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 o…
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).
I agree. Multibillionaires should not exist. "Period!" as Sean Spicer would say. And we have the GOP to thank for the extreme inequality while the Few rake in the trillions. Thank the Tax Code. Dems aren't exempt but this is in fact a GOP-caused situation by and large.
And the very rich and powerful should not be objects of worship. Nor should money. Or sports. Or religion either. Worship should be reserved for that which is most worthy, deserving of highest reverence. It ain't that stuff.... (If I had to choose, I'd pick something like Statesmanship and Good Character to start with Or at the very least actual proven Talent.)
The tax code should not be used for social or economic engineering.
The sole purpose of taxes (in competent governance) is to generate revenue.
This keeps the tax code simple and easy to understand. You can still have a progressive tax schedule (which is actually fairly simple), but you avoid the plethora of extra crap that gums up the works and gives tax lawyers work and rich people opportunities (largely non-visible and not easily understood by pretty much everyone else) to avoid taxes.
If you want to do social engineering or economic engineering it needs to be separate from the tax code. It needs to take the form of separately legislated and sunset-limited subsidies that are openly discussed and voted for and that the public can clearly see... and whose cost can be clearly seen.
And all income needs to be treated as income, regardless of it's form. That includes medical and other benefits.
This gives you a far better idea of what revenue is going to be and a far clearer picture of who is paying what.. and who is getting a government handout for reason X.
And, if people think that giving people that are paying mortgages a break because of that, then a subsidy can be voted for it. And you could put clear limits on it--because, frankly, hundred millionaires and up don't need help with the mortgage (or shouldn't).
And yes, that would increase my taxes because I get medical benefits and a mortgage deduction.
Interesting that you are R Mercer which is a moniker for another oligarch. I think we need to consider the history of the Robber Barons because there is this new bunch of them and they are very destructive. The old bunch were brought under control initially by the FDR Administration and a strongly Democratic Congress but subsequent Administrations, both Republican and Democratic and the accompanying Congresses allowed the Robber Barons to gain power again. I would love to see this new batch of Robber Barons put in their place.
They excuse their destruction in the name and cause of creating a better future--of disrupting the way things are to create a better way (because obviously anything they do or create is better because they are geniuses).
This has always been the nature of progress--for the most part. We have always been good at the destruction part but have usually not managed it or the disruption well. In the good old days, it was YOUR fault that your job went away because things changed. You weren't obviously smart enough to look ahead to something that nobody else actually foresaw.
There is a little bit of help these days, but not enough and not thoughtful enough (and not supported enough).
Unregulated/unthoughtful (from a societal perspective) change is disruptive and dangerous. Change (especially rapid change whose only concern is profit) creates massive problems. Witness all of the unintended consequences of the digital revolution--especially social media.
But thought and regulation would get in the way of progress (and most importantly, the accumulation of massive wealth). This is largely a repeat of the Robber Baron era, only with a different technology base. We did not learn the lessons the first time and apparently are not learning them this time either.
I believe there are many compelling moral, economic, and civic reasons to tax the extremely wealthy.
But in the last few years I've settled on a new one: it's probably for their own good. Between Bill Gates partying on Epstein island and torpedoing his marriage, Bezos being an overall miserable jerk, and the ongoing Musk debacle, I have come to the conclusion amassing 100 billion dollars creates more heartache than happiness for the owner.
I would agree that he probably doesn't actually understand any of them, especially at the technical level (let alone the management level). He certainly does not come across as a capable manager.
And I was pretty aware that he didn't create or invent any of this stuff. Even a brief look will tell you that, if you can be bothered. Most of his fanbois can't be.
Amen and thank you for stating it loud and clear. I wish every article or comment on Musk added that (and perhaps that taxpayer subsidies made him what he is). A genius at conning people is about all that is remarkable about the man.
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).
I agree. Multibillionaires should not exist. "Period!" as Sean Spicer would say. And we have the GOP to thank for the extreme inequality while the Few rake in the trillions. Thank the Tax Code. Dems aren't exempt but this is in fact a GOP-caused situation by and large.
