| Maybe he was always a libertarian, but by his own account, the rightward lean is at least a little bit new. “In the past I voted Democrat, because they were (mostly) the kindness party,” he said, on May 18. “But they have become the party of division and hate, so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican.” He cited no evidence for the “division and hate” characterization, but predicted that soon enough, he’d be the victim of “their dirty tricks.” The next day, Musk said he’d been subjected to a “relentless hatestream from the far left.”His rhetoric this year is virtually indistinguishable from that of Donald Trump. If you gathered up a collection of Trump’s old tweets, edited them for grammar and punctuation, then put them side-by-side with Musk’s tweets on similar topics, you probably wouldn’t bet your life on being able to say which were Trump’s and which were Musk’s.
Some of Musk’s words and actions since buying Twitter, which he’s fond of characterizing as a “town square,” might be described as “Trumpian.” In the hours and days after acquiring the company, he tossed out ideas for extracting money from users, many of whom aren’t accustomed to paying for Twitter. One idea entailed increasing the cost of a paid product fourfold. He ultimately landed on an $8 monthly fee for an enhanced “Twitter Blue” service, which includes the platform’s sought-after blue verification checkmark.
Like a lot of populists (including and especially Trump), Musk claimed that by giving him money, you’re not only supporting free speech, but in fact contributing to the construction of a better society. “Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullsh–t,” he declared this week. “Power to the people! Blue for $8/month.”
Again, the language employed in the service of compelling people to part with their money is very much Trumpian. “Save our great Constitution! Just $8 can stop the steal.”.....
heisenbergreport.com |
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