"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerated the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than the democratic state itself." ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt
Thank you, Karen, for speaking your truth. I admire you for that ❤️. I’m not sure what to make of Elon’s gesture, but your honesty and insight into it is helpful for me to read and consider. I do think it casts a dark shadow over this time of hopefulness for our country. It’s another thing for me to pray about, and put in the hands of our loving, capable Father of light. This world is not our home. So many people are deceived, and will continue to be, by the god of this world, Satan. If people choose to unfollow you because of this, they’re acting like children. I remember Elon doing this recently on X, when there were some people he blocked because he didn’t like what they said. Jesus said, “beware of false prophets who come disguised as vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, the way they act.” -Matthew 7:15-16a. I was beginning to learn what totalitarianism was, now I get to learn about fascism?! 😂
Truth is truth, which is in the light and not the darkness, so keep up the truths! You are on exactly the right track, even if I haven’t decided one way or another about that salute. We always thought he was a goofy child type of adult, with autism or ADHD, or whatever. I’m not gonna make much of the salute, but if Trump seems it unacceptable and that it was intentional, I’m 100% with Trump. Not in love with Trump, in love with freedom & his ideals. Right now Trump is closest to him, and I am confident he will not tolerate such behavior or values if it was what we saw. I think how he jumped all over the stage at a Trump rally a couple of months ago, and I always thought white boyz can’t jump, ha!
As for our Jewish friends not posting due to the hateful responses they receive, remember this fellow believers; only the loudmouth skunks are full of hatred for Israel and they are ALL our enemy, Jews & Christians. The silent majority (like myself) don’t say much about things outside our homes. Rest assured, it if comes down to blows, we silent partners are your ready partners. Say what you want and ignore the negative, hateful comments from our enemies, as we stand with you. Let their hate roll off your back like rain, say a short prayer of forgiveness and that God changes their hearts. We are His church, pity them & pray for them, we have your backs, promise.
Karen the biggest reason I subscribe and read you is because of this.....I am a bigger fan now! and yes regardless of how or why Elon did that Nazi salute gesture it obviously is not good!! As a believer in Jesus Christ I am very happy Trump and his administration are in power now but because I read and study my Bible and what it has to say about the Last Days I am under no illusion that we are going back to "normal"....yes Trumps policies align MUCH better with what we believe as Christians but that doesn't change the fact that we are still heading down the road to the soon return of Jesus....all bible prophecy focus's on Israel (Genesis 12:3, Zechariah 12:3) so keep your eyes on Israel.....maranatha!!
Elon is an enigmatic character. He has done much that is clearly good and I would like to conclude that he is therefore good. But he is clearly very smart, and it does appear that much of the good he does results in free advertising for him and his companies. And then he does things like this, which most are willing to write off as him just being Elon. I would conclude that the jury is still out, but watching carefully is a smart thing to do..
Karen, I don't know quite what to make of it, but at best it was unfortunate. I wish Elon hadn't chosen that gesture to express anything, no matter his intentions. Whether I agree or disagree with you in part, I will surely not unfollow because I greatly appreciate your willingness to "go there" on difficult topics.
That said, I didn't know about the growing Christian Nationalist "Christ is King" movement in Europe. Or maybe I didn't understand that it has co-opted Christianity to do its bidding. THAT is deeply disturbing.
Please keep doing what you do, which I realize is anything but easy. Your voice is so needed.
I actually don't think it was intentional, but am cautious about musk! Humans tend to go to extremes,and though I believe we have corrected extreme left, hopefully , we can overcurrent, to extreme right! Can i,add I have read and profited by, works by your father
That's wonderful, I always love hearing how my dad's books have blessed people's lives. We didn't agree on everything but I can say with 100 percent assurance he is looking down with blessings and if he were here today, he would be speaking out with an even stronger voice than mine. I sure do miss him.
Meant to say we can overcurrent to extreme right! And I have been afraid of that. Let me add, as a jewish believer, I do so appreciate your speaking out!
I don’t necessarily agree with you on this and am reserving judgement on it. But I appreciate that you say what you think without regard to your followers or anyone ditching you. I wouldn’t unsubscribe to someone honest just because we disagree. I value different opinions. Having said all that, I don’t think there is a human ever born who should have as much power as Elon has. Regardless of whether or not he is particularly conniving or psychopathic, he will be corrupted by that power, if he isn’t already. Something must be done to break up his power and that of the tech giants in general.
