Elon & Twitter

[bkp_duke]

I have a lot of respect for your posts. In this case, I’m on the fence regarding the apology. Two concerns - (1), the last statement about Halli considering staying at Twitter isn’t really something that aligns to an apology. (2) Elon‘s comment about talking being better than a tweet is something he needs to demonstrate much much more.

I’d really like Elon to learn from this. He needs to follow his own advice. This doesn’t change my view of Tesla as an owner or of TSLA as an investor. But if he did learn from this he could help both even more. And he might be taken more seriously in areas he frequently wades into with seemingly flash judgments. I don’t think first principles means responding to a tweet with the first thing that you think of.

Reasonable viewpoint, thanks for sharing.

Would be wonderful to be able to quantify how much of this is Elon's being on the spectrum. That's just a hypothetical musing, but a thought none-the-less. I have a nephew on the spectrum and this past weekend when the family was all together I was reminded about how much, objectively, he can be a jerk. He's extremely high-functioning, but often gets a pass on bad behavior because of his diagnosis. And he's high functioning enough that these passes have caused him to learn from them and develop some bad habits on interpersonal interactions.

What's my point? Just wonder how much of this is because Elon's emotionally distant / oblivious because of his diagnosis and how much of it is learned bad behavior (i.e. no one dares to call him out on it, except on Twitter). How do we "install a filter" on Elon? Spouses sometimes help, but he's been down that road and no one has stuck with him for long.

 

[Skipdd]

Reasonable viewpoint, thanks for sharing.

Would be wonderful to be able to quantify how much of this is Elon's being on the spectrum. That's just a hypothetical musing, but a thought none-the-less. I have a nephew on the spectrum and this past weekend when the family was all together I was reminded about how much, objectively, he can be a jerk. He's extremely high-functioning, but often gets a pass on bad behavior because of his diagnosis. And he's high functioning enough that these passes have caused him to learn from them and develop some bad habits on interpersonal interactions.

What's my point? Just wonder how much of this is because Elon's emotionally distant / oblivious because of his diagnosis and how much of it is learned bad behavior (i.e. no one dares to call him out on it, except on Twitter). How do we "install a filter" on Elon? Spouses sometimes help, but he's been down that road and no one has stuck with him for long.

I have experienced same. My view is that he has to take ownership of it and put a filter in place. If the company he is running is public, then the board can “help.” If it’s private, then those he trusts, and/or those with large stakes can offer strong advice. Channeling, shaping, and/or encouraging human behavior is tricky, but it can be done.

 

[EfficientWatts]

I have a lot of respect for your posts. In this case, I’m on the fence regarding the apology. Two concerns - (1), the last statement about Halli considering staying at Twitter isn’t really something that aligns to an apology. (2) Elon‘s comment about talking being better than a tweet is something he needs to demonstrate much much more.

I’d really like Elon to learn from this. He needs to follow his own advice. This doesn’t change my view of Tesla as an owner or of TSLA as an investor. But if he did learn from this he could help both even more. And he might be taken more seriously in areas he frequently wades into with seemingly flash judgments. I don’t think first principles means responding to a tweet with the first thing that you think of.

To expand upon it, I think that when just looking at the apology in of itself to me it does feel real (as best as one can tail given that this is the internet). Whenever I see anyone online apologize, there's always going to be those that detract or think the apology is not genuine, no matter how the apology is done (text, video, etc.); someone will always find fault with it. So of course there are going to be arguments about this, and of course the "you all" argument to describe large groups of people based off a few posters.

That being said, I do think there is something to be said about not trusting this 100%, not because this apology isn't genuine, but because of his past actions and work. This is one of the few times where something seems to be more concrete versus other apologies and incidents in the past, not to mention his other problematic tweets and such.

Trust is easily lost and hard to gain. Accepting an apology doesn't mean one becomes buddy buddy with that person instantly again. It's going to take time and such, and for everyone that is going to be different. So expect everyone to have very different feelings about Elon.

And, depending on what hat you wear (investor, role model, enthusiast, etc.), I would be very mindful of gravitating toward the extremes (Elon can do no wrong vs Elon does everything wrong).

 

[Dave EV]

Pre 2020 Musk was the best version…

I'm telling you, if he just did total radio silence starting in 2020

You guys are two years too late - look at what Ron Baron suggested Elon due way back in 2018. (cliff notes above the direct link to the tweet):

0. Ignore the media
1. Ignore your antagonists - they are all trying to bait you into acting irrationally
2. No political contributions to anyone or party - I would expand this to avoiding direct contact with anyone on the extreme sides of either party
3. Be unfailingly polite to everyone
4. Communicate with employees regularly with 2x/mo Letters from Elon
5. Be BORING!

It's pretty safe to say that he's done the exact opposite of each of these. And all the surrounding drama, noise and distractions are the result...

https://twitter.com/x/status/1633221742817869824

Words are nothing. Actions matter.

I am highly doubtful Elon will change, or if he ever will. He certainly hasn't reached anywhere near rock bottom, or a point at which he's been reasonable convinced that the way he's acting is not in his own best interests, or in the best interests of humanity.

