(Chuck Muth) – Well, the “oldstream” fake news media is at it again.
We’re being inundated with wall-to-wall, hair-on-fire, woe-is-me stories about all these poor government workers losing their jobs.
CNN is running nonstop stories about the “stress” and “trauma” of federal employees being laid off…
META just laid off 3,600 employees.
HSBC fired 70% of their investment bank.Welcome to the real world. pic.twitter.com/qxp8yKKbyk
— Geiger Capital (@Geiger_Capital) February 21, 2025
Oh, the humanity!
The liberal Nevada Independent wails…
In Nevada, where the federal government employs nearly 14,000 civilian workers, job cuts by Trump could lead to a slowdown of services everywhere from wildfire management to veterans’ hospitals.@birenbomb has the story: https://t.co/cIhD0oz1qS pic.twitter.com/PSy42WdPUf
— Nevada Independent (@TheNVIndy) February 22, 2025
The article cherry-picks one guy, Mark Wagstaff – a military veteran, of course, to induce the greatest level of sympathy – and explains how “he’s concerned about his ability to survive without a paycheck and is worried he may become homeless.”
It’s a tired, age-old trick by the media to get you to think that every government employee is “essential” and there’s no personnel fat to cut anywhere at any time.
The other example trotted out by the Indy was a “soil conservation technician,” a probationary employee who’s been on the job for less than six months.
Not sure how Nevada farmers will ever be able to survive without his critical services!
Funny thing though. I’m old enough to remember when the shoe was on the other foot – and I don’t recall the media shedding a whole lot of tears about it.
It was just about five years ago. Then-Nevada Democrat Gov. Steve Sisolak issued a royal “emergency” declaration shutting down the entire state over COVID. The governor said only “essential” jobs could keep going.
Private businesses like restaurants, retail shops, and factories were labeled “non-essential.” Workers in these fields lost their jobs overnight. They were told to stay home. Many had to try to file for unemployment.
And to add salt to that open wound, thousands of sidelined workers couldn’t even get their claims filed, let alone get their unemployment checks.
The system was not ready. Computers crashed, and phone lines were busy. Families waited for weeks and, in some cases, months without a check.
For example, a worker at a local restaurant once said that he spent hours on a slow website. He could not get through. His bills piled up.
Many workers like him saw their lives turned upside down. Their savings ran out, and the fear of not being able to pay rent or buy food became real.
This was not an isolated case. Reports from the time show that thousands of Nevada residents struggled to file claims properly.
For many private workers, it was a time of real hardship. They remember the long hours spent on malfunctioning websites, the endless phone calls, and the worry of not having a safety net.
But while these private workers suffered, government workers were in a different place.
Almost all of them were labeled “essential” and they not only kept getting paid, but they didn’t even have to show up for work!
Most state employees were allowed to work from home. They had reliable internet, set-up workspaces, and steady paychecks. Their jobs did not vanish overnight. They continued to get paid even when offices were closed.
Heck, thousands of them are STILL trying to work remotely – though President Trump is putting an end to that.
So no, CNN, Washington Post, New York Times, I’m not shedding a tear for these poor, poor government workers who are being hit with a cold dose of the reality the rest of us experience daily in the real world.
Suck it up, buttercups. And learn to code.
