Elon Musk $44 Billion Twitter deal

Elon Musk is someone who bet lots of money on big gambles that paid off. He certainly had a knack for identifying investment opportunities and then for throwing everything at those investments to ensure they paid off.

I think after SpaceX the subsequent fame has gone to his head a bit and we're seeing a very public midlife crisis. He started to enjoy provoking reactions on Twitter, he tries to position himself as an 'alpha male' tech bro, he would always be seen with celebrities at Hollywood shows and I believe that this Twitter acquisition was a stunt that went wrong. He let the notoriety that surrounded his public persona run away from him and ended up making a $40 billion deal that he tried, then failed, to get out of.

Originally Posted by ianch99

Don't worry he isn't. He may think he is but that's what being an arrogant, over-entitlement billionaire does for you. The man is a petulant bully: he sacks anyone who stands up to him and tells him thinks he does not want to hear and, at the same, time pretends he is the saviour of "free speech".

Don't worry, the only "free speech" he is interested in is what suits his personal and, now conservative, agenda. His definition of free speech is to allow back allow back neo-Nazis and white supremacist nut jobs to allow them to vent their bile.

Utter lefty typical nonsense.

While it was a mistake, to allow “Ye” aka Kanye West back on Twitter, he’s now banned again, & he is black btw so how he can be a “White supremacist”, is beyond me.

Elon Musk had not allowed back White supremacists on, under old regime at Twitter HQ, Trump should never have been banned, he was a sitting president, the same stupid lefty pricks at Twitter, now fired and rightly so, given their inability to be impartial and only targeting Conservative/Republican accounts, allowed Putin and leaders of other dubious Human rights record to post their propaganda bullshit, but I didn’t and still don’t see you whinging about their accounts Being allowed on.

But he’s not unbanned Alex Jones, who I agree is a nut job.

Musk previously voted Democrat, but because of their stupid woke policies, stupidity during covid responses (that are still ongoing in some states) and the fact every city they run, turns to shit with high crime and high homelessness, he’s switched sides, serves the pathetic Democrats right, they have senile dementia ridden president, that if they cared much about, they would 25th Amendment him.

Originally Posted by Damien

Elon Musk is someone who bet lots of money on big gambles that paid off. He certainly had a knack for identifying investment opportunities and then for throwing everything at those investments to ensure they paid off.

I think after SpaceX the subsequent fame has gone to his head a bit and we're seeing a very public midlife crisis. He started to enjoy provoking reactions on Twitter, he tries to position himself as an 'alpha male' tech bro, he would always be seen with celebrities at Hollywood shows and I believe that this Twitter acquisition was a stunt that went wrong. He let the notoriety that surrounded his public persona run away from him and ended up making a $40 billion deal that he tried, then failed, to get out of.

Yes, though I don’t think it’s correct to characterise him as simply the money man. At SpaceX, in particular, he consciously backed a particular approach to rocket development (and continues to do so), and was willing to back it to the limit of his available funds. The original Falcon One rocket was proven more or less at the last gasp. Obviously he’s not a rocket scientist himself but he clearly grasps enough of the history and potential of rocket design to make useful leadership decisions at SpaceX.

Then he leaves it to the likes of Jessie Anderson to actually build the things* and tell us all how clever they are. At least I think that’s what she’s saying, I get a bit distracted.



* She’s a bona-fide Falcon 9 production engineer as well as front-person for SpaceX launch day webcasts

[Pierre]

Originally Posted by ianch99

Don't worry he isn't. He may think he is but that's what being an arrogant, over-entitlement billionaire does for you. The man is a petulant bully: he sacks anyone who stands up to him and tells him thinks he does not want to hear and, at the same, time pretends he is the saviour of "free speech".

Don't worry, the only "free speech" he is interested in is what suits his personal and, now conservative, agenda. His definition of free speech is to allow back allow back neo-Nazis and white supremacist nut jobs to allow them to vent their bile.

This post will be filed under "I don't really know the facts and just follow the narrative"

---------- Post added at 14:06 ---------- Previous post was at 13:59 ----------

Originally Posted by Chris

The ‘good work’ Ramrod is talking about is described in the links he provided. Something to do with publishing censored tweets about Joe Biden’s son. Whether or not that’s good work I can’t be bothered to decide.

