Tenchu's Thoughts - Musk and the Disillusionment of the Gen-Z Incels
Never Underestimate the Power of Denial
First of all, the divorce between Trump and Musk was as predictable as the plot to a straight-to-Netflix action flick. The only ones who didn't see it coming were the MAGA cultists, all because they wanted to "pwn the libs." So hammering on that point seems useless.
Second, speaking of the MAGA cultists, some of them are in denial that this breakup is real. I was even told by the resident MAGA gaslighter to "bank" on the notion that Trump and Musk are still buddies. Obviously he won't put his own money where his mouth is, because MAGA hardly ever does. But it's still hilarious to see them try and deal with reality, which is coming at them like a kamikaze starship traveling at light speed.
But third, and most importantly, why is Musk opening his big fat mouth? Why is he creating all of this drama? Wasn't it enough to brag about cutting $150B in spending, even if that turns out to be both far lower than he originally estimated AND much higher than what he actually accomplished?
Is Elon for real?
I personally think Elon is for real, at least his opinion of the bIg bEaUtIfUl bIlL is real.
But why?
It's because I think Musk has the mentality of a young twentysomething incel.
Look at who he hired for DOGE, a department that was literally named after a Gen-Z meme. They were nothing but young incel men who have very little experience but all the power to fire anyone, collect data, and suggest changes that only neophytes would ever think of.
Look at how he tried to boost his own ego by creating fake accounts like "Adrian Dittmann." Mr. "Dittmann" was portrayed as a twentysomething man who praised everything Musk did. Seems like that fake persona reflects exactly what Musk wants to be.
These young incels believe that they could simply go into Washington and find trillions of dollars of "fraud, waste, and abuse" to cut. They don't have enough experience to know that the deficit grew because no one could figure out a politically viable way to cut it. If it were easy, anyone could do it.
And that's the thing. They thought it'd be easy. They thought they knew everything. Typical arrogance of younglings.
Of course they quickly found themselves WAY in over their heads. And instead of taking responsibility like real men, they either ran away or came up with excuses for their own failures, because we live in an era where we aren't teaching our kids personal responsibility. Even the "anti-woke" incels who were supposedly "red-pilled" and listen to Jordan Petersen religiously were never mentally equipped to handle the enormous responsibility of cutting something as gargantuan as the federal budget.
But their failure isn't the point. The point is that they tried, and they truly believed they could improve government merely by being outsiders who are not part of the "swamp."
And I think Elon Musk truly believed likewise.
Was I Wrong? Nah, It Must Be Everyone Else
But instead of taking responsibility for his own failures, Musk doubles down on his crusade to "fix government" the only way he knows how to. And of course, he's supposedly the only one who can do it given that's he's the richest man in the world AND a "genius" to boot.
So what does he do? He now blames BOTH SIDES for being part of the "swamp," the so-called "Deep State."
That's why he backstabbed Trump. Musk saw the bIg bEaUtIfUl bIlL and could not hide his sheer disgust. Unlike the old fogies who have sold their souls, joined the MAGA cult, and feel completely empowered by Trump's authoritarianism, Musk's brain seems to operate on a different wavelength.
I personally know how that feels, which is why I would make a terrible politician. Many on this thread have called me out for being antagonistic toward both political parties, with one even calling me a "militant moderate," LOL.
At least I'm no virgin at being wrong. Musk, on the other hand, will always be a "virgin." But again, I digress.
Gen Z is Abandoning Trump
This article by Newsweek sums up the sharp decline in support among Gen-Zers for Trump:
Is Gen Z Abandoning Donald Trump? (Newsweek)
They cite the economy and Trump's mishandling thereof, especially as Trump pursues his ever-changing tariff policies. They cite the rising costs of living and the lack of good jobs for young workers. They look at the gargantuan deficit and the federal debt and wonder how the fukk they will ever pay it off, given that they will inherit all of this shit from their fiscally irresponsible predecessors.
And oh yeah, they don't give a shit about Social Security, Medicare, or even Medicaid. They don't even believe Social Security will be around when they retire, and they aren't as reliant on Medicare and Medicaid as the older generations.
Third Party Politics
Musk, of course, is talking about forming a third party. Despite the dismal track record of third parties throughout American history, Musk probably feels like he has the power to break the third party curse, especially since he owns Twitter, now X.
This is because Musk still believes in "draining the swamp." Only this time, he knows that the swamp is bipartisan. He campaigned with Trump thinking that Trump will be like Argentinian president Javier Milei, but as we all saw, Trump is no Milei. Instead, Trump is more like Vicky Orban of Hungary, someone who is more in love with PooTin than with libertarian ideals.
Will Musk's third party gain any traction? Maybe. It certainly has the interest of big names like Mark Cuban and Andrew Yang:
Mark Cuban backs Musk’s poll on a new political party as investors react to tech billionaire’s feud with Trump (Fortune)
Other big names like Bill Ackman have chimed in, but it's too soon to know where this idea will head.
The most ideal outcome for Musk is that he gets other big names on board, such as Michael Bloomberg (if Musk can stomach Bloomberg's "wokeness,") and Vivek Ramaswamy.
The pessimistic outcome is that Musk's third party dies before it even becomes a reality, all thanks to Musk still being seen as a neo-Nazi.
We'll see where this goes. So far, I don't see any existing MAGA cultists willing to jump ship. Trump is still vastly popular with his cult base, and Musk's betrayal probably won't change that. Even now, the cultists are coming up with crazy-ass excuses for the bIg bEaUtIfUl bIlL, such as "Oh Trump just needs it to pass first. Then he'll cut the spending later."
Now with Musk leaving, the cultists can project all of Trump's fiscal failures upon him.
But the one thing the cultists cannot do is win back Generation Z.
And Musk has a good chance of being Peter Pan to the Lost Boys of Gen Z.
Tenchusatsu |
