this post was submitted on 10 Dec 2024
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Summary

Elon Musk has emerged as a key enforcer of Donald Trump’s agenda, warning Republicans against opposing Trump’s policies and Cabinet picks.

Musk’s political action committee, America PAC, played a significant role in Trump’s election victory, spending heavily in swing states and funding groups like RBG PAC to broaden voter appeal.

Musk has hinted at funding primary challenges against GOP lawmakers who resist Trump, creating a “naughty and nice list” with ally Vivek Ramaswamy.

With allies in Trump’s administration and influence through his platform X, Musk’s political clout is growing rapidly.

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 21 hours ago (1 children)

Is it illegal to ask if Musk is a pedophile?

[–] BeMoreCareful 3 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

Keep talking like that and it will be.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago)

I think it's a good question that everyone should be asking regularly

[–] jaggedrobotpubes 34 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Usually even ten year old boys don't try that desperately to look cool. They've aged out of it by then.

All that money and still zero confidence.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 127 points 1 day ago (6 children)

Humanity is at a crossroads.

Either we're going to solve the problem of psychopaths with power and wealth warping societies to accommodate their psychopathy, or, at the very least, modern civilization is going to collapse.

I see no third alternative. The Musks and Trumps and Putins and Netanyahus (and so on and on) of the world will, if allowed, destroy us all, because they're quite literally too mentally ill to restrain themselves.

[–] 4grams 5 points 22 hours ago

I fear you are right. I’m hopeful you are wrong but the same world is doing everything it can to beat the hope out of me.

[–] [email protected] 41 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (4 children)

If it helps, history runs in cycles. We used to have kings, we got rid of the kings, then we welcomed the kings back with open arms. But the reign of kings doesn't last forever.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Human history broadly runs in cycles, yes.

But the history of a particular civilization is strictly linear, with a beginning, a middle and an end.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 day ago (3 children)

True, the Roman Empire fell and the United States could fall too. Humanity didn't end though, it went through periods of enlightenment and darkness and kept marching forward.

I'm not saying the end of humanity is impossible, just that at many points in history it seemed like society was on the brink of total annihilation but yet here we still are.

[–] Zron 1 points 18 hours ago

I think you’re forgetting the nukes.

When the Roman Empire fell, they didn’t turn half the population of the planet into dust along with them.

Today, through the power of technology and psychopaths, there’s actually a chance to undo thousands of years of technological progress in an afternoon.

[–] Benjaben 10 points 1 day ago

Very true, but kind of glosses over the gigantic accumulated suffering felt by those experiencing a civilizational / societal collapse.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 day ago

I will point out as well that civilization rarely goes into total collapse. The Romans kept on going in the east for another millennium, Egypt and the Assyrians survived the Bronze Age collapse, China shouldve died five times over by now. Even if the US collapses its pretty likely it will have surviving elements in the West based here in California and East probably based around New England.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 day ago (3 children)

History didn't have the internet to keep the masses brainwashed. We're looking at 1984 levels of control here.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 day ago

1984 is tame compared to what we have now.

The current situation with automated systems learning every little secret about pur lives, sometimes even before we know it ourselves, based on the trends on our searches, our messages, hell even just the shift in tone of our messages, our location history and more.

1984 is no longer the horrible future, it is the good old days when surveilence didn't go as far.

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[–] samus12345 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] Olhonestjim 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The oligarchs sure are trying to live forever though. Life extension, mind uploading, etc. They say that mouse lifespans can already be nearly doubled.

Funny thing about that though. Human lifespans already doubled over the previous century, thanks to medical advances and resource abundance. There's no reason to think it can extend much further, aside from the peddling of grifters. The brain is far, far too complex to emulate without destroying it in the process, so I encourage Elon to go for it.

[–] samus12345 5 points 1 day ago (2 children)

That's a true nightmare, when the oligarchs finally don't have to suffer the indignity of death like the common rabble. It's the only great equalizer we have left.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago)

Eh I dunno. I like to imagine some hackers could find a way to pull a "Black Mirror" and trap their consciousness in a virtual prison for all eternity.

[–] Olhonestjim 2 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

Their lives sure must be fantastic for them to want to live that way for eternity.

[–] samus12345 1 points 18 hours ago

On a physical level they sure are. Having obscene wealth means you want for nothing in that regard. Mentally it's another matter. Money only buys happiness to a certain point - you don't even need a million a year to reach maximum happiness. Anything over that doesn't make things any better.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 day ago (3 children)

Biggest joke ever is that stupid fucking phrase "learn history or you're doomed to repeat it."

