It becomes increasingly apparent that Elon isn't wrapped too tight and apparently does not actually understand the business he involved himself in (social media). Being a successful troll on social media does not qualify one to run a social media company--I would think the reverse... UNLESS you were using you leet troll skills to stop other people from trolling your media--which he apparently isn't.
His South African heritage also seems to be leaking through.
He seems to be almost as much of a narcissist as Other Florida Man, only with (up until now) a better public image due to actually being super rich and apparently super successful and "visionary." I am not sure how much being visionary is worth. Stalin had a vision. Mao had a vision. Hitler had a vision. Between them they are likely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of millions.
Was he always like this or did his wealth make him that way? I would think it was always there underneath, the wealth simply allowed him to indulge.
None of these multi-billionaires should exist. It is unhealthy on a number of levels for so much wealth and power to be concentrated in the hands of so few. It is actually dangerous.
We should also stop worshipping these people, that would probably be a good start. Americans are particularly prone to this... but then, money IS our God (despite Xtian and Christian protestations to the contrary).
It truly is a national embarrassment that MTG is an elected representative in these United States. Even worse is how influential she no doubt will be in the next Congress
"...And I certainly don't want him hanging over our party like a gargoyle.”
~ Mittens Romney
Perhaps a harsher metaphor than "gargoyle" is needed since Trump probably has no idea what a gargoyle is. One that hits the Secessionist-In-Chief with the same crudeness he usually employees, while also attacking his self-defined "greatness" in all things.
Therefore, I would suggest that Mitt may want to rephrase his metaphor to:
"And I certainly don't want him hanging over our party like a limp dick.”
(Note: this is a comment aimed at the general media eco-system)
The 24/7 coverage of Musk and Twitter by nearly every media outlet and pundit just smacks of elite media bias. Twitter is not only a daily component of the media elite's life, but many have built their careers with it. Therefore we casual or non twitter users have to suffer through the over-coverage of this story, and wonder what we could be learning about instead.
Re: Elon Musk. It appears, based on simple observation and his shared content, that the man has suffered a nervous breakdown. This just COULD BE the result of how he took mean-tweeting to the extreme which further resulted in $44 billion flushed down the toilet. A feat unmatched by any businessperson that I can recall. The Tesla Board (as a public company) should be - if they felt any fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders - hiring outside counsel to explore how they can deal with the negative impact on their company by Musk's unhinged behavior and fiscal irresponsibility. But no worry - they won't.
Billionaire stupidity and associated wealth worship will continue until taxation improves. Keep letting the Kardashian Class run America people. It's working out so well for us all.
Another great read to start my day. Thanks Charlie. Don't know how you do it, but you can present the most horrible news, and yet your writing style keeps the reader from falling into a depressed stupor of terror. Instead, I always feel hopeful and bemused... and amused. You're a treasure, Mr Sykes.
Remember: Mike Pence will disappoint you. He's not waging this tepid war of words because of any principle. It's purely about power: his, and that of the GOP long-term.
The problem with all of the Schadenfreude surrounding Kevin’s coming difficulties as Speaker is that he doesn’t care. Yes, it will be a headache and it will cause him to throw back an extra bourbon here and there, but ALL he wants is the brass ring. All he wants is to be called “Mister Speaker” for the rest of his life and be able to cash out (maybe Fox is looking to add a second patriotic Speaker brimming with moral courage to its Board).
If he’s Speaker for two years, he gets those perks. If he’s Speaker for one second, he ALSO gets those perks. He has sold his soul, and more importantly, his country for those two objectives, to which he will be rewarded. I don’t know how we can take any glee in that.
Should after all his immorality and cowardice, he is denied the Speakership, I will have to go to the hospital for a condition that is sure to last more than four hours. Until then, cosmic injustice has won this fight.
Fun statistic: Twitter’s annual revenue is Apple’s weekly revenue. Apple earns PROFITS equal to Twitter’s revenue every 10 days. This fight is like watching Mike Tyson fight a 5 year old.
Anyone get the feeling Musk bought Twitter with the intention of turning it into his fan club and echo chamber before tanking it? I admit, I don't understand the tax avoidance rules, but it seems to me like Musk is trying to ruin Twitter as a place to get reliable news, especially any news that might mention "income inequality" or "stock manipulation" or "regulatory capture."
