is then used to build forecasts by weather apps and local forecasters.

One program, enacted 20 years ago to measure arctic ice, was recently cut by the Trump administration. Plans for a next-generation weather satellite meant to replace two older, faltering structures that may begin to fail in the next several years have been scrapped.

Overall, the Trump administration has cut between $1.6 and $1.7 billion in funding from the NOAA’s budget, and more than 800 NOAA workers since February.

The impacts on the nation's ability to reliably produce forecasts isn't just an annoyance for TikTokers. Fishers, farmers, pilots, shipping companies, insurers, utility operators — virtually everyone who has to operate in the physical world to do their jobs relies on accurate weather data.

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈

Sunday, June 28, 2026

Con-men to the the bitter end: the digital ‘Deep State’ Trump and his DOGE friends built

A detailed science-fiction illustration of two women embracing in the centre of a futuristic control room overwhelmed by an artificial intelligence network. One hath long pale-blonde hair and weareth a translucent dress; the other hath long dark hair and a darker flowing garment. Standing face to face, foreheads gently touching, they hold one another tightly—mutual comfort, sorrow, solidarity. Tears are visible on their cheeks. About them, rows of workstations, monitors, and office equipment recede into a cavernous space. Luminous blue and violet energy streams coil through the air, connecting to translucent data-formed figures. Above hangeth an immense glowing nexus of interconnected lines. Cool blue lighting—awe, uncertainty, and emotional resilience amid overwhelming technological transformation.

generated via ChatGPT

Veterans of DOGE stationed at Trump's National Design Center installed visitor-tracking software on US government websites. {The Guardian 28 June}

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/28/government-website-visitor-tracking-surveillance-fears

The ‘Big Brother’ regime of Orwell’s 1984 would doubtless be impressed by the surveillance state that now exists throughout most of the world. The former United States is hardly alone in tracking its citizenry, but no other Western governments are run and staffed by Christian nationalist ideologues and other assorted lunatics — individuals openly hostile to institutional restraint, transparency, and dissent — and captained by an elderly, cartoonish megalomaniac who demands complete adoration and fealty from all. Hell, can it even be said that America remains part of the ‘Western’ world when we increasingly conduct our domestic and foreign affairs in a manner more readily associated with Russia or China?

No ambitious tyranny willingly tolerates unlimited scrutiny of itself whilst declining to scrutinise its own citizens. Surveillance, once established, doth not retreat of its own accord. Millions of us are going to face consequences for speaking out in the not too distant future, but not for anything will I ever give my seal of approval to this Satanic regime that invokes Christ, patriotism, and family even as it grossly undermines all of them.

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