 

[JRP3]

What's my point? Just wonder how much of this is because Elon's emotionally distant / oblivious because of his diagnosis and how much of it is learned bad behavior (i.e. no one dares to call him out on it, except on Twitter).

He certainly used to be a better person than we've seen in the last year or so. Or at least better at controlling himself and hiding is true nature if this is it.

 

[GreenDriver]

Is that real? I might regain some respect for him if it is. He still has a long way to climb up out of that hole to prove that he's actually going to change. Words are nothing. Actions matter.

It's not real. Just a rough first draft I jotted out. Not super introspective and certainly not detailed, but a good start, I thought.

When people speak of apologies, that's an example of an apology that means something, even if it leaves something to be desired.

 

[john5520]

You guys are two years too late - look at what Ron Baron suggested Elon due way back in 2018. (cliff notes above the direct link to the tweet):

0. Ignore the media
1. Ignore your antagonists - they are all trying to bait you into acting irrationally
2. No political contributions to anyone or party - I would expand this to avoiding direct contact with anyone on the extreme sides of either party
3. Be unfailingly polite to everyone
4. Communicate with employees regularly with 2x/mo Letters from Elon
5. Be BORING!

It's pretty safe to say that he's done the exact opposite of each of these. And all the surrounding drama, noise and distractions are the result...

https://twitter.com/x/status/1633221742817869824

I am highly doubtful Elon will change, or if he ever will. He certainly hasn't reached anywhere near rock bottom, or a point at which he's been reasonable convinced that the way he's acting is not in his own best interests, or in the best interests of humanity.

I agree. From what I've seen so far, it's only going to get worse.

 

[Bouba]

Reasonable viewpoint, thanks for sharing.

Would be wonderful to be able to quantify how much of this is Elon's being on the spectrum. That's just a hypothetical musing, but a thought none-the-less. I have a nephew on the spectrum and this past weekend when the family was all together I was reminded about how much, objectively, he can be a jerk. He's extremely high-functioning, but often gets a pass on bad behavior because of his diagnosis. And he's high functioning enough that these passes have caused him to learn from them and develop some bad habits on interpersonal interactions.

What's my point? Just wonder how much of this is because Elon's emotionally distant / oblivious because of his diagnosis and how much of it is learned bad behavior (i.e. no one dares to call him out on it, except on Twitter). How do we "install a filter" on Elon? Spouses sometimes help, but he's been down that road and no one has stuck with him for long.

It’s a very important part for him, I believe. Running Twitter is like running a circus....backstage he hustles, is demanding and there’s cruelty....but front of house all eyes are on him...he’s the ringmaster, PT Barnum, he’s putting on a show under the spotlight of his Twitter account...all eyes are on him and that’s his only goal. Add the lack of filter for when he’s crossing the line..plus his juvenile South African sense of humor....well, what you see might just be the beginning of what you get

 

[TSLY]

Howard Hughes​

QElon has already cracked up and is speeding towards a calamitous personal collision. He's been paralleling Howard Hughes for months. I actually wish him well despite the fact that he's such a schmuck. Good for business, though. I sold 10 QElon prints (in my sig) just last week.

 

[italian bread]

Penny wise, pound foolish. There are some things you can’t cheap on.

At Elon Musk’s ‘brittle’ Twitter, tweaks trigger massive outages

Before Musk’s takeover, the company had a risk evaluation team that vetted product changes for anticipated problems. Twitter’s risk evaluation process was geared at flagging potential problems before they arose. But the team was laid off after Musk’s takeover, The Washington Post reported, leading to product rollouts that were riddled with bugs.

 

[JRP3]

And today we get headlines and articles such as this.

Elon Musk apologizes after mocking laid-off Twitter employee

Haraldur Thorleifsson, who until recently was employed at Twitter, logged in to his computer last Sunday to do some work — only to find himself locked out, along with 200 others. Instead, after nine days of no answer from Twitter as to whether or not he was still employed, Thorleifsson decided...

www.yahoo.com

 

[Dikkie Dik]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1633248392133623809

Exactly

 

[italian bread]

And today we get headlines and articles such as this.

Elon Musk apologizes after mocking laid-off Twitter employee

Haraldur Thorleifsson, who until recently was employed at Twitter, logged in to his computer last Sunday to do some work — only to find himself locked out, along with 200 others. Instead, after nine days of no answer from Twitter as to whether or not he was still employed, Thorleifsson decided...

www.yahoo.com

You know what's better than an apology? Not publicly picking on and trolling an employee who lost access to his laptop, isn't getting a straight answer from HR, and asks honestly if he still had a job at Twitter. Is that really so hard to do correctly the first time around?

 

[DrGriz]

Nope, he went off half-cocked without getting facts. He was wrong there.

But the apology I believe by all appearances is genuine.

He didn't own the situation. He blamed someone else.

 

[sunwarriors]

About the responses I expected from this group. Again, I'm not defending all that Elon has done, he's made mistakes, and I acknowledge those. But the impression I get from this group is that NOTHING will ever be good enough for him to atone. Impressive judgement there.