Hurrah for open discussion. Elon, like other super wealthy and supposedly highly intelligent people, is immature. (Zuckerberg and Bezos also.) If you watch Musk's movements, he is awkward, especially when he is excited. I do not believe he gave the Nazi salute. And, I do not particularly like him. Shalom.
K, I need one of your inspirational posts and maybe some drawings or paintings. A double dose, maybe, because the world still isn't any better than it was just yesterday, regardless of who is in or what is said and done.
And, you are always able to inspire me when you do those, 'cause I know there's good somewhere.
Just to add my tuppenceworth as a German: In the context of what he was saying it does not look to me like a Nazi salute. Just enthusiastic, grandiose and awkward. It is common enough in Germany for the media to publish pictures of politicians supposedly in mid Nazi salute to smear their name. I personally wouldn't pay too much attention to it.
Joseph what are your thoughts about Elon making that gesture? I feel very much as Karen does… I voted Republican for the first time in my life this election, having emerged from democratic and legacy media brainwashing I’ve been under my entire adult life. I was excited for Trump to bring back the solid American values I feel are slipping away so fast, and I was convinced that the majority of anti-Trump rhetoric was twisted and wrong. But when I saw this clip I literally gasped and right now I don’t know what to make of it. At the very least, if it was not intentional it has given the Left fodder for a LIFETIME as “proof” of the emerging fascism they’re constantly shrieking about. At worst… well I don’t even want to think about the possible consequences if it was intentional.
Sorry for the lengthy response but I am genuinely curious what your thoughts are and why you’re able to easily dismiss it? Truly my question is in good faith. Thanks.
You make a good point. Many former democrats who with some trepidation voted for Trump now have to deal with this confusion. I have seen some of these people being roasted by their democratic friends on social media saying ‘we tried to warn you’ and ‘how does it feel knowing you voted for this.’ They feel betrayed, they dont what to think. It's a disaster.
fwiw many dems who voted fer Orange Man fer the 1st time are very (very) upset 'bout his makin' Israel/bb "tow the line"... they feelin' they got hornswaggled/abandoned...
to 'splain--many chews who normally voted Left voted Right this time... NOW Trump goes an' forces BB to cease fire in Gaza an' release 2000 terrorists an' accept body bags of dead hostages as a "deal"--that's a real sucky deal (at least to many of us). Hamas will have time ta re-arm an'll git back the gee-haw'd murderers that many lives were lost in capturin'--
It's a TURRIBLE deal an' DJT also embarrassed BB (not that BB ain't cocky an' insultin' himself) but the Jeffery Sach's tweet about him bein' a "SOB" was beyond the pale--very below-the-belt hits undignified... AND the fellow that went to negociate with BB is a funded by Qutar--Israel's mortal enemy...
If ya kin imagine votin' fer dems all yer life, bein' convinced ta vote fer Trump, an' then watchin' as he gives Israel what many of us think is a sucker punch--wull, let's say lotta these folks are feelin' suckered themselfs...
Ah… sorry I wasn’t used to your vernacular lol… very clever. Yes, it does make sense, and I see your point. However I’m not sure the dems would have done much better. I don’t recall hearing much of a plan for how they would have dealt with the whole situation and while it may not be fair, in the absence of a plan I can only imagine they would be in line with their more vocal, Palestine-supporting voters, no? So perhaps it was a “lesser of two evils” kind of thing as it - ugh - so often is.
I understand. I believe it was an expression of his unbridled enthusiasm for all that has been accomplished. There was and is no secret underlying message. There has never been any indication that his brilliant mind works that way.
I agree. I watched the video several times and I don’t see an intent to make a Nazi gesture. In fact his hand is almost sideways, rather straight out as a Nazi gesture would be. I see him hitting his heart and throwing live to those who have shown it to him.
My grandson has Asperger’s, which is what Elon has, (high end of the Autism spectrum) and he is also socially awkward and he sometimes does very awkward things as well. It’s kind of goofy at times, which is how Elon comes off to me as well. When they aren’t being completely serious but trying to be social, they can just be a little weird.
