We live in surreal times. Because nothing else explains the rise of DOGE, which is no longer just a four-letter word but a four-letter government agency in America. On Wednesday, incoming US President Donald Trump announced the formation of DOGE, a government agency that will be led by tech tycoon Elon Musk and fellow MAGA brother Vivek Ramaswamy. DOGE’s full name – Department of Government Efficiency – hints at its purpose: to run the US government with the same efficiency and ruthlessness we see in lean and agile tech companies.

We don’t know yet whether DOGE will be an official agency or unofficial, like party committees in some authoritarian countries, but we can imagine that it is going to be Elon Musk’s biting dog. The single biggest person behind the MAGA machine that brought Donald Trump to victory. It’s possible that with DOGE Elon Musk could do to the US government what he did with Twitter aka X when he bought it: fire about 70 percent of the staff.

At least, that’s the impression from Donald Trump’s statements on DOGE. Trump said, “These two amazing Americans (Vivek and Musk) will pave the way for my administration to eliminate government bureaucracy, reduce excess regulation, cut wasteful spending, and restructure federal agencies – the goals of the Save America movement.” are necessary.” Musk added his own piece to the official announcement. “(DOGE) will shock anyone involved in the system and government waste, which is a lot of people,” he said.

So much fun, so much change

Of course, many years ago – which now feels like an eternity away – Doge was just a cute puppy and a meme. It was a photo of a Shiba Inu – a dog originally from Japan named Kabusu – looking playful and amused. When appearing in memes it was accompanied by two-word phrases – one of which was often “so much”, “much”, and “much”. Here’s an example:

Doge has been a very popular meme in the last 10 years. It has become part of common parlance, appearing in all kinds of places – serious and fun. And no surprise! Everyone loves puppies and some people love them madly. Like John Wick. Vladimir Putin. And maybe Elon Musk.

Musk, the world’s richest man, always remains in memes. Like many others in the technology world, Joe is familiar with the communities and culture of Reddit, 4Chan, and 9Gag. And he has always been involved in memes that can seem silly, and sometimes even funny. Doge has been a favorite of Musk when it comes to memes, so much so that a few years ago he adopted Dogecoin, a meme cryptocurrency that was launched as a joke in 2013. Since then Musk has frequently posted memes and tweets with Dogecoin as its theme, giving it his stamp of approval and helping to drive up its value.

Even though DogeCoin is a meme cryptocurrency, it currently has a market capitalization of over $55 billion dollars. Because people know that Elon Musk loves the word Doge, its price has increased by 240 percent in the last one month and especially after the US elections.

Doge’s many faces

The use of the Shiba Inu puppy goes beyond Dogecoin and Doge memes. Given how popular and recognizable it is – and apparently how cute – the Doge has found a place in stickers, buttons, insignia, seals and stamps, T-shirts and bags, and even emblems. Has been found. And it’s certainly found a place in everything Elon Musk does.

DOGE as a government agency is not a completely new idea. Months ago, even at a time when there was no guarantee that Trump would win, Elon Musk kept talking about the Department of Government Efficiency. This name, as he often does, was chosen because it goes against the grain and common sensibilities. This was Elon Musk’s idea of ​​fun, like when he “let it sink in” when he entered Twitter headquarters carrying a wash basin. But as is often the case these days, what Musk jokes about – buying Twitter, for example – often becomes reality a few months later.

Now this has happened with Doge. At one time it was also a funny and lovable dog. But chances are that American government officials and bureaucrats who will soon have to face it won’t find it funny.