Little introspection of your own biases might work wonders gents. Because you let "perfect be the enemy of good" no one will ever measure up to your standards, and that makes things a VERY lonely world. You all have your own screw-ups, they just are not nearly as public.

I think you could take your own advice. Every post I read from you is a defense of Elon. I've stated before, a lot of Elon's screw ups, even though public are his own doing. He's adding fuel to the fire and publicly outing people even though he himself is the biggest cryer of being bullied or doxed or whatever. He should just keep quiet and do his job, but it's Elon so that's not possible.

Elon was quiet for a little while lately and things have been going better, but it's been ramping up again and he opens his mouth and it's just bad comments all over again.

It's probably a medical condition really at this point, but his treatment of workers/staff shouldn't be a surprise I'd guess that nearly everyone still there is probably looking for work at Twitter. Since everyone still there is already hardcore, it's a sad state for any company when you can be offed anytime even if you're one of the best workers left and sacrificing a lot for being there.


All this stated, I'm very flawed and a walking encyclopedia of screw-ups, that's why I tend to shut up and mostly keep quiet so not to advertise that to the world.

 

[bkp_duke]

I think you could take your own advice. Every post I read from you is a defense of Elon. I've stated before, a lot of Elon's screw ups, even though public are his own doing. He's adding fuel to the fire and publicly outing people even though he himself is the biggest cryer of being bullied or doxed or whatever. He should just keep quiet and do his job, but it's Elon so that's not possible.

Elon was quiet for a little while lately and things have been going better, but it's been ramping up again and he opens his mouth and it's just bad comments all over again.

It's probably a medical condition really at this point, but his treatment of workers/staff shouldn't be a surprise I'd guess that nearly everyone still there is probably looking for work at Twitter. Since everyone still there is already hardcore, it's a sad state for any company when you can be offed anytime even if you're one of the best workers left and sacrificing a lot for being there.


All this stated, I'm very flawed and a walking encyclopedia of screw-ups, that's why I tend to shut up and mostly keep quiet so not to advertise that to the world.

My "defense of Elon" is intentional in this thread simply to provide a voice to counterbalance the Elon bashing here. If you've followed and read my posts on TMC you will know that I've been very critical of Tesla and Elon at times when they deserved it (mainly to do with policies regarding salvage title cars and lack of support regarding those).

Just an observation, you go outside of this thread and the Elon bashing is about 5X lower. This appears to be the congregate of where those that really dislike Elon have gathered (or been allowed to gather). A little counterbalance to the echo chamber is warranted. Will it make any difference? Nope. But we are all allowed to express our opinions.

 

[sunwarriors]

To expand upon it, I think that when just looking at the apology in of itself to me it does feel real (as best as one can tail given that this is the internet). Whenever I see anyone online apologize, there's always going to be those that detract or think the apology is not genuine, no matter how the apology is done (text, video, etc.); someone will always find fault with it. So of course there are going to be arguments about this, and of course the "you all" argument to describe large groups of people based off a few posters.

That being said, I do think there is something to be said about not trusting this 100%, not because this apology isn't genuine, but because of his past actions and work. This is one of the few times where something seems to be more concrete versus other apologies and incidents in the past, not to mention his other problematic tweets and such.

Trust is easily lost and hard to gain. Accepting an apology doesn't mean one becomes buddy buddy with that person instantly again. It's going to take time and such, and for everyone that is going to be different. So expect everyone to have very different feelings about Elon.

And, depending on what hat you wear (investor, role model, enthusiast, etc.), I would be very mindful of gravitating toward the extremes (Elon can do no wrong vs Elon does everything wrong).

I think his actions are the ultimate test of any apology. If someone punches you and says sorry, then just punches you again, did they really mean it? Words are really cheap, worthless since in this day and age, words are pretty much meaninless. Contracts are meaningless too, especially employment ones at Twitter so that's where lawsuits have/should fly. That fired guy should just take the legal route since that's always been the way to win against Tesla.

We'll all see how this Twitter thing works out, but if it's true Elon got a deal at 44 billion for Twitter, he should just flip it to someone else for more.

If it's a medical condition, he needs to be treated maybe by simply doing/using less of the drug (Twitter) or whatever it's is causing him his issues/problems.

 

[sunwarriors]

He certainly used to be a better person than we've seen in the last year or so. Or at least better at controlling himself and hiding is true nature if this is it.

I think a lot of this is due to a person's success, arrogance, wealth, etc...Mroe and more of that, they get it in their head they are simply better than everyone else and always right since (I'm more successful than you, what do you know? how can you be right?).

Tesla almost went bankrupt, failures exposes your shortcomings and he had less blind cheerleaders/cult members back then.

 

[cdub]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1633248392133623809

Exactly

"Better to talk to people than communicate via tweet." He's almost getting it.

 

[AmpManMYP]

My "defense of Elon" is intentional in this thread simply to provide a voice to counterbalance the Elon bashing here.

We all know how important it is to be "Fair and Balanced". ;-)