To think Elon has lost his mind?

[JennyBeanR]

I used to be a big supporter of his. I was absolutely obsessed with his work on SpaceX and neuralink. His Joe Rogan interviews are some of the most interesting conversations I've ever listened to. Since he bought twitter I feel like he's been radicalised. I honestly can't square the man he seemed to be while building this extraordinary career with who he had become.
I still agree with him on quite a few topics, but his outbursts on twitter this week to stoke the riots is just reprehensible. His comments seriously make me feel sick. I really hope he is held to account when the dust settles. Although I don't hold out much hope.

In the app so can't set up voting properly, but essentially
YABU - Elon Musk is of sound mind
YANBU- you're right, he's lost it

What is your contribution to the world?

maybe we can evaluate that?

I despise Elon but have a Tesla and it’s far from shit. It’s the best car I’ve ever owned, it’s a dream to drive and the upkeep and running costs are very low. I bought it years ago, before it was clear he was crazy.

Its frustrating because he didn’t even invent the car, he just took over the company. I hope the board oust him. Let him focus his craziness on X alone.

Peace
Tolerance
Kindness

Tesla is overrated.

There's a good reason one of his kids doesn't want to have anything to do with him and went so far as to change their surname.

You can get a sticker for your Tesla these days that says "I bought it before I knew Elon was mad".
https://amp.theguardian.com/business/article/2024/aug/10/his-rhetoric-has-made-tesla-toxic-is-elon-musk-driving-away-his-target-market

He's railing against Starmer because he thinks he'll come after Twitter.

Ok then.

Good idea! Due to the number of people who seem to lack critical thinking skills these days, I was concerned someone may see me in the car and automatically assume I’m some kind of MAGA supporting troll! Not that I give a shit what strangers assume but still!

We also owned one so have first hand experience on which to base criticism.

Ok then.

...

Or, if you prefer a more direct take ...

Yanbu

Followed by conspiracy theorists (who ironically like to call others sheeple, ignoring the fact they mindlessly repeat conspiracy theories). The 'awake' ones as they think 😂

I don't even think he knows what he wants to achieve here.

Even people who might be generally anti-immigration leaning etc probably don't the line the idea of American billionaires trying to interfere in our democracy.

There will always be a debate about where you draw the lines on free speech but only a lunatic fringe thinks that openly inciting racial violence should be given a free pass.

😂😂😂

He's a hero to the Reform type. All the right wing voices are all loving him at the moment.

The right wing were also relaxed about a foreign billionaire interfering in our democratic process for decades (Rupert Murdoch) as he was on their side.

Rupert Murdoch was like a flea, jumped left and right across the English speaking western world.

Musk I'm not sure if he's a conservative/republican or is trying to inject new life into twitter

Musk has endorsed Trump and supposedly has committed $45 million a month to Amercian Pac.

"America Pac, lauched this summer, is designed to mirror Democratic party turnout efforts by funding robust Republican get-out-the-vote efforts in swing states, the New York Times reported."
www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/jul/15/elon-musk-trump-super-pac

I don't think he has actually broken the law though. He is behaving like a complete twat. He is also wrong - the riots were horrible but absolutely not the sign of an impending civil war. To say it is likely, let alone "inevitable" is ridiculous. He is a bored little billionaire shit posting. But if you criminalised someone saying something like that, then you also risk criminalising someone else making predictions other people don't like. I wish the UK would just collectively point and laugh.

Form where I am sitting that looks like flushing money down the toilet.

Musk would have been better of stashing $45 million a month down the back of a couch.

'the riots were horrible but absolutely not the sign of an impending civil war. To say it is likely, let alone "inevitable" is ridiculous.'

Could also be taken as incitement.

It could absolutely! It certainly feels like on some level he finds all of this exciting. I wish he would go and try to learn poker or other billionaire hobbies.

I just think there is no way you could make a law that makes that incitement therefore illegal, that doesn't also catch other people (possibly even me or you). At least not without (gasp, shock, horror) two tiered policing.

I am afraid that all the deliberate edge lording from very high profile people is going to lead to a restriction in what you can say - and it won't impact rich people like Elon Musk as much as ordinary people. Note, that is NOT me saying that I want that to happen.

I wish we could put people in prison for being foolish but we can't plus we would need a much much bigger prison.

He’s a dangerous freak. I was always on the fence about him but that turned to utter loathing when I read about him giving internet access to a tribe who had been isolated from the modern world. He makes it seem as if he’s doing them a favour when it’s really just a narcissist having fun with an unethical experiment. Horrible excuse of a man.

You'll no doubt be thrilled to learn that that's total nonsense.

The Marubo tribe were not isolated, they have been in regular contact with outsiders since the 19th century and already had technology like smartphones. Their leader lived between the forest and the city and once worked for Coca-Cola, and it was this leader who chose to acquire the Starlink equipment. In fact, he went to considerable effort to get it:

"One Marubo leader, Enoque Marubo ... said he immediately saw Starlink’s potential. After spending years outside the forest, he said he believed the internet could give his people new autonomy. With it, they could communicate better, inform themselves and tell their own stories.

"Last year, he and a Brazilian activist recorded a 50-second video seeking help getting Starlink from potential benefactors."

A woman called Allyson Reneau saw the appeal offered to buy the equipment for them. Elon Musk was not involved, other than founding the company that offered the internet.. so it's sort of like blaming Sky if I decide to buy internet access from them and gift it to a tribe.

The New York Times wrote a story about the impact the internet was having on the tribe and suggested it was might be damaging their way of life. There is a paragraph that mentions pornography, which was picked up by other publications who declared that the tribe had become addicted to pornography. This has been strongly denied by the tribe:

"Enoque Marubo, the leader of the Marubo tribe, also refuted the false claims about his community. Enoque, who introduced Starlink to his tribe’s villages, stated that the allegations were unfounded and disrespected the tribe's autonomy and identity."

Elon Musk commented that "it was disrespectful & unkind of The New York Times to say that about the tribe."

The New York Times "later clarified that their article had been misrepresented".

The tribe say the internet has already saved lives, and that they very much intend to keep it.

Elon Musk’s Starlink Connects and Divides Brazil’s Marubo People - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com//magazines/panache/elon-musk-responds-to-claims-about-amazon-tribes-porn-addiction-from-starlink-internet-what-did-spacex-ceo-say/articleshow/110959018.cms?utmsource=contentofinterest&utmmedium=text&utmcampaign=cppst