A full third of us baseline will always learn that history and try to repeat it but more effectively. The lessons they learn is how to be better and longer lasting monsters.

All empires collapse, except ours is somehow immortal and humans evolved overnight into a less shitty species?

I mean, 80% of humans think various contradictory deities actually exist with zero evidence. Self described intelligent species still thinks magic and authoritarian abusive sky step-dads exist.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 16 hours ago

learn history or you’re doomed to repeat it

Joke's on us all, that implies people even learn accurate unbiased history, or learn history at all.

I've spent a lot of my life trying to learn all I can, but since I'm not in any position of power, my knowledge only lets me know just how hard and fast we're all screwed without really being able to do anything on a grand level. (Not meant to sound defeatist, just realist, and the knowledge was still all worth the learn.)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago) (1 children)

This is a really bad take.

Clearly, people have learned from history. Unfortunately for us, its our oppressors, and they've learned how to avoid the same errors that got them deposed in the past.

You are a fool to disregard the phrase, "learn history or you're doomed to repeat it." An absolute fool.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 16 hours ago

You literally just rephrased exactly what they just said. Who do you think the 'third of us who learn and try to repeat it but better' was talking about?

[–] Hobbes_Dent 3 points 1 day ago

That phrase is valid and apropos for the millions of voters, and apathetic non-voters, which it describes.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm going with fall of modern civilization.

Our modern day kings have immensely more power than the kings of the past and the power imbalance of the methods of force have only increased as the literal distance between King and peasant has increased. There will be no guillotines, our modern day kings live in castles hundreds and hundreds of miles from the majority of us. Yeah we can pick off the occasional CEO, but I don't see us winning any kind of "revolution."

I think the ownership class know this is an absolutely crucial time as they need to solidify their positions of control for when global society turns to chaos as climate change completely upends how societies function. Food and water acquisition, energy production and distribution, employment and income. They will drive people to violence and the ownership class needs to maintain ownership of the means of violence to keep us suppressed for when that time comes.

I have very very very little hope for the future. I think unchecked greed will be our "great filter." :/

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 day ago

It's not an accident that the US has militarized police granted essentially free reign, the largest prison system in the world and plans in the works for internment camps.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 day ago (1 children)

We celebrate these strong men and sociopaths that hoard money at the expense of everybody else. I don't think we'll make it through before we crash hard enough to bounce back.

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[–] lack 25 points 1 day ago

First they came after healthcare CEOs, and I loled. Then they came after people eating oligarchs, and I smiled the grandest smile and grabbed a fork. Then they came for me - to ask me how funny all that was, and I was truthful that it was a blast and we should do this all the time

[–] [email protected] 91 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Weren't Republicans screeching about how Kamala wasn't chosen by the people? They seem awfully quiet now

[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 day ago

If it wasn't for hypocrisy they wouldn't have any values at all.

[–] 9point6 72 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Purity tests and purges

Fascists gonna fascist.

[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 day ago

Seems as though we need a friendly reminder that if you mass deport people based on their nationality or how they look, then it's still ethnic cleansing...

[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 day ago

I give Elon like 3 or 4 mooches before trump turns on him.

[–] [email protected] 52 points 1 day ago
[–] FiremanEdsRevenge 37 points 1 day ago (7 children)

Elon, your dad really should've came in your mom's ass. That way, she could've spat you out and have your dad swallow you. And we all would've been spared from your waste of an existence.

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[–] RizzRustbolt 25 points 1 day ago

Red hat. Blue suit. Purple tie.

Five year old me dressing for church before being yelled at.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The one silver lining of our next 4+ years of hell is that musk is inevitably going to piss off trump as more and more people decide that musk won the election for him and musk is the one in charge.

And since musk is hated at ted cruz levels... we might get an Official Act.

[–] pivot_root 22 points 1 day ago (3 children)

We can all do our part by talking about President Musk on social media.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 day ago (3 children)

Vice president Trump would be so mad!

[–] formergijoe 1 points 19 hours ago

Wait I thought Musk was the VP and Putin was the president? Trump's just some dude who gets to live in the white house and tweet on his fake Twitter.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I love how everyone's already completely forgotten JD Vance exists.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Bro he thinks he's in the "in group"

he's getting his ass dumped the moment trump no longer sees him as useful

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 day ago

Everyday will be a nightmare going forward.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

~~DOGE~~ The Department of Wealthy Corrupt Anti-American Immigrants

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 day ago

Totally normal things a centrist says.

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