They have a mind for science, space, art/creativity, and math, naturally, and are intrigued by the possibilities. I don’t think Elon is a Nazi or an antisemite, and I don’t think he has nefarious intentions.
Do I completely trust him, no, I don’t trust any human that much, will I continue to keep an eye on him, and everyone else, absolutely.
I think this was blown out of proportion, people who are wary of him ran with it, and unfortunately, people who actually ARE antisemites, like Torba, (who believes in replacement theology), and others, ran with it for their own reasons.
It was unfortunate and terrible timing. He wasn’t thinking about how it looked in that moment because it takes all of his focus to just be in that kind of a social situation.
As others have said, I’m not going to stop following you, as I enjoy your writing, and agree with most of what you post.
Now that I’ve had some time to digest it, I agree with you both, Joseph and Dakota. Most especially after considering where the heck this would have come from? Why pretend to be on the side of Israel all this time only to be a secret anti-semite? It just doesn’t make sense. Witnessing the glee with which so many have responded to this (“SEE WE TOLD YOU!!”) and the fact that so many on the Left would rather this actually be a Nazi salute (to stand upon and gloat!) than give Musk the benefit of the doubt has certainly had something to do with drawing this conclusion. Although Karen I still do completely understand how you feel and I think it is very much justified because, regardless of lack of intent (in my opinion) it was shocking to see! Your post was exactly what I needed to see when I read it. Also, you’ve gained another paid subscriber in appreciation of your thoughtfulness and candor; I’m sure it was NOT an easy post! I’d like to go forward assuming that this was indeed a gaffe made by someone who is obviously socially awkward, and pray I’m on the right side of things!
Thank you, Molly. No, it wasn't easy to post this but I'm glad I did. Hopefully people will remember it down the road. I've been researching and writing about Elon Musk for three years. He will be all things to all people. He will be Jewish to the Jews if it means he can get them on his side and he will be a fascist to the Neo-Nazis. You probably aren't on X, but I go on there for research. I have to prepare myself spiritually because it is such a disgusting hotbed of antisemitism and hate. Neo Nazis have embraced him because of what he did, and Jews are defending him. He can do no wrong, it's quite incredible. The reason why Jewish accounts support him is because if anyone wants to have a platform on X they must bow to Elon Musk, and they don't dare criticize him. So even large Jewish accounts that now make a lot of money on X, dare not criticize him, no matter what they might think privately.
It amazes me why anyone would think the richest man in the world who has said openly he wants to microchip everyone's brains and connect us all to his AI is anything but a dangerous monster. Yep, that's my assessment! You can read my new piece about Trump's Stargate venture to find out more.
Agree!!! If you don't like Musk, suck it up. Are any of Karen's readers perfect, with no quirks??? All the Yada, Yada, Yada running off of the mouth is really getting boring. For crying out loud, at least give him 100 days in Trump's administration to show if he measures up. Most of the comments made in this essay sound like the MSM.
I don't have any insights to share about the nature of the "salute," but I will observe that his persona yesterday was quite different from the autistic-y, stammering, stuttering, pause-full way he conducts many of his "genius engineer" interviews (which I always found amusing because he isn't an engineer).
The "stammering engineer-nerd schtick" has served its purpose, so now he can dispense with it. He's "neurotypical" enough to realize that the "idiot savant" thing doesn't work on the political stage.
Karen, I love the above piece, in fact I love a lot of what you write and agree with it, especially the write ups regarding Islam, Israel, Trump and Christianity. With people it's not a simple black or white thing, there are a multitude of shades in between. The only black or white we have is Jesus, no shades of grey. On that basis Karen you write what's in your heart and don't fold irrespective of what people think.
I wish I had had a history teacher like that. History was my least favorite subject throughout my school years. Fortunately they didn't destroy my curiosity and inner desire to know and understand the world.
Francisco Gil-White whose substack is called "Management of Reality" wrote a chilling article on the USA's absorption of Nazis after WW2, and the numbers went beyond Operation Paperclip. Following is the beginning of that post:
"How many Nazis were secretly recruited at the creation of the CIA? Lots!