Hasn't this New Mafia ruined enough of our stuff? Criminals associated with Russia just tried to tank the offices of US President and UK Prime Minister, Rupert Murdoch owns half our media, and athletes like Brett Farve are the main beneficiaries of state welfare funds we allocated for food for children. This Fuentes kid is 24! Shoot, my kids are about that age and they keep asking me for gas money. Who's financially backing and promoting these children? Why do all these grifters keep leading back to Putin's money?
“There’s two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump,” McCarthy (R-Calif.) said. I guess he stopped worrying about it, huh?
It's rather disappointing that no attention was given here to Donald Trump demanding that Kari Lake be "installed" as the Governor of Arizona (news) and that Lake is scheming to appeal the outcome as a victim of fraud and chicanery (old news). So I'll take the liberty of addressing it.
Let's ponder the ramifications of what Trump wants. No one is "installed" to an elected political office. The votes are counted, and majority rules. Dictatorships "install." Democracies do not. Thus Donald Trump is quite forthright in stating that he is in favor of dictatorship -- as long as it is in his own interests. And Trump is in no position to demand anything. He is now just some private citizen living in Florida, albeit at continued significant taxpayer expense for doing what he does to promote himself. Even as President he had no power to demand that election results conform to his will. Again Trump tries on the dictator's suit, and it fits him well. There is much more to unpack about this issue, but for the sake of brevity I'll make room for you all to supply other details as you see fit.
As for Landslide Lake, I'm loving it. Rebuked at every turn as an election denier, she continues to burn all available bridges connecting her to any semblance of being a rational, reasonable, non-self-absorbed individual. As recent voting showed, her approach is a loser tactic, employed by a loser, and is more likely to result in undermining any prospect of her ever gaining and holding public office in the future than getting any personally beneficial result. We win and she loses -- good all around. And, all politics aside, it is quite enjoyable to see someone with such a toxic, abrasive personality and an unwarranted superiority complex both get put in her place by pundits as well as the voters and have to endure the public shaming that she insists upon bringing upon herself with her overly entitled, grossly arrogant approach. More, please, as I prepare the next batch of popcorn.
There, Charlie. Fixed it for you. No payment required or requested. I enjoyed the opportunity.
I think Apple removing Twitter from the App Store is too much, but it would fun to see. If they have apps like Gettr and Parler available, though, it just sounds like two rich white guys, Musk and Cook, having a tantrum/pissing contest.
The whole business about Twitter conspiracies to suppress rightwing speech is observably false, and has been for quite some time, but somehow these people just can't let these conspiracy theories go. It's not unusual to see rightwing culture war bullshit trending on the site, no mean feat when you consider the alleged suppression of such topics nefariously built into their algorithms. Idiots like DSouza are free to attack high schoolers who were victims of a mass shooting, and Twitter hasn't suppressed the Tweets or kicked him off. He's free to monetize the platform by spreading election lies and promoting his supposed documentary, all while using the platform to falsely attack the platform for suppressing viewpoints like his. It's an eternal grift, a made-up controversy, and the supposed smartest man in the world, Musk, has completely fallen for it.
The Fuentes scandal is becoming increasingly interesting. Now would be an opportune time for the GOP to fire the killshot at a weakened Trump, while trying to claim they are not the party of anti-semites who reminisce over the days of Jim Crow and wives barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen, but they are likely to squander the opportunity as always. Some of the stuff Maddow played last night that Fuentes had said was shocking, and I'm not easily shocked at this point. He basically wanted to disenfranchise women, and yet MTG still thought speaking at his event made sense.
With regard to running Twitter, I don’t think he has a clue. But I think Musk knows exactly what he’s doing regarding “free speech.” He is another wanna be right-wing fascist autocrat. Free speech means that he and those he agrees with can say whatever they want, but no one else can. And what he’s Tweeting confirmed that he is no different than Trump or DeSantis.
He is used to getting his way and being able to dismiss people who don’t please him. And that is what has gotten him in trouble here. He’s finding out that there are a whole lot of people who can stand up to him, and this new reality is causing a meltdown and temper tantrums and threats.
