Elon Musk is the richest man in the world. And he just made a move to take out censorship on Twitter.
The other day, I contemplated that Musk may do what Trump failed to do: create a conservative friendly social media space.
No disrespect to Donald Trump, but Truth Social is a flop. I’m sure there are some leftists hiding on Trump’s team, sabotaging the platform from the inside. But it doesn’t matter why Truth Social isn’t working. It only matters that conservatives still don’t have a place they can freely express their thoughts and opinions.
To be clear, I don’t think liberals or leftists should be banned from Twitter. Because I value debate. As I’ve said before, it is my contention that if you can’t argue the other side of your opinion, you don’t actually have a well-developed opinion. It’s imperative to understand the opposition, so that you can strengthen or even adjust your own beliefs. As such, I’ve spent a great deal of time wondering if Musk would take over Twitter, and clean house.
One thing we know about Musk is that he values transparency, open source, and collaboration among great minds.
About Musk
As you might imagine, Elon Musk was a curious child. He spent so much time lost in his daydreams that his parents thought something was wrong with him. They actually had his hearing tested because he was so buried in his thoughts. Musk was always planning his next invention.
He was born in South Africa, started college in Canada at Queens University. Then, he transferred to the University of Pennsylvania, and became one of the most interesting Americans we’ve ever welcomed across our border. Musk holds degrees in both physics and economics.
At one point, Musk enrolled at Stanford to pursue a PhD. But two days later, he dropped Stanford and formed his first company. Somewhere around that time, he crossed paths with one of my high school friends. Ken Howery, who Trump appointed as the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Sweden in 2019. Together, Musk and Howery were part of the small team that founded PayPal. I always thought it was pretty cool that my high school friend did something so amazing and knows such interesting people.
It reminds me of that theory- Six Degrees of Separation; the idea that all of us are connected, and that you can use the “friend of a friend” rule to draw a link between yourself and anyone else in six or less steps. But the other night, I got a second link to Elon Musk.
My husband is known for his ability to meet famous people. It just never fails. Like my best friend puts it, if he didn’t have pictures, no one would believe he’s met all these people. And not just a meet and greet. He ends up hanging out with the rich and famous every time I turn around.
Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Kat Von D, Jessie James, Sammy Hagar, Mathew McConaughey, Dennis Quaid, Kevin Fowler, ZZ Top, the list goes on and on. So, last Thursday, when I called him and learned he was headed to Austin, I knew what was coming next. Elon Musk was having a Giga-party to celebrate the opening of his new Tesla giga-factory.
VIP
Don’t ask me how, but my husband ended up in the VIP section. Then he somehow landed smack dab in the middle of Musk’s circle. Harrison Ford and other celebrities peppered the section they were in. I wish it had been me, because I would’ve asked Musk straight up if he planned to take over Twitter.
Imagine being able to offer $43 Billion for a company you want! And that total being only a fraction of your net worth. It’s so unbelievable, it’s hard to wrap your head around. But that’s exactly what just happened.
Fox News explains:
Musk’s best and final offer was to pay $54.20 per share for 100% of Twitter, and said that if his offer was not accepted he’d have to reconsider his position as a shareholder, according to an SEC filing.
Musk recently disclosed a 9.2% stake in Twitter, but he rejected an offer to join its board of directors and criticized the social media platform in tweets.
He wrote in the filing that he’d want to “transform” the social media platform as a private company.
“I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy,” Musk wrote. “However, since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form.”
Musk said the takeover attempt is “not a threat, it’s simply not a good investment without the changes that need to be made.”
It reminds me of Teddy Roosevelt. He used to say “walk softly, but carry a big stick.” Obviously, Musk doesn’t need threats, he can put his money where his mouth is.