"It was publicly documented a long time ago—way back in 1988—that, following WWII, US bosses took over, whole, the German Nazi intelligence infrastructure in Eastern Europe. Giant multitudes of war criminals complicit in outrages to shake History itself were taken into receivership and adopted by the US government. The resulting creature was called ‘the US Central Intelligence Agency’: the CIA.
"The historian who made this known is Christopher Simpson. The title of his book is Blowback. The subtitle has varied a bit with different editions, but the first one was: The First Full Account of America’s Recruitment of Nazis and Its Disastrous Effect on Our Domestic and Foreign Policy.
"As you may know, the issue that consumes me is the management of reality. So the first thing I ask myself is: Why should I have to tell you about Simpson’s research at all? I mean, this is tremendous. It should already be super, super famous. But from experience I can tell you: hardly anybody knows about this subject.
I'm re-reading Gil-White's article now in which he stresses a strange, willful blindness we humans tend to exhibit and which he calls "prestige bias". It makes me wonder about the comments you're getting here. I hope you'll follow the link to his post and read it all!
I'm sure, after recent events, that many gestures and spontaneous actions act as triggers for Jewish people and their supporters. I get it.
But Elon Musk is not your average guy and he often acts like an overenthusiastic kid. I suspect this was one of those times -- unconsidered, but not malicious.
Precisely because he isn't your average guy, precisely because he is the richest man in the world, $200 billion above Jeff Bezos, and that $200 billion he got within the last year, thanks to aligning with Trump, he should be held to a higher account. A few thousand people might listen to me. He has the ears and eyes of the entire planet and wants to have his Starlink connected to every inch and his satellites as a monopoly in space, microchips in everyones' brains connected to his AI, as well as government military contracts. So I am not sure why people are so reticent to call him out, as if he is just a big overgrown kid. He isn't
Musk is a businessman first and foremost and knows what to do to advance his interests, as you'd expect from the richest man in the world.
Hasn't Starlink benefited Israel? I'm willing to bet it has. And technology is now moving forward, with or without Musk. This doesn't mean he gets a free pass. But let's call him out on the things we disagree with, not the odd way he sometimes presents himself. This is not worthy of your writings on so many other subjects. Not so many of us are fooled by the machinations of big business as you seem to inply.
You miss the point entirely. Elon Musk has the eyes and ears of the world on him. He says something and everyone listens. Perhaps you aren't aware of the disturbing rise of fascism, of antisemitism. But I've said all I can say on the topic. If people don't get it, I'm not surprised. I've done my best.
Now those are excellent reasons for calling Elon Musk out! The spastic dance and gestures are more of a strawman, maybe. "Look at that squirrel!" while the fox is eating your chickens.
Well, if you think Elon Musk doesn't know exactly what he's doing, you underestimate him. And really, this proves he js pretty much untouchable. This actually would be a way to open people's eyes but people don't want to. We can criticize him as much as we want and I have written about all those things for 3 years and still people fawn over Elon Musk. So really, I don't know how to reach people anymore.
I’m constantly amazed that so many have accepted Elon in the Trump inner circle. I do not trust him… at all. His back story is bizarre. The deeper theories that I’ve read about. And I call them theories because other than Jesus I try to hold everything lightly. So I have intense caution with the technocrats surrounding and infiltrating the administration while not being surprised… at the same time stepping back to watch it all play out. I’ve read the Book and I’m blown away what I sense we’re witnessing… time will tell.
Thanks for allowing speculation and discussion Karen.
Thank you, Karen, for speaking your truth. I admire you for that ❤️. I’m not sure what to make of Elon’s gesture, but your honesty and insight into it is helpful for me to read and consider. I do think it casts a dark shadow over this time of hopefulness for our country. It’s another thing for me to pray about, and put in the hands of our loving, capable Father of light. This world is not our home. So many people are deceived, and will continue to be, by the god of this world, Satan. If people choose to unfollow you because of this, they’re acting like children. I remember Elon doing this recently on X, when there were some people he blocked because he didn’t like what they said. Jesus said, “beware of false prophets who come disguised as vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, the way they act.” -Matthew 7:15-16a. I was beginning to learn what totalitarianism was, now I get to learn about fascism?! 😂
Thank you. It wasn't easy publishing this piece. 🙏
Truth is truth, which is in the light and not the darkness, so keep up the truths! You are on exactly the right track, even if I haven’t decided one way or another about that salute. We always thought he was a goofy child type of adult, with autism or ADHD, or whatever. I’m not gonna make much of the salute, but if Trump seems it unacceptable and that it was intentional, I’m 100% with Trump. Not in love with Trump, in love with freedom & his ideals. Right now Trump is closest to him, and I am confident he will not tolerate such behavior or values if it was what we saw. I think how he jumped all over the stage at a Trump rally a couple of months ago, and I always thought white boyz can’t jump, ha!