Well he has exposed that Twitter withheld a legitimate news story in an election cycle at the behest of the DNC that may have harmed Biden's campaign. I'm sure that is just the tip of the iceberg.

Twitter is not the centre of the universe, but it does exert more influence than it probably deserves and "Big Tech" should not be in the business of deciding what is fit for our consumption.

Originally Posted by Pierre

This post will be filed under "I don't really know the facts and just follow the narrative"

Spot on.

What’s really going on, is that the left now hate the fact they don’t control the narrative. Twitter was their breeding ground for promoting woke policies, anyone who previously argued with them, ultimately got banned, they felt an extra sense of protection, but not any more and the left don’t like it.

It’s why all these pathetic lefty echo chambers are popping up all over the place, as an “alternative”. Makes me want to puke.

Originally Posted by Chris

Yes, though I don’t think it’s correct to characterise him as simply the money man. At SpaceX, in particular, he consciously backed a particular approach to rocket development (and continues to do so), and was willing to back it to the limit of his available funds. The original Falcon One rocket was proven more or less at the last gasp. Obviously he’s not a rocket scientist himself but he clearly grasps enough of the history and potential of rocket design to make useful leadership decisions at SpaceX.

Well, I assume this is because he had smart people to help him make such decisions which is what makes his antics with Twitter so bizarre. He seems to be playing to the gallery as opposed to what's best for the company.

---------- Post added at 16:03 ---------- Previous post was at 15:54 ----------

Originally Posted by Mick

It’s why all these pathetic lefty echo chambers are popping up all over the place, as an “alternative”. Makes me want to puke.

That's internet 101. Plenty of right-wing echo chambers as well: Rumble, Truth Social and Parler for a bit. Facebook Groups, right-wing YouTubers and Subreddits.

People love their echo chambers whatever they are on the political divide.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Mick

Utter lefty typical nonsense.

While it was a mistake, to allow “Ye” aka Kanye West back on Twitter, he’s now banned again, & he is black btw so how he can be a “White supremacist”, is beyond me.

Elon Musk had not allowed back White supremacists on, under old regime at Twitter HQ, Trump should never have been banned, he was a sitting president, the same stupid lefty pricks at Twitter, now fired and rightly so, given their inability to be impartial and only targeting Conservative/Republican accounts, allowed Putin and leaders of other dubious Human rights record to post their propaganda bullshit, but I didn’t and still don’t see you whinging about their accounts Being allowed on.

But he’s not unbanned Alex Jones, who I agree is a nut job.

Musk previously voted Democrat, but because of their stupid woke policies, stupidity during covid responses (that are still ongoing in some states) and the fact every city they run, turns to shit with high crime and high homelessness, he’s switched sides, serves the pathetic Democrats right, they have senile dementia ridden president, that if they cared much about, they would 25th Amendment him.

Let's put aside the lazy "lefty" tropes for a minute and examine who Musk "unbanned" recently, and yes he did unban Kanye West who did not then play nice and is banned again. Too much Hitler loving it seems. Other notable unbanned are Andrew Anglin, one of America’s most notorious neo-Nazis. The creator of the white supremacist website The Daily Stormer who had been banned from the social media platform for nearly a decade.

The notorious "lefty rag" Daily Mail is reporting:

From Donald Trump's adviser Steve Bannon to rapper Wiley: The banned accounts that could soon return to Twitter under Elon Musk's suspension 'amnesty'

People like Katie Hopkins, Tommy Robinson and Steve Bannon may be posting again ..

The arrogance of Musk is that his opinion is the only one that counts here and it seems his love of himself will eventually poison Twitter and turn it in to cesspool of hate.

---------- Post added at 16:17 ---------- Previous post was at 16:14 ----------

Originally Posted by Pierre

This post will be filed under "I don't really know the facts and just follow the narrative"

Sorry to disappoint but I know the facts. Never knew neo-nazis were your thing, takes all sorts I guess.

You do not know the facts at all ianch99, you stated in an earlier post they had already been unbanned and are now saying they may be unbanned, which is it?

He also unbanned far left Kathy Griffin.

---------- Post added at 16:30 ---------- Previous post was at 16:24 ----------

Originally Posted by Damien

Well, I assume this is because he had smart people to help him make such decisions which is what makes his antics with Twitter so bizarre. He seems to be playing to the gallery as opposed to what's best for the company.

