Elon musk salute

[EasterIssland]

Has he really done a nazi salute in the trump inauguration celebration? 🤦🏻‍♀️

That's not what the Republicans did when Trump lost to Biden.

I agree with you and I think this article is an interesting and balanced analysis of what Musk did:

https://sknight.substack.com/p/elon-musk-and-the-nazi-salute

Agree with this. I'm no fan of Trump I assure you. He is very scary. When I saw the reanimated corpse that was Biden I honestly thought, what hope is there here really.

No, as I've already stated multiple times on this thread, they double down. Unfortunately so do their voters.

The 'Roman' salute that wasn't used by the ancient Romans but was used by Mussolini's fascists?

Do you perform a nazi salute when you’re throwing your heart out?

Yes, so there's not much chance of winning them over with... policy.

I mean, I don't disagree that the Democrats made a mess of things with no primary, just letting Biden stand again and then the rushed Harris candidacy. But the truth is, incumbent parties everywhere have suffered post-covid and no amount of policy papers of position statements was going to lure voters over.

I do think there are some real issues to tackle, but in all honesty, I'm unconvinced they can be overcome in this media environment unless the electorate experiences the ramifications of their choices and makes a decision on whether they like them or not.

Because people in the US would rather vote for a sex offender than a black woman. Simples. Obama was black but not a women.. a black women is a double whammy and Americans couldn't stand the notion.

Quite.

I think the Nazi thing in some ways is a red herring.

These men don't want to be the Nazis in the sense of a repeat. They want to be the New Nazis with their own agenda relevant to today.

That's things like resources in Greenland and shipping on the Panama Canal. That's migrants from Mexico and beyond. And this concept of pure American.

One of the things the Nazis did was appropriate historical times and issues as 'theirs'. The Nazi salute was a reference to the Roman empire. The Reich was often referenced with regard to this idea of continuity and purity.

Europe, in particular the UK, hold this value in some ways to the modern US as 'the old lands'. And there is a particular fetishism with the UK because of the language and the idealism of Churchill. (Noting Trump has placed the bust of Churchill back in the Oval office).

I think people think that references to Nazis must mean the same ideology as Germany in the 1930s and 1940s. I don't buy into this.

I do buy into the idea of modern American fascism and authoritarianism. Ultra capitalism has always been deeply intertwined with the idea - in the past that's included slavery and exploitation of the masses.

This has a lot of parallels with modern Russia which is a fascist state. I don't think I'd call it a Nazi state, but it's rife with removals of rights of the masses so the super rich can make more and not being accountable to law. They can do whatever they like.

And that's why Trump makes remarks about having respect for him and other authoritarian leaders. He does not see the value in consultation and fairness because it's all about what he wants and populism is therefore a means to an end.

I'm pretty confident in saying that we definitely don't all think/know that Musk is right.

Lots of people (including me) in my family are diagnosed with Asperger's and none of us wave our arms around excitedly. I really don't know what to think. I'm inclined to think that it was an almost unconscious gesture, helped along by excitement and drugs.

He acts like a toddler who wants to go to Mars and thinks we should be excited about it and take him seriously. Our evolution can't even keep up with the pace of 'progress' on this planet so I'm not sure how he thinks we're going to live on Mars. He perhaps should study evolutionary biology / psychology ...although he seems to be a robot so he'd probably be ok.

He brings shame to the autistic community. Although in some strange way I feel some sort of pride. Which is a bit stupid I know, but at least when everyone on here is talking crap about autism, we can point out that the richest man in the world is autistic.

@UtopiaPlanitia good article. It's hard to believe this guy is so intelligent ( which he is) yet, behaves like a 14 year old who just had a wanking competition with his mate in his mum's basement.

He is so weird and he is getting people talking so maybe that's his ultimate aim beyond anything.

The more I read, the more scary he is really because he seems to have no control. The weird tweets before this for example.

I read the AFD link article. I am going to be devil's advocate. Saying the party is Islamophobic because of an anti immigration stance is not something I automatically buy into anymore. Like calling me and others racist etc when I don't believe they are. I know I am pretty liberal minded and compassionate.

Yes I need more facts regards that part(ADF) and will research.

I am not a Reform supporter btw.They also concern me and when I read about their views on Equality legislation I crap myself for various reasons.

ThIs article is good because it just highlights many people are like myself and try sit in the middle with what seems to be contradictory views.

I've a feeling they could have goose stepped in wearing full KKK regalia and there still would have excuses made for them.

I don't think any of them are friendly to the Jewish population or indeed Israel. They're all for me, myself and I.

I've just finished reading A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan. The more things change the more they stay the same.

@FoolishHips I understand everything you say entirely there. My son is Autistic ( would have been called Asperger's historically in his case). I know this guy is pretty scary but what he has achieved, that's something. ( Albeit we may end up totally f*ed because of him ). 😬

The biggest argument against whether humans can form a colony on Mars is biological.

We know that extended time in space and zero gravity has a detrimental effect on the human body. We have evolved and are adapted to life on earth.

Imagine this in the context of being pregnant on Mars and the growth and development of babies and children. It is unlikely they will develop in the same was as on earth.

A man like Musk would be able to and should be considering this. It's not something that hasn't been thought about by scientists. Someone so intent and involved on the settlement of Mars should be particularly aware of it.

The mission to Mars brings the opportunity for wealth though with exploitation of disposable humans in the pursuit of that. That's where it actually starts to become more concerning in terms of the rhetoric of the age.

Human development, history and exploration has been characterised by this phenomena of human migration when lands become full - and this is something no longer available on earth. But historically this has also involved the movement of humans felt to be undesirable in someway too. The US colonies were used as a dumping ground for criminals and then when that was no longer available it switched to Australia. Slavery in the USA also forms a part of the same dynamic.

This isn't about hatred of Jews mark#2 that Nazis has come to be understood as. It's about the 'undesirables' and getting rich and having unlimited power.

We all know it feels wrong. We know. Trying to make sense of something that doesn't make sense. It's comforting, because what else are you going to do?

Again, I am hoping it is not.
Yet, I have not seen a single nazi saluting in my life, so....

Well, get ready to see many more. Neo Nazis are loving this.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_salute

This has a whole section about the use of the Roman salute in the USA, pre Nazis.

It was known as the Bellamy salute and was demonstrated as the hand gesture to accompany the Pledge of Allegiance in the United States. This dates back to 1892.

When you read it, it's not hard to see the concept of 'pure American' in it which appeals to modern Americans who hark back to a golden era of the American dream and white America.

So in some ways it's arguably not a Nazi salute, but doing the same as the Germans did - trying to have this throwback to a previous era.

I'm sure there will be a whole discussion about this in time, but there is always an element to this where the appropriation by the Nazis is actually an added bonus and there's a dual meaning.

That's a feature of fascism. As is the widespread use of symbolism and layered meanings.

German newspaper Zeit headline

“A Hitler Salute is a Hitler Salute is a Hitler Salute”

Time will tell on that front but I reckon there'll be some unhappy customers in the US.

I am off to practice my middle finger, plus karate chop.

Honestly, back in the real world does anybody really care who drives a Tesla, if you're that embarrassed then change it!

I'm not sure if anyone has already posted this clip, but Musk doesn't sound like a man who hates Jewish people, which I'd have thought would be a key element to being a Nazi:

https://x.com/talfriedman1/status/1730906939603738672

Lots of Teslas in my neck of the woods. Still a badge of honour.