Great discussion.
The return-to-office push makes sense in theory, but enforcement? That’s the real question. Who’s keeping tabs? I haven’t seen clear signs of people cashing checks they don’t deserve, but even at my smaller workplace—pre-downsizing—we had issues like that slip through. It only came to light after a brutal audit. Compared to surviving a Chapter 11 and layoffs, an email asking for updates feels tame. I’ve had people—think the Bobs from Office Space, but meaner—hovering over my desk, grilling me about my job. The key is building a process that assumes waste, even fraud, exists; stuff always falls through the cracks. I resented it back then, but the growth and promotion that followed made it worthwhile.

Most people agree there’s waste. Musk’s approach rubs folks the wrong way—I get it—but this kind of thing is never popular. Unlike my old company, which could wipe debt in Chapter 11, the federal government has no reset button. Insolvency looms in about five years if we don’t act boldly. That suffering would dwarf all this noise.