I have to admit that I didn't know much about Elon Musk. I knew, of course, that he was the new owner of Twitter/X. Like the rest of the world, I knew he was fabulously wealthy and - who could miss it? - he was in political cahoots with Donald Trump and is now part of the US government. However, his recent "interventions" into British politics, and his tiff with Nigel Farage, have spurred me into learning more about him. If his wealth is to become influential in our political affairs, we need to learn what we are dealing with.
Well, he is a a South African by birth, born in Pretoria about 53 years ago. According to the BBC:
"Mr Musk showed his talents for entrepreneurship early, going door-to-door with his brother selling homemade chocolate Easter eggs and developing his first computer game at the age of 12".Coming from a domestically fractured background, and despite suffering from Asperger's Syndrome, he left home at 17 for college. He moved to Canada, becoming a Canadian, before moving to the USA where he gained a degree in economics and physics at the University of Pennsylvania, and became a US citizen, before starting out on his business career.
Now, there are several factors of interest here. First, we should note that Musk has a family background that was far Right politically. Joe Hill, in Searchlight magazine, writes:
"Our attention has been drawn to a fascinating recent interview in which Errol Musk, father of Elon, apparently begins to say that Elon’s maternal grandparents were signed-up Nazis, but then checks himself. They used to support Hitler and all that stuff… they were in the Nazi P... [stops himself]… they were in the German Party in Canada, so they sympathised with the Germans."
Not that this makes Musk a Nazi, but early political influences can affect children. There is also Musk's diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome. The National Autistic Society (NAS) says:
"Historically, Asperger syndrome was used as a diagnostic term for some autistic people who did not also have a diagnosis of a learning disability. Broadly, it is now agreed that what was referred to as Asperger syndrome is part of the autism spectrum and there is no need for a separate term."
Hans Asperger, who invented the term, has been exposed as a Nazi supporter who helped the Nazis with their genocide programme, which has led to the term falling into disuse, as the NAS say. In spite of this, the accepted dictionary definition is relevant to our study of Elon Musk. It says:
(Asperger's is...) "...a condition forming part of the autistic spectrum, characterized chiefly by repetitive patterns of behaviour, preoccupation with restricted interests, and difficulties with social interaction, without intellectual impairment or significant problems with verbal communication".
Compare this to the verdict of Musk's first wife, Justine Wilson, who became his wife in 2000, when he wasn't yet a rich man. In a 2010 essay for Marie Claire, she wrote that even before making his millions Musk was "not a man who takes no for an answer. The will to compete and dominate, that made him so successful in business, did not magically shut off when he came home,". While dancing at their wedding, Elon the Charmer told his new wife: "I am the alpha in this relationship."
Now, is it going too far to say that this indicates a definite autistic trait and an authoritarian background influence? I am not qualified to say, but it does remind me of an old saying: "as the twig is bent, so is the tree inclined". But let's move on.
If repetitive behaviour applies to human relationships, Musk certainly exhibits it in his family life (lives?). As all the tabloids know, he has had three wives and has 12 children by three different women. Anyone who finds this of interest can read about this on People.com or by conducting a Google search. Musk has requested privacy for his partners and their offspring, but one comment by one his children is of interest.
Vivian Jenna Wilson is a transgender woman in her early 20s. She is also the child of Elon Musk and his first wife, Justine. Her recollection of Musk as a father is relevant here. According to NBC News:"Wilson said that, for as long as she could remember, Musk hasn’t been a supportive father. She said he was rarely present in her life, leaving her and her siblings to be cared for by their mother or by nannies even though Musk had joint custody, and she said Musk berated her when he was present. “He was cold,” she said. “He’s very quick to anger. He is uncaring and narcissistic.”
Once again, I am left wondering about the autism link. Not all uncaring and narcissistic people are autistic, but there does seem to be a connection. In 2022, Vivian applied to change her family name from Musk to Wilson. In doing so, she practically disowned Musk, saying: “I no longer live with or wish to be related to my biological father in any way, shape or form,”.
Musk's reaction to this is, I think, of particular significance. The first, obvious point is that Musk used this domestic affair as an excuse to move towards the political Right. He said on X: “I vowed to destroy the woke mind virus after that, and we’re making some progress,”.
Perhaps less obvious is the obsessive way in which Musk has launched a sustained attack on Transgender people on X and - highly relevant - Musk has shown no regret or remorse over his treatment of his child. Narcissists never express remorse.
And his move to the Right has continued. Once a Democrat voter, he now is critical of the Democrat party's stance on a number of issues, including the economy, immigration and gun control - decrying many of its policies as "woke" - shades of his statement on X. It looks to me that Musk is venting his wounded pride in having a transgender child into a deepening liaison with the far Right - which leads us to his political status, both here and in the USA.
Musk's interference in politics here is well enough known. After last summer's riots, Musk said that we are drifting towards civil war. Lately, he has launched a number of attacks on the Labour government, accusing the PM of being "complicit in the rape of Britain", and described Jess Phillips MP as "a rape genocide apologist" - whatever that means. He is even said to be interested in buying Liverpool FC.
"...his (Musk's) father revealed that his family have generational ties to the Merseyside city. 'His grandmother was born in Liverpool, and we had relatives in Liverpool, and we were fortunate to know quite a lot of the Beatles because they grew up with some of my family. So, we are attached to Liverpool, you know,' he told Times Radio".
Happily, FSG, the club's owners, say that the club is not for sale. And, as the Liverpool Echo comments: "Musk’s right-wing views likely would not chime with the socialism of Liverpool".
Liverpool fans, to their credit, have spoken out vociferously against this proposed purchase by Musk and , by doing so, have set us an example of how we should react to the intrusions of this foreign billionaire.
In conclusion, I can declare that the more I have learned of Elon Musk, the less I like him. As Wordsworth said: "The child is father of the man". My reading of Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump and Boris Johnson all bear this out and it's true of Elon Musk. They are all egotistical, narcissistic opportunists with an overweening sense of privilege and/or "entitlement". Musk's first wife's comment that he wouldn't take no for an answer is true of all four. The problem with Musk is that he has a lot of money to throw around. His unstable character, shown by the way he abruptly turned on Nigel Farage (NF) because NF wants to keep his distance from Tommy Robinson (for now) indicates that he is capable of sudden changes of preference. Reform UK might not receive funding, but more extreme groups, including whatever faction Tommy Robinson now sides with, might well benefit from Musk's largesse.
But we must not forget the menace he poses to many people in the USA. As we know, he has a reputation as a hard-nosed businessman. When he took over ownership of Twitter/X, he made a lot of Twitter employees redundant. Federal workers across the USA must be sweating with anxiety for their future employment. If he is capable of treating his own child badly, then he won't shrink from creating mass federal redundancies. And that is just the beginning. Dissenters, and past opponents of him and his friend, Donald Trump, might well find themselves targets of Elon's baleful attention.
I wonder - is it too late for Musk to find treatment for his autism?