---------- Post added at 16:03 ---------- Previous post was at 15:54 ----------



That's internet 101. Plenty of right-wing echo chambers as well: Rumble, Truth Social and Parler for a bit. Facebook Groups, right-wing YouTubers and Subreddits.

People love their echo chambers whatever they are on the political divide.

The left are not being persecuted and banned like the right have been, under prior regime, too right, alternatives for conservatives voices were created to stop the heavy censorship coming from the left. I’m only a member on Twitter. Truth Social is a disaster, GettR is no better, Parler got banned by Apple App Store, tells you all need to know how much power the left was holding over the right, it had to end.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Mick

You do not know the facts at all ianch99, you stated in an earlier post they had already been unbanned and are now saying they may be unbanned, which is it?

He also unbanned far left Kathy Griffin.

Don't twist my words.

I don't really care on what side of the political divide they are, what I care about is their ability to spew hate & bile in order to mislead.

Twitter, or any mainstream social media platform, has no place for neo-Nazi's, white supremacists, insurrectionists, left-wing violent anarchists, antisemites, etc.

Originally Posted by ianch99

Don't twist my words.

I don't really care on what side of the political divide they are, what I care about is their ability to spew hate & bile in order to mislead.

Twitter, or any mainstream social media platform, has no place for neo-Nazi's, white supremacists, insurrectionists, left-wing violent anarchists, antisemites, etc.

Is why such accounts are banned, Kanye West posted the Swastika, was also said to have given praise for Adolf Hitler, he is now banned, quite rightly too. So no Neo-Nazism claptrap are/is allowed as you profess. If it gets seen or reported, it will be banned, free speech doesn’t mean free reach, Musk’s own words.

[Pierre]

Originally Posted by ianch99

Sorry to disappoint but I know the facts. Never knew neo-nazis were your thing, takes all sorts I guess.

I refer you Damiens post. There are far left commentators on and far right commentators.

On a platform like Twitter there should be space for both.

Unless you equate far left = good & far right = bad, but I already know the answer to that. Any one that equates Katie Hopkins to a neo-Nazi is already too far gone.

before you ask, I think extremes in either direction are bad.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Pierre

I refer you Damiens post. There are far left commentators on and far right commentators.

On a platform like Twitter there should be space for both.

Unless you equate far left = good & far right = bad, but I already know the answer to that. Any one that equates Katie Hopkins to a neo-Nazi is already too far gone.

before you ask, I think extremes in either direction are bad.

You literally do not read posts do you? I certainly did not equate "Katie Hopkins to a neo-Nazi" and I also said:

Twitter, or any mainstream social media platform, has no place for neo-Nazi's, white supremacists, insurrectionists, left-wing violent anarchists, antisemites, etc.

I would actually say, using your simplistic equivalence: "far left = bad & far right = bad" but you may not read this statement ..

Just to say, I also consider far left and far right to be bad, I haven’t seen anywhere where Musk is creating a platform for them. If content is illegal & racist attacks are in most civilised countries, such accounts will be dealt with. Accounts already banned, not all will be granted amnesty.

Originally Posted by Ramrod

Why don't you read the links?

Becasue I cant be arsed with more sites that want me to make cookie choices.

Just posting links with no explanation at all is just lazy posting.

[Ramrod]

Originally Posted by Paul

Becasue I cant be arsed with more sites that want me to make cookie choices.

Just posting links with no explanation at all is just lazy posting.

*sigh*....here:

How Twitter suppressed the Hunter Biden laptop story

Musk, has released a long Twitter ‘thread’ citing company emails which show how the website colluded with political actors to censor sensitive information in the run up to the 2020 election. The most shocking document is this one:


What that message suggests is that Joe Biden’s campaign would flag content it didn’t approve of and Twitter would simply ‘handle’ — i.e. suppress — it.

On October 14, 2020, less than a month before election day, the Post published ‘BIDEN’S SECRET EMAILS’: an exposé that used files obtained from Hunter Biden’s laptop and which suggested that ‘the big guy’ — possibly Joe Biden, the man running to be president — may have been involved in his son’s business dealings.

Perhaps the most disturbing part of Taibbi’s revelations is that they aren’t that surprising. Everybody knew that Twitter covered up a story that may have harmed Joe Biden. It’s just now we can see the evidence — and for that we should thank Twitter’s unorthodox new owner.