It becomes increasingly apparent that Elon isn't wrapped too tight and apparently does not actually understand the business he involved himself in (social media). Being a successful troll on social media does not qualify one to run a social media company--I would think the reverse... UNLESS you were using you leet troll skills to stop other people from trolling your media--which he apparently isn't.
His South African heritage also seems to be leaking through.
He seems to be almost as much of a narcissist as Other Florida Man, only with (up until now) a better public image due to actually being super rich and apparently super successful and "visionary." I am not sure how much being visionary is worth. Stalin had a vision. Mao had a vision. Hitler had a vision. Between them they are likely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of millions.
Was he always like this or did his wealth make him that way? I would think it was always there underneath, the wealth simply allowed him to indulge.
None of these multi-billionaires should exist. It is unhealthy on a number of levels for so much wealth and power to be concentrated in the hands of so few. It is actually dangerous.
We should also stop worshipping these people, that would probably be a good start. Americans are particularly prone to this... but then, money IS our God (despite Xtian and Christian protestations to the contrary).
It truly is a national embarrassment that MTG is an elected representative in these United States. Even worse is how influential she no doubt will be in the next Congress
"...And I certainly don't want him hanging over our party like a gargoyle.”
~ Mittens Romney
Perhaps a harsher metaphor than "gargoyle" is needed since Trump probably has no idea what a gargoyle is. One that hits the Secessionist-In-Chief with the same crudeness he usually employees, while also attacking his self-defined "greatness" in all things.
Therefore, I would suggest that Mitt may want to rephrase his metaphor to:
"And I certainly don't want him hanging over our party like a limp dick.”
(Note: this is a comment aimed at the general media eco-system)
The 24/7 coverage of Musk and Twitter by nearly every media outlet and pundit just smacks of elite media bias. Twitter is not only a daily component of the media elite's life, but many have built their careers with it. Therefore we casual or non twitter users have to suffer through the over-coverage of this story, and wonder what we could be learning about instead.
Re: Elon Musk. It appears, based on simple observation and his shared content, that the man has suffered a nervous breakdown. This just COULD BE the result of how he took mean-tweeting to the extreme which further resulted in $44 billion flushed down the toilet. A feat unmatched by any businessperson that I can recall. The Tesla Board (as a public company) should be - if they felt any fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders - hiring outside counsel to explore how they can deal with the negative impact on their company by Musk's unhinged behavior and fiscal irresponsibility. But no worry - they won't.
Billionaire stupidity and associated wealth worship will continue until taxation improves. Keep letting the Kardashian Class run America people. It's working out so well for us all.
Another great read to start my day. Thanks Charlie. Don't know how you do it, but you can present the most horrible news, and yet your writing style keeps the reader from falling into a depressed stupor of terror. Instead, I always feel hopeful and bemused... and amused. You're a treasure, Mr Sykes.
Remember: Mike Pence will disappoint you. He's not waging this tepid war of words because of any principle. It's purely about power: his, and that of the GOP long-term.
The problem with all of the Schadenfreude surrounding Kevin’s coming difficulties as Speaker is that he doesn’t care. Yes, it will be a headache and it will cause him to throw back an extra bourbon here and there, but ALL he wants is the brass ring. All he wants is to be called “Mister Speaker” for the rest of his life and be able to cash out (maybe Fox is looking to add a second patriotic Speaker brimming with moral courage to its Board).
If he’s Speaker for two years, he gets those perks. If he’s Speaker for one second, he ALSO gets those perks. He has sold his soul, and more importantly, his country for those two objectives, to which he will be rewarded. I don’t know how we can take any glee in that.
Should after all his immorality and cowardice, he is denied the Speakership, I will have to go to the hospital for a condition that is sure to last more than four hours. Until then, cosmic injustice has won this fight.
Fun statistic: Twitter’s annual revenue is Apple’s weekly revenue. Apple earns PROFITS equal to Twitter’s revenue every 10 days. This fight is like watching Mike Tyson fight a 5 year old.
Anyone get the feeling Musk bought Twitter with the intention of turning it into his fan club and echo chamber before tanking it? I admit, I don't understand the tax avoidance rules, but it seems to me like Musk is trying to ruin Twitter as a place to get reliable news, especially any news that might mention "income inequality" or "stock manipulation" or "regulatory capture."
