Being stressed, depressed, drug addicted, and an actual Nazi.
Times like this I think about Enya. Yeah, Enya. Where's she been? In a fucking castle. With a fuck ton of kitties.
She made her millions and said "oh golly, I don't need to do much of anything anymore. And I quite like castles and kittens."
She didn't say "what can I do to make more people like me?" And then please the most hateful people on earth. How are these paths even a choice one has to ponder? Go fuck off in a castle full of cats.
It's kinda crazy to me because let's say you do want to be the most beloved person on earth AND you have more money than anyone ever, you could do that?
Like at one point musk said if there was a plan to end world hunger in 6 billion dollars he would do it, and of course he didn't... But if he did, a small fraction of his infinite wealth would be gone, but people would have loved him.
If, Tesla actually produced a fully self-driving electric car that was better and cheaper than anything else, he'd have even more fans than he currently does.
If, he actually created high speed mass transit, instead of whatever the fucking "hyperloop" thing he made is.
He could have done probably all of this for the price of twitter, but nah instead he had to go be a nazi.
Doing like even half this list would make him beloved by the average person who isn't too interested in him. They'd see all the good he does and say "That's what a billionaire should be." and not do any digging. It's honestly batshit insane to me that someone can say "everyone hates me and it makes me sad but I'm not going to do anything about this because clearly they are the ones that are wrong."
Like how do you fuck it up so bad. The first time I heard of the guy I bought into that "elon musk is ironman" persona thing, and now he's just a crazed nazi I want nothing to do with.
Narcissism, ego, and wealth create one hell of a combination.
He wants to be worshipped by the masses, but he's also the kind of person who needs to appear powerful and can't stand being in any position but first. He has to be the richest person while also being the most adored, and he isn't willing to sacrifice anything to achieve the latter.
This is the difference between the ultra-wealthy of the gilded age and today. Those of the gilded age built things with their wealth for the public, so they wouldn't turn against them. Today they think they're untouchable. They hoard their wealth and don't try to do anything with it.
Yet, the gilded age came to an end with regulations, because they were amassing too much wealth. They only had a small fraction of what the ultra-wealthy today have. Something needs to be done about them, and the government isn't taking action...
According to Harvard Business School, in 1937 J. D. Rockefeller's net worth amounted to 1.5% of GDP. In today's wealth, that would amount to about $415.8 billion. And to be honest, I have more faith that the Rockefeller number represents an accurate representation of the real, if not necessarily liquid, wealth that he commanded, whereas rather more of the modern-day billionaires' wealth is smoke and mirrors based on their own bullshit evaluations of what their assets are theoretically worth.
It's still a contest between which dragon is lying on top of a bigger hoard of ill-gotten gold, but those gilded age fucks were really historically impressive.
He's still a billionaire though right? That billion dollars still belongs to him, right? As in, he has it, we don't. As long as he has a BILLION of the credits most of us struggle to find a thousand of per month to pay rent, he's not a good guy, he's a wealth hoarder like the rest of them.
Like at one point musk said if there was a plan to end world hunger in 6 billion dollars he would do it, and of course he didn’t… But if he did, a small fraction of his infinite wealth would be gone, but people would have loved him.
Not just that, but an NGO said we could do it in that budget and he bought Twitter with the money instead
For him it was his parents and South Africa. Drugs + environmental influence is the guaranteed way to create a monster.
Basically his entire childhood he understood that there are two classes of people: the people who earned something, and the other is the rest of us. People who look different, have to work, or talk funny.
We were just having a similar discussion, though not about Enya. My position was if I had a billion dollars, you know what I would do? I'd recreate Hogwarts Castle. I'm not even a huge Harry Potter fan and hate what's-her-name, but how cool would it be to live in a beautiful movie set house the size of a small town?
If I had Musk money, I would commission lots of hentai media and bribe politicians to give more rights to everyone. No more porn bans in Texas, science-based textbooks in schools, term and age limits on SCOTUS, sex work is protected work, buy anime & cartoon IP to make it public domain, ect.
unlike jk rowling using her wealth and fame to become a "terf", i think shes buddy buddy with musk too. she must be constantly depressed and stressed from that too. and many pointed out her books are actually low-key her prejudices. also family guy has pointed this issue out 2 different cutscenes too.
Not to defend Musk, but there are plenty of examples of money destroying someone’s life. I’m thinking primarily lottery winners. Just because one person successfully adjusted to it doesn’t mean it’s easy and everyone can.
Of course Musk is a special case where he ruins other people’s lives with his wealth but that’s not my point.
This fact perfectly dismantles the idea of meritocracy, which is why the "lottery curse" lie is pushed by the wealthy. The lottery selects specifically for people who are prone to gambling and poor choices, and yet the majority do just fine with their winnings, because the truth is that wealth protects you from the consequences of your choices.
Yeah if I found myself with more money than I know what to do with I'd spend my time and energy volunteering and working on projects and spending lots of time with friends.
Hell, imagine if these losers went carnagie and started building libraries instead of trying to get them banned. Or maybe something bold like the "Elon Musk bullet train". They could st least try to be loved instead of whatever they're doing now.