As for our Jewish friends not posting due to the hateful responses they receive, remember this fellow believers; only the loudmouth skunks are full of hatred for Israel and they are ALL our enemy, Jews & Christians. The silent majority (like myself) don’t say much about things outside our homes. Rest assured, it if comes down to blows, we silent partners are your ready partners. Say what you want and ignore the negative, hateful comments from our enemies, as we stand with you. Let their hate roll off your back like rain, say a short prayer of forgiveness and that God changes their hearts. We are His church, pity them & pray for them, we have your backs, promise.
Thank you for speaking out. I agree with what you have said. G-d bless
Karen the biggest reason I subscribe and read you is because of this.....I am a bigger fan now! and yes regardless of how or why Elon did that Nazi salute gesture it obviously is not good!! As a believer in Jesus Christ I am very happy Trump and his administration are in power now but because I read and study my Bible and what it has to say about the Last Days I am under no illusion that we are going back to "normal"....yes Trumps policies align MUCH better with what we believe as Christians but that doesn't change the fact that we are still heading down the road to the soon return of Jesus....all bible prophecy focus's on Israel (Genesis 12:3, Zechariah 12:3) so keep your eyes on Israel.....maranatha!!
Thank you. I prayed long and hard about publishing this. I know my dad is sending blessings from above. Maranatha to you!
Elon is an enigmatic character. He has done much that is clearly good and I would like to conclude that he is therefore good. But he is clearly very smart, and it does appear that much of the good he does results in free advertising for him and his companies. And then he does things like this, which most are willing to write off as him just being Elon. I would conclude that the jury is still out, but watching carefully is a smart thing to do..
Karen, I don't know quite what to make of it, but at best it was unfortunate. I wish Elon hadn't chosen that gesture to express anything, no matter his intentions. Whether I agree or disagree with you in part, I will surely not unfollow because I greatly appreciate your willingness to "go there" on difficult topics.
That said, I didn't know about the growing Christian Nationalist "Christ is King" movement in Europe. Or maybe I didn't understand that it has co-opted Christianity to do its bidding. THAT is deeply disturbing.
Please keep doing what you do, which I realize is anything but easy. Your voice is so needed.
Fascism is growing in Europe and the Christian Nationalist movement is growing in the United States.
It's bad enough, but tying it to Christianity . . . terrible, terrible.
I think you meant to say Karen, not Trish.
Christian Nationalism and the Rise of "Christ is King", Part II of The Perfect Storm: https://khmezek.substack.com/p/the-perfect-storm-part-ii-christian
Ugh! I’m so sorry, Karen! I knew it was you ♥️
No worries ❤️
I fixed it . . . . whew :)!
I actually don't think it was intentional, but am cautious about musk! Humans tend to go to extremes,and though I believe we have corrected extreme left, hopefully , we can overcurrent, to extreme right! Can i,add I have read and profited by, works by your father
That's wonderful, I always love hearing how my dad's books have blessed people's lives. We didn't agree on everything but I can say with 100 percent assurance he is looking down with blessings and if he were here today, he would be speaking out with an even stronger voice than mine. I sure do miss him.
Meant to say we can overcurrent to extreme right! And I have been afraid of that. Let me add, as a jewish believer, I do so appreciate your speaking out!
🙏
I don’t necessarily agree with you on this and am reserving judgement on it. But I appreciate that you say what you think without regard to your followers or anyone ditching you. I wouldn’t unsubscribe to someone honest just because we disagree. I value different opinions. Having said all that, I don’t think there is a human ever born who should have as much power as Elon has. Regardless of whether or not he is particularly conniving or psychopathic, he will be corrupted by that power, if he isn’t already. Something must be done to break up his power and that of the tech giants in general.
agree 100 percent
Hurrah for open discussion. Elon, like other super wealthy and supposedly highly intelligent people, is immature. (Zuckerberg and Bezos also.) If you watch Musk's movements, he is awkward, especially when he is excited. I do not believe he gave the Nazi salute. And, I do not particularly like him. Shalom.