Hasn't this New Mafia ruined enough of our stuff? Criminals associated with Russia just tried to tank the offices of US President and UK Prime Minister, Rupert Murdoch owns half our media, and athletes like Brett Farve are the main beneficiaries of state welfare funds we allocated for food for children. This Fuentes kid is 24! Shoot, my kids are about that age and they keep asking me for gas money. Who's financially backing and promoting these children? Why do all these grifters keep leading back to Putin's money?
“There’s two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump,” McCarthy (R-Calif.) said. I guess he stopped worrying about it, huh?
It's rather disappointing that no attention was given here to Donald Trump demanding that Kari Lake be "installed" as the Governor of Arizona (news) and that Lake is scheming to appeal the outcome as a victim of fraud and chicanery (old news). So I'll take the liberty of addressing it.
Let's ponder the ramifications of what Trump wants. No one is "installed" to an elected political office. The votes are counted, and majority rules. Dictatorships "install." Democracies do not. Thus Donald Trump is quite forthright in stating that he is in favor of dictatorship -- as long as it is in his own interests. And Trump is in no position to demand anything. He is now just some private citizen living in Florida, albeit at continued significant taxpayer expense for doing what he does to promote himself. Even as President he had no power to demand that election results conform to his will. Again Trump tries on the dictator's suit, and it fits him well. There is much more to unpack about this issue, but for the sake of brevity I'll make room for you all to supply other details as you see fit.
As for Landslide Lake, I'm loving it. Rebuked at every turn as an election denier, she continues to burn all available bridges connecting her to any semblance of being a rational, reasonable, non-self-absorbed individual. As recent voting showed, her approach is a loser tactic, employed by a loser, and is more likely to result in undermining any prospect of her ever gaining and holding public office in the future than getting any personally beneficial result. We win and she loses -- good all around. And, all politics aside, it is quite enjoyable to see someone with such a toxic, abrasive personality and an unwarranted superiority complex both get put in her place by pundits as well as the voters and have to endure the public shaming that she insists upon bringing upon herself with her overly entitled, grossly arrogant approach. More, please, as I prepare the next batch of popcorn.
There, Charlie. Fixed it for you. No payment required or requested. I enjoyed the opportunity.
I think Apple removing Twitter from the App Store is too much, but it would fun to see. If they have apps like Gettr and Parler available, though, it just sounds like two rich white guys, Musk and Cook, having a tantrum/pissing contest.
The whole business about Twitter conspiracies to suppress rightwing speech is observably false, and has been for quite some time, but somehow these people just can't let these conspiracy theories go. It's not unusual to see rightwing culture war bullshit trending on the site, no mean feat when you consider the alleged suppression of such topics nefariously built into their algorithms. Idiots like DSouza are free to attack high schoolers who were victims of a mass shooting, and Twitter hasn't suppressed the Tweets or kicked him off. He's free to monetize the platform by spreading election lies and promoting his supposed documentary, all while using the platform to falsely attack the platform for suppressing viewpoints like his. It's an eternal grift, a made-up controversy, and the supposed smartest man in the world, Musk, has completely fallen for it.
The Fuentes scandal is becoming increasingly interesting. Now would be an opportune time for the GOP to fire the killshot at a weakened Trump, while trying to claim they are not the party of anti-semites who reminisce over the days of Jim Crow and wives barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen, but they are likely to squander the opportunity as always. Some of the stuff Maddow played last night that Fuentes had said was shocking, and I'm not easily shocked at this point. He basically wanted to disenfranchise women, and yet MTG still thought speaking at his event made sense.
Wow. Deep thoughts from the Hillbilly Banshee this morning.
With regard to running Twitter, I don’t think he has a clue. But I think Musk knows exactly what he’s doing regarding “free speech.” He is another wanna be right-wing fascist autocrat. Free speech means that he and those he agrees with can say whatever they want, but no one else can. And what he’s Tweeting confirmed that he is no different than Trump or DeSantis.
He is used to getting his way and being able to dismiss people who don’t please him. And that is what has gotten him in trouble here. He’s finding out that there are a whole lot of people who can stand up to him, and this new reality is causing a meltdown and temper tantrums and threats.
Truly sad that voters in MTG’s district send her back to congress in a landslide. Real evidence of the rapid decline of civilization.