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As a person who really wanted Musk to be an exception to the rule of shitty billionaires, this story really is the last nail in the coffin. Way too much moral c

As a person who really wanted Musk to be an exception to the rule of shitty billionaires, this story really is the last nail in the coffin. Way too much moral casuistry you'd have to go through to justify or cast doubt on all of these insane stories.

burtonator 8y ago
I wonder if the issue is that most people are just shitty but society acts as a check. When you're above societies rules you can act and do anything you want.
- r_smart 8y ago
  Possibly. I'd say there are a lot of people who are lacking in the principles / integrity department, but I also think Musk tends to stand out among his peers. He's not normal, even for that group of people.
- loa-in-backup 8y ago
  That reminds me of one point: I highly respect that Elon Musk doesn't wall himself off from the mind of the internet (aka the populace). It's something you won't see other CEOs do, unless it's a PR stunt meant to achieve some positive PR statistics.
  - jsight 8y ago
    Yeah, I think a lot of people here are just naive to how much dirty dealing goes on in the world. This stuff is just more public. Musk was never some wonderful person that should have been looked up to for his own merit. But I generally don't pick cars based on how much we like or dislike their CEO, and I suspect that most others don't either.
- nwah1 8y ago
  Billionaires are not by any means a random sample of humanity, particularly for the self-made billionaires. They are among the most insanely ambitious or the most insanely risk-loving. This makes them go to much greater lengths to protect their empires than most of us would, if plunked into such a position. I think the power and fame has also changed Musk quite a lot, and perhaps something about his lifestyle and substance consumption has changed, because he is acting different than he had even three or four years ago... which was still well into the era of him being a billionaire.
xiphias2 8y ago
I agree with you that he's not an exception, but at the same time I got a chronic sickness from the air pollution that's caused by oil and diesel car companies, and I know that millions of other people are dying, so I still think that other car company CEOs are even more shitty.
- coldtea 8y ago
  It's not like Tesla is novel or unique or better at electric cars. Conventional car companies have worked on electric cars, and have their own models for decades. Tesla's unique proposition was about building an electric supercar (and even that is not working very well, profits wise). They'll hardly be the one's replacing the mass oil and diesel cars with electric models...
  - aerovistae 8y ago
    I don’t even know what to say to the first sentence in your comment.
    - coldtea 8y ago
      Just admit it? Being a "sports car" doesn't make it any better, in the same way a Ferrari is not better than a Lexus.
      - Moter8 8y ago
        Tesla caused a hype around EV cars and is probably the primary cause as to why everybody is talking about EVs. I doubt regular manufacturers would have begun releasing real EV cars without their pressure.
        coldtea 8y ago
        >Tesla caused a hype around EV cars and is probably the primary cause as to why everybody is talking about EVs That's not a technology thing though. Just a marketing thing.
ncr100 8y ago
HUMANS! Humans are the thread through these disgusting stories, samirillian. We're all human, tragically. And we need regulation in order to live together peacefully: * Law, morality, ethics, and public retaliation when any of these are abused. This technology industry that we all work in enables abuse on an unprecedented scale. Use your power. Don't blindly support the de-facto system. Don't blindly share your solutions to problems. Consider ethics as you work. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jessicabaron/2018/10/17/we-need-to-work-harder-to-make-software-engineering-more-ethical/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jessicabaron/2018/10/17/we-need...
AceJohnny2 8y ago
TIL "casuistry". Thanks! casuistry: n: the use of clever but unsound reasoning, especially in relation to moral questions; sophistry

burtonator 8y ago

I wonder if the issue is that most people are just shitty but society acts as a check. When you're above societies rules you can act and do anything you want.

r_smart 8y ago
Possibly. I'd say there are a lot of people who are lacking in the principles / integrity department, but I also think Musk tends to stand out among his peers. He's not normal, even for that group of people.
loa-in-backup 8y ago
That reminds me of one point: I highly respect that Elon Musk doesn't wall himself off from the mind of the internet (aka the populace). It's something you won't see other CEOs do, unless it's a PR stunt meant to achieve some positive PR statistics.
- jsight 8y ago
  Yeah, I think a lot of people here are just naive to how much dirty dealing goes on in the world. This stuff is just more public. Musk was never some wonderful person that should have been looked up to for his own merit. But I generally don't pick cars based on how much we like or dislike their CEO, and I suspect that most others don't either.
nwah1 8y ago
Billionaires are not by any means a random sample of humanity, particularly for the self-made billionaires. They are among the most insanely ambitious or the most insanely risk-loving. This makes them go to much greater lengths to protect their empires than most of us would, if plunked into such a position. I think the power and fame has also changed Musk quite a lot, and perhaps something about his lifestyle and substance consumption has changed, because he is acting different than he had even three or four years ago... which was still well into the era of him being a billionaire.

xiphias2 8y ago

I agree with you that he's not an exception, but at the same time I got a chronic sickness from the air pollution that's caused by oil and diesel car companies, and I know that millions of other people are dying, so I still think that other car company CEOs are even more shitty.

coldtea 8y ago
It's not like Tesla is novel or unique or better at electric cars. Conventional car companies have worked on electric cars, and have their own models for decades. Tesla's unique proposition was about building an electric supercar (and even that is not working very well, profits wise). They'll hardly be the one's replacing the mass oil and diesel cars with electric models...
- aerovistae 8y ago
  I don’t even know what to say to the first sentence in your comment.
  - coldtea 8y ago
    Just admit it? Being a "sports car" doesn't make it any better, in the same way a Ferrari is not better than a Lexus.
    - Moter8 8y ago
      Tesla caused a hype around EV cars and is probably the primary cause as to why everybody is talking about EVs. I doubt regular manufacturers would have begun releasing real EV cars without their pressure.
      - coldtea 8y ago
        >Tesla caused a hype around EV cars and is probably the primary cause as to why everybody is talking about EVs That's not a technology thing though. Just a marketing thing.

ncr100 8y ago

HUMANS! Humans are the thread through these disgusting stories, samirillian. We're all human, tragically. And we need regulation in order to live together peacefully: * Law, morality, ethics, and public retaliation when any of these are abused. This technology industry that we all work in enables abuse on an unprecedented scale. Use your power. Don't blindly support the de-facto system. Don't blindly share your solutions to problems. Consider ethics as you work. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jessicabaron/2018/10/17/we-need-to-work-harder-to-make-software-engineering-more-ethical/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jessicabaron/2018/10/17/we-need...

AceJohnny2 8y ago

TIL "casuistry". Thanks! casuistry: n: the use of clever but unsound reasoning, especially in relation to moral questions; sophistry