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Elon Musk Biographer: No Evidence Billionaire Has Any Intellectual Achievements
- sherdil2022 2y ago[flagged]
- LargoLasskhyfv 2y agoFireworks producer.
- throwaway519 2y agoHe is but a statistical chance. The probability there would be a musk i.e. someone born to money that doesn't lose it all, has one success, then believes they're not a statistical certainty, is very high. It's not that he's stupid but that he's not really that smart. But nor are most people. Hence his unknowing fan club.
- scarab92 2y agoI often hear progressives stating this line about Elon being born into money, but as far as I can tell it isn't actually true. He was a poor university student like everyone else, had student debt like everyone else, and his business success seems to have come from rolling profits from his previous venture into his next one, and this domino starts from very modest beginnings with Zip2.
- throwaway519 2y agoWhat's a 'progressive'?
- moralestapia 2y ago"Said @sherdil2022."
- axiologist 2y agoActual subject line is "Author of Upcoming Elon Musk Biography Says ‘There Is No Evidence’ Billionaire Has Any ‘Intellectual Achievements’". https://xcancel.com/SethAbramson/status/1892710698683142638 https://xcancel.com/SethAbramson/status/1892710698683142638
- axiologist 2y agohttps://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1892710698683142638.html https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1892710698683142638.html
- jasdi 2y agoIt doesn't matter how many people say it. In the Attention Economy, that social media platforms create, he knows how to capture Attention. The question is not Elon but about why we tolerate these platforms that prop up people like Elon or what the alternatives are. Michael Goldharber pointed out at the dawn of the Internet => info explodes but Attention does not + ppl have a limited capacity to pay attention but unlimited capacity to receive attention. The truth is Everyone needs a bit of Attention (it is a source of self esteem), that's why sites like HN work because people feel they are seen or heard even if its one upvote. But then there are Elon and Trump types who are born with a need to be loved and respected by everyone. Plant them in the social media environment, where attention capture is rewarded, and is the main source of profit for the platforms, and we get the abnormal fruits we sow.
- UltraSane 2y agoI have never seen a Musk tweet that seemed very smart.
- moralestapia 2y agoSpaceX Musk is pretty good!
- moralestapia 2y ago[flagged]
- tim333 2y agoIf you see video of him talking about spacex he's obviously reasonably smart eg. https://youtu.be/cIQ36Kt7UVg?t=55 https://youtu.be/cIQ36Kt7UVg?t=55 In fact in that video from minute 1-7 you can pretty much see how he beats the likes of Boeing and gets stuff out faster and cheaper than NASA. It's hard to say - ah that's a good idea, that's how he beats the other rocket scientist guys and then argue he's stupid. At least when it comes to rockets. Politics I'm less convinced.
- UltraSane 2y ago" see how he beats the likes of Boeing and gets stuff out faster and cheaper than NASA. " Musk has nothing to do with anything at SpaceX. He has absolutely no skills or education in designing or operating rockets. SpaceX is so successful because of how little involvement Musk has with it.
- 0x6c6f6c 2y agoAlso the easiest case of "Take subordinates ideas for my own" with the culture at that company. I can read up on an algorithm and explain it to people, it doesn't mean it's my own intellectual accomplishment to repeat it.
- SR2Z 2y agoBezos has a rocket company. Branson used to. There's a smattering of financially troubled small-scale launch providers. And then there's SpaceX, which is like 70% cheaper than the alternatives, wildly profitable, launched a constellation of thousands of satellites, etc., etc. Musk likes rockets. He has technical chops. If good technical leadership is so cheap, why is SpaceX so far ahead? I understand that the man is kind of nuts these days but we underestimate him at our own risk.
- Jimmc414 2y agoSure Musk is abrasive and has a ton of flaws, but you lose a lot of credibility pretending the guy isn’t smart.
- quantified 2y agoHe is smart. His achievements appear to be in seizing opportunity and attracting various other smart people. Unlike Trump, he hasn't destroyed too much wealth along the way.
- scarab92 2y agoHe is smart, and progressives in general lose credibility by claiming otherwise, but short tempered. Also, this headline is misleading. This wasn't said by Walter Isaacson who actually wrote the biography on Musk. It's a random dude, who seems to have a personal vendetta against Musk, compiling a bunch of his tirades into something he optimisically calls a "biography".
- UltraSane 2y agoSmart people do not lie as much as Musk does. Smart people care a lot more about their credibility than musk does.
- scarab92 2y ago1. Smart people lie plenty. 2. Musk rarely lies, he's honest to a fault.
- UltraSane 2y ago"Musk rarely lies, he's honest to a fault." He lies all the time. If you honestly believe this you must get scammed a lot.
- piva00 2y agoAny attempt to engage with scarab92 has been a waste of time. That person truly believes what they say to a fault, there's no amount of evidence of Elon's lies that phases them. It's rather sad but they are true-believers, best to just move on before they post another flamebait comment.
- not_your_vase 2y agoReally? At least 4 more years of this? > Haha, Elon is dumb, he should be fired! > Trump smells, to the dungeon with him! > All republicans have a lot of dandruff, they must be traitors! > Scientists discovered that right leaning people fart more than nice people. Pulitzer-worthy journalism.
- GianFabien 2y agoElon was too busy hustling to waste time on academic pursuits. I'm sure he has hundreds of PhDs, etc working for his various companies.
- tim333 2y agoHe went from having student debt to the richest man on the planet, transforming two industries, cars and rockets, on the way. That's not so easy to do. At least I haven't managed it yet. Seth Abramson the "Musk biographer" who as far as I can tell has not written an actual biography seems pretty bitter. (edit: He has some sort of biography but it's not on Amazon etc - you get it free if you subscribe to his substack)
- Zigurd 2y agoClearly a greater intellect than the guy in second place who sells overpriced handbags and booze.