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Holy shit.
Just wow, wow, holy shit:
Completely rewriting a multi-million line COBOL codebase that has life-or-death consequences for real people in the space of a few months, using gen AI?
I’ve been writing software for 40-some years, and I have to say: this may be, without exaggeration, the stupidest software-related idea I’ve ever heard from leadership.
https://www.wired.com/story/doge-rebuild-social-security-administration-cobol-benefits/
I urge you to listen to the riveting and wonderful radio feature about what happens when you try to build a make-or-break project on a ridiculously tight timeline:
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/the-worst-video-game-ever/
The page has summary text, but listen if you can. I’ve heard very few instances of a developer speaking so candidly and with such self-awareness about what it feels like to be part of a failing software project.
Listen. Then imagine that instead of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, it’s social security for the entire USA.
I always give that story as an assignment to my Software Design and Development students. One of the things we talk about is that if the developer •hadn’t• managed to build the game, if the project had collapsed at any point before release, it probably would have saved the company.
The worst possible outcome here is that these DOGEbags manage to build •something• and actually think it works.
Two things that are not mutually exclusive:
- These people don’t care who they hurt, and would view creating chaos and destroying Social Security as a success.
- These people are so reckless, arrogant, and stupid that they actually think they can do this.
I would caution against calling it the stupidest thing ever. They might take that as a challenge 
It took fifteen years to destroy the Sui Dynasty by this method. We may be witnessing a new world record! Neo-Assyrians did it in 8; they built Babylon on the ruins.
@teledyn @inthehands Republicans have been hacking away at the foundations of our country for 40 years.