K, I need one of your inspirational posts and maybe some drawings or paintings. A double dose, maybe, because the world still isn't any better than it was just yesterday, regardless of who is in or what is said and done.
And, you are always able to inspire me when you do those, 'cause I know there's good somewhere.
I will get on that, I need one, too
Just to add my tuppenceworth as a German: In the context of what he was saying it does not look to me like a Nazi salute. Just enthusiastic, grandiose and awkward. It is common enough in Germany for the media to publish pictures of politicians supposedly in mid Nazi salute to smear their name. I personally wouldn't pay too much attention to it.
You’re making way too big a deal out of this. He’s no more a Nazi than I am. Stop it now. Enough. He’s a great man and friend of Jews and Israel.
Joseph what are your thoughts about Elon making that gesture? I feel very much as Karen does… I voted Republican for the first time in my life this election, having emerged from democratic and legacy media brainwashing I’ve been under my entire adult life. I was excited for Trump to bring back the solid American values I feel are slipping away so fast, and I was convinced that the majority of anti-Trump rhetoric was twisted and wrong. But when I saw this clip I literally gasped and right now I don’t know what to make of it. At the very least, if it was not intentional it has given the Left fodder for a LIFETIME as “proof” of the emerging fascism they’re constantly shrieking about. At worst… well I don’t even want to think about the possible consequences if it was intentional.
Sorry for the lengthy response but I am genuinely curious what your thoughts are and why you’re able to easily dismiss it? Truly my question is in good faith. Thanks.
You make a good point. Many former democrats who with some trepidation voted for Trump now have to deal with this confusion. I have seen some of these people being roasted by their democratic friends on social media saying ‘we tried to warn you’ and ‘how does it feel knowing you voted for this.’ They feel betrayed, they dont what to think. It's a disaster.
fwiw many dems who voted fer Orange Man fer the 1st time are very (very) upset 'bout his makin' Israel/bb "tow the line"... they feelin' they got hornswaggled/abandoned...
um….. what??
to 'splain--many chews who normally voted Left voted Right this time... NOW Trump goes an' forces BB to cease fire in Gaza an' release 2000 terrorists an' accept body bags of dead hostages as a "deal"--that's a real sucky deal (at least to many of us). Hamas will have time ta re-arm an'll git back the gee-haw'd murderers that many lives were lost in capturin'--
It's a TURRIBLE deal an' DJT also embarrassed BB (not that BB ain't cocky an' insultin' himself) but the Jeffery Sach's tweet about him bein' a "SOB" was beyond the pale--very below-the-belt hits undignified... AND the fellow that went to negociate with BB is a funded by Qutar--Israel's mortal enemy...
If ya kin imagine votin' fer dems all yer life, bein' convinced ta vote fer Trump, an' then watchin' as he gives Israel what many of us think is a sucker punch--wull, let's say lotta these folks are feelin' suckered themselfs...
(make sense?)
Ah… sorry I wasn’t used to your vernacular lol… very clever. Yes, it does make sense, and I see your point. However I’m not sure the dems would have done much better. I don’t recall hearing much of a plan for how they would have dealt with the whole situation and while it may not be fair, in the absence of a plan I can only imagine they would be in line with their more vocal, Palestine-supporting voters, no? So perhaps it was a “lesser of two evils” kind of thing as it - ugh - so often is.
I understand. I believe it was an expression of his unbridled enthusiasm for all that has been accomplished. There was and is no secret underlying message. There has never been any indication that his brilliant mind works that way.
I agree. I watched the video several times and I don’t see an intent to make a Nazi gesture. In fact his hand is almost sideways, rather straight out as a Nazi gesture would be. I see him hitting his heart and throwing live to those who have shown it to him.
My grandson has Asperger’s, which is what Elon has, (high end of the Autism spectrum) and he is also socially awkward and he sometimes does very awkward things as well. It’s kind of goofy at times, which is how Elon comes off to me as well. When they aren’t being completely serious but trying to be social, they can just be a little weird.
