Elon Musk - friend or foe?
Politics: | Acolyte | Bill of Rights 2004 | COVID-19 | Elon Musk | Fascism | Media 2022 | MH370 | Parliament 2002-4 | Pauline Hanson cartoons | Raygun | Song of the South | Torture | Transgenderism | V for Vandetta | Wind farms | Woke | Women sports | Workplace relationships |
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| Elon Musk and a Space X rocket. |
Contents
- Who?
- What?
- Why?
- So?
- References
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Interview - Jordan Peterson and Elon Musk, 23 July 2024, X / Twitter, duration: 112.29 minutes. NB: This is probably the most personally revealing interview with Elon Musk to date. It is recommended viewing prior to reading the following article, and despite the often overbearing and constant interruptions by Peterson, which are noticeable due to Musk's prominent stuttered speech.
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"As a long-time Leftie I both applaud and abhor some of the things Elon Musk is doing" (MO 22.2.25)
"He's trying to repopulate Mars ..... he's a humanitarian" (Brett Cooper 25.2.25)
1. Who?
As of February 2025, the writer is once again confused with the way of the Western world. Long-standing Left principles and ideals having been bastardized into the antithetical so-called Woke Mind Virus, and the extreme Left and extreme Right are now often indistinguishable in their actions. One can only ask: WTF is going on?
The latest topic of variability, vilification and cancellation is American entrepreneur, innovator and world's richest man, Elon Musk (b.1971). Is he friend or foe? And if so, to whom? A former darling of the Democrats (US) and of the alternate energy / Climate Change-busting Green Left, he is now the subject of Nazi taunts and hatred from his former political allies as he somewhat clumsily works to remove US government waste and corruption with the right-wing Republican Trump presidency through the informal DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency), which he heads. A friend recently posted the following on Facebook in regards to Musk's motivation:
Hard to trust Elon Musk
With the lust to rule or bust.
Don't make a fuss when all is dust,
It sure is nuts; he sure is suss.
This caused the writer to ask: What is going on here? Is this just a member of the Left expressing a natural scepticism and philosophical antagonism towards the Right, or is it something more personal? The writer believes it is both. Nothing new there.... With stories concerning Musk appearing in media reports on a weekly or even daily basis, it is not easy to keep up, or necessarily obtain a clear view of Musk's status in the world, especially within the online social media Facebook / Twitter X / Instagram / YouTube environment which has in large part transplanted traditional "legacy" media outlets such as newspapers and television. The present writer, for example, does not access television news, but gets everything off a smartphone, with YouTube the primary information provider.
What does the world outside of social media and the news really think of Musk? He is clearly the darling of the space nerd fraternity, with the recent return to earth of Space X rockets amazing the world. His successful launch of the Tesla electric vehicle (EV) range of cars is also seen as a success, though with time the sustainability and practicality of EVs in general is coming under question, especially in light of the toxicity and dangers associated with lithium-ion batteries and the practical problems with EVs compared to traditional petrol and diesel engines.
Musk's work with Trump is seen by at least 50% of Americans as a positive. Yet, on the other side, he is now subject to online hatred, ridicule, vilification and accusations which are damaging both personally and professionally. For example, the following diatribe comparing him to Adolf Hitler was posted on Facebook on 22 February 2025:
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| Facebook posting, 22 February 2025 |
It makes so many false statements that one does not known whether it is meant to be a joke or taken seriously. The friend of the writer who posted it believed the latter, and obviously was well down the Musk as evil path. Sure, he is awkward, arrogant, driven, controversial, compassionate, politically right-wing at the moment, and aggressive, but is he a fucking Nazi? No way. There is no evidence for that, and if not for his neurodivergent lapses in his child-like enthusiasm for the Trump presidency and saluting all those who voted for Trump with a hand gesture that looked like - but was not - a Nazi salute, then this whole Elon as Adolf crap would not be taking place. To tell the truth, and as a long standing member of the Left, the present writer is both critic and fan of Elon Musk. How can that be? Well, the present article tries to reveal why that is so, and how it can be.
Social media feeds are awash with both pro-and anti-Musk material feeds which, over time and due to algorithms, had refined themselves to increasingly present stories and information which take a side, politically, rather than being neutral and just present facts and/or identifying which side of the political spectrum the journalist is on. Many of hose feeds are telling the writer that Musk is a demon, and no longer a saint. As a result, and as part of the WTF is going on? query posed as the beginning of this article, what follows is an outline of some of the reasons for the change in popular sentiment concerning Musk. Perhaps at the end of the process of compiling this article, the writer will have a clearing picture of where we are at in 2025, and where we might end up in regards to the journey of Elon Musk and the role he plays in the story of humankind. Is he a flash in the pan, or a myth maker? Icon or idiot? Narcissistic or compassionate?
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2. What?
There are three topics in which Elon Musk features prominently in the present zeitgeist:
* Space
* The presidency of Donald Trump
* $$$
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3. Why?
From hero to hellacious - why? There are obviously a number of factors.
* Trump
.....
......
* Tesla
........
* Amber and kids / populate or perish
.......
* "Go fuck yourself"
When Musk told Bob Iger, head of Disney, who had threatened him with a financial boycott, to "Go fuck yourself", he was seen by many as a hero, pushing back on a corruption in American public life where money was given moral value and to both cancel somebody and blackmail them this way was de rigeur (the norm).
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4. So?
Why is the above so? What is behind these turbulent events and the heightened anger shown towards Musk and others who defer from the status quo? A recent YouTube video by Bo Winegard and Cory Clarke points to the effect of changes in gender ratios in academia in the area of protest and opposition to change in social behaviour. This is only one part of course, and there are numerous other reasons apart from the obvious specific behaviours by Musk. The Israeli / Palestinian war of 2024-5 and heightened antagonism toward Israel military action have reignited the whole Nazi : Holocaust issue. Therefore the interpretation of a hand sign by Musk as a definite indication that he is a Nazi has arisen and spread. Of course he is not a Nazi, but that does not matter, and no evidence has been put forward that he supports Nazi philosophy. Nevertheless, the salute was enough for social media and mainstream media to run with the accusation.
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4. References
Interview - Jordan Peterson and Elon Musk, 23 July 2024, X / Twitter, duration: 112.29 minutes.
The feminisation of academia, explained by behavioural scientist Bo Winegard and Cory Clarke, Quillette, 2 December 2024, YouTube, duration: 22.01 minutes.
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Politics: | Acolyte | Bill of Rights 2004 | COVID-19 | Elon Musk | Fascism | Media 2022 | MH370 | Parliament 2002-4 | Pauline Hanson cartoons | Raygun | Song of the South | Torture | Transgenderism | V for Vandetta | Wind farms | Woke | Women sports | Workplace relationships |
Last updated: 25 February 2025
Michael Organ, Australia
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