And the very rich and powerful should not be objects of worship. Nor should money. Or sports. Or religion either. Worship should be reserved for that which is most worthy, deserving of highest reverence. It ain't that stuff.... (If I had to choose, I'd pick something like Statesmanship and Good Character to start with Or at the very least actual proven Talent.)
The tax code should not be used for social or economic engineering.
The sole purpose of taxes (in competent governance) is to generate revenue.
This keeps the tax code simple and easy to understand. You can still have a progressive tax schedule (which is actually fairly simple), but you avoid the plethora of extra crap that gums up the works and gives tax lawyers work and rich people opportunities (largely non-visible and not easily understood by pretty much everyone else) to avoid taxes.
If you want to do social engineering or economic engineering it needs to be separate from the tax code. It needs to take the form of separately legislated and sunset-limited subsidies that are openly discussed and voted for and that the public can clearly see... and whose cost can be clearly seen.
And all income needs to be treated as income, regardless of it's form. That includes medical and other benefits.
This gives you a far better idea of what revenue is going to be and a far clearer picture of who is paying what.. and who is getting a government handout for reason X.
And, if people think that giving people that are paying mortgages a break because of that, then a subsidy can be voted for it. And you could put clear limits on it--because, frankly, hundred millionaires and up don't need help with the mortgage (or shouldn't).
And yes, that would increase my taxes because I get medical benefits and a mortgage deduction.
Interesting that you are R Mercer which is a moniker for another oligarch. I think we need to consider the history of the Robber Barons because there is this new bunch of them and they are very destructive. The old bunch were brought under control initially by the FDR Administration and a strongly Democratic Congress but subsequent Administrations, both Republican and Democratic and the accompanying Congresses allowed the Robber Barons to gain power again. I would love to see this new batch of Robber Barons put in their place.
It's my actual name, but I am no relation :P
They excuse their destruction in the name and cause of creating a better future--of disrupting the way things are to create a better way (because obviously anything they do or create is better because they are geniuses).
This has always been the nature of progress--for the most part. We have always been good at the destruction part but have usually not managed it or the disruption well. In the good old days, it was YOUR fault that your job went away because things changed. You weren't obviously smart enough to look ahead to something that nobody else actually foresaw.
There is a little bit of help these days, but not enough and not thoughtful enough (and not supported enough).
Unregulated/unthoughtful (from a societal perspective) change is disruptive and dangerous. Change (especially rapid change whose only concern is profit) creates massive problems. Witness all of the unintended consequences of the digital revolution--especially social media.
But thought and regulation would get in the way of progress (and most importantly, the accumulation of massive wealth). This is largely a repeat of the Robber Baron era, only with a different technology base. We did not learn the lessons the first time and apparently are not learning them this time either.
:) Agree with you that we did not learn the lessons the first time and I don’t see evidence that we are learning them this time either.
I believe there are many compelling moral, economic, and civic reasons to tax the extremely wealthy.
But in the last few years I've settled on a new one: it's probably for their own good. Between Bill Gates partying on Epstein island and torpedoing his marriage, Bezos being an overall miserable jerk, and the ongoing Musk debacle, I have come to the conclusion amassing 100 billion dollars creates more heartache than happiness for the owner.
There is a better reason, it is for OUR good. It being good for them is a side benefit.
Yes, oh, hell yes! Especially to your penultimate and ultimate paragraphs.
I would agree that he probably doesn't actually understand any of them, especially at the technical level (let alone the management level). He certainly does not come across as a capable manager.
And I was pretty aware that he didn't create or invent any of this stuff. Even a brief look will tell you that, if you can be bothered. Most of his fanbois can't be.
Amen and thank you for stating it loud and clear. I wish every article or comment on Musk added that (and perhaps that taxpayer subsidies made him what he is). A genius at conning people is about all that is remarkable about the man.