They have a mind for science, space, art/creativity, and math, naturally, and are intrigued by the possibilities. I don’t think Elon is a Nazi or an antisemite, and I don’t think he has nefarious intentions.
Do I completely trust him, no, I don’t trust any human that much, will I continue to keep an eye on him, and everyone else, absolutely.
I think this was blown out of proportion, people who are wary of him ran with it, and unfortunately, people who actually ARE antisemites, like Torba, (who believes in replacement theology), and others, ran with it for their own reasons.
It was unfortunate and terrible timing. He wasn’t thinking about how it looked in that moment because it takes all of his focus to just be in that kind of a social situation.
As others have said, I’m not going to stop following you, as I enjoy your writing, and agree with most of what you post.
Now that I’ve had some time to digest it, I agree with you both, Joseph and Dakota. Most especially after considering where the heck this would have come from? Why pretend to be on the side of Israel all this time only to be a secret anti-semite? It just doesn’t make sense. Witnessing the glee with which so many have responded to this (“SEE WE TOLD YOU!!”) and the fact that so many on the Left would rather this actually be a Nazi salute (to stand upon and gloat!) than give Musk the benefit of the doubt has certainly had something to do with drawing this conclusion. Although Karen I still do completely understand how you feel and I think it is very much justified because, regardless of lack of intent (in my opinion) it was shocking to see! Your post was exactly what I needed to see when I read it. Also, you’ve gained another paid subscriber in appreciation of your thoughtfulness and candor; I’m sure it was NOT an easy post! I’d like to go forward assuming that this was indeed a gaffe made by someone who is obviously socially awkward, and pray I’m on the right side of things!
Thank you, Molly. No, it wasn't easy to post this but I'm glad I did. Hopefully people will remember it down the road. I've been researching and writing about Elon Musk for three years. He will be all things to all people. He will be Jewish to the Jews if it means he can get them on his side and he will be a fascist to the Neo-Nazis. You probably aren't on X, but I go on there for research. I have to prepare myself spiritually because it is such a disgusting hotbed of antisemitism and hate. Neo Nazis have embraced him because of what he did, and Jews are defending him. He can do no wrong, it's quite incredible. The reason why Jewish accounts support him is because if anyone wants to have a platform on X they must bow to Elon Musk, and they don't dare criticize him. So even large Jewish accounts that now make a lot of money on X, dare not criticize him, no matter what they might think privately.
It amazes me why anyone would think the richest man in the world who has said openly he wants to microchip everyone's brains and connect us all to his AI is anything but a dangerous monster. Yep, that's my assessment! You can read my new piece about Trump's Stargate venture to find out more.
Agree!!! If you don't like Musk, suck it up. Are any of Karen's readers perfect, with no quirks??? All the Yada, Yada, Yada running off of the mouth is really getting boring. For crying out loud, at least give him 100 days in Trump's administration to show if he measures up. Most of the comments made in this essay sound like the MSM.
I don't have any insights to share about the nature of the "salute," but I will observe that his persona yesterday was quite different from the autistic-y, stammering, stuttering, pause-full way he conducts many of his "genius engineer" interviews (which I always found amusing because he isn't an engineer).
The "stammering engineer-nerd schtick" has served its purpose, so now he can dispense with it. He's "neurotypical" enough to realize that the "idiot savant" thing doesn't work on the political stage.
LOL. You certainly don’t need help stirring the pot.
Nope! LOL
Karen, I love the above piece, in fact I love a lot of what you write and agree with it, especially the write ups regarding Islam, Israel, Trump and Christianity. With people it's not a simple black or white thing, there are a multitude of shades in between. The only black or white we have is Jesus, no shades of grey. On that basis Karen you write what's in your heart and don't fold irrespective of what people think.
Amen. Thank you.
I wish I had had a history teacher like that. History was my least favorite subject throughout my school years. Fortunately they didn't destroy my curiosity and inner desire to know and understand the world.
Francisco Gil-White whose substack is called "Management of Reality" wrote a chilling article on the USA's absorption of Nazis after WW2, and the numbers went beyond Operation Paperclip. Following is the beginning of that post:
"How many Nazis were secretly recruited at the creation of the CIA? Lots!
"It was publicly documented a long time ago—way back in 1988—that, following WWII, US bosses took over, whole, the German Nazi intelligence infrastructure in Eastern Europe. Giant multitudes of war criminals complicit in outrages to shake History itself were taken into receivership and adopted by the US government. The resulting creature was called ‘the US Central Intelligence Agency’: the CIA.
"The historian who made this known is Christopher Simpson. The title of his book is Blowback. The subtitle has varied a bit with different editions, but the first one was: The First Full Account of America’s Recruitment of Nazis and Its Disastrous Effect on Our Domestic and Foreign Policy.
"As you may know, the issue that consumes me is the management of reality. So the first thing I ask myself is: Why should I have to tell you about Simpson’s research at all? I mean, this is tremendous. It should already be super, super famous. But from experience I can tell you: hardly anybody knows about this subject.
"Why don’t they?"
https://franciscogilwhite.substack.com/p/how-many-nazis-were-secretly-recruited
Haven't read that book but it looks really interesting. Thank you
I'm re-reading Gil-White's article now in which he stresses a strange, willful blindness we humans tend to exhibit and which he calls "prestige bias". It makes me wonder about the comments you're getting here. I hope you'll follow the link to his post and read it all!
I'm sure, after recent events, that many gestures and spontaneous actions act as triggers for Jewish people and their supporters. I get it.
But Elon Musk is not your average guy and he often acts like an overenthusiastic kid. I suspect this was one of those times -- unconsidered, but not malicious.
Precisely because he isn't your average guy, precisely because he is the richest man in the world, $200 billion above Jeff Bezos, and that $200 billion he got within the last year, thanks to aligning with Trump, he should be held to a higher account. A few thousand people might listen to me. He has the ears and eyes of the entire planet and wants to have his Starlink connected to every inch and his satellites as a monopoly in space, microchips in everyones' brains connected to his AI, as well as government military contracts. So I am not sure why people are so reticent to call him out, as if he is just a big overgrown kid. He isn't
Musk is a businessman first and foremost and knows what to do to advance his interests, as you'd expect from the richest man in the world.
Hasn't Starlink benefited Israel? I'm willing to bet it has. And technology is now moving forward, with or without Musk. This doesn't mean he gets a free pass. But let's call him out on the things we disagree with, not the odd way he sometimes presents himself. This is not worthy of your writings on so many other subjects. Not so many of us are fooled by the machinations of big business as you seem to inply.
You miss the point entirely. Elon Musk has the eyes and ears of the world on him. He says something and everyone listens. Perhaps you aren't aware of the disturbing rise of fascism, of antisemitism. But I've said all I can say on the topic. If people don't get it, I'm not surprised. I've done my best.
Of course I'm aware of the rising anti-Semitism - you'd have to be blind and deaf not to notice.
But you have been hurt and outraged by the Israel/Gaza conflict and are hyper-aware of anything regarding fascism.
Could you not give Musk the benefit of the doubt until he shows you he's definitely inclined that way?
And please don't write me off as a 'don't understand and you're not surprised'. I'm NOT missing the point and have every sympathy with Israel.
I would expect a little understanding from you of a more neutral stance - unless you're done with that, too.
Now those are excellent reasons for calling Elon Musk out! The spastic dance and gestures are more of a strawman, maybe. "Look at that squirrel!" while the fox is eating your chickens.
Well, if you think Elon Musk doesn't know exactly what he's doing, you underestimate him. And really, this proves he js pretty much untouchable. This actually would be a way to open people's eyes but people don't want to. We can criticize him as much as we want and I have written about all those things for 3 years and still people fawn over Elon Musk. So really, I don't know how to reach people anymore.
I’m constantly amazed that so many have accepted Elon in the Trump inner circle. I do not trust him… at all. His back story is bizarre. The deeper theories that I’ve read about. And I call them theories because other than Jesus I try to hold everything lightly. So I have intense caution with the technocrats surrounding and infiltrating the administration while not being surprised… at the same time stepping back to watch it all play out. I’ve read the Book and I’m blown away what I sense we’re witnessing… time will tell.
Thanks for allowing speculation and discussion Karen.