(Austin, Texas) Welcome to a special 4-part X series with details and highlights from Elon Musk’s X Space conversation with Katherine Brodsky on February 19, 2024. 

Elon gave insights into the journey of SpaceX and Tesla, sharing his initial doubts about the success of SpaceX and Tesla, which he founded after making a fortune from PayPal. 

Elon: “I didn’t think anything like SpaceX and Tesla would happen. I turned 30 in 2001, SpaceX was formed in 2002 and Tesla was really technically incorporated in 2003 but really didn’t get going to 2004 so 2004 is a more accurate date for Tesla than 2003.

When SpaceX and Tesla were formed, I thought they would probably fail. I gave them less than a 10% chance of succeeding.

I made quite a bit of money from PayPal. I was the largest shareholder of PayPal and I had about $180M dollars so I figured I would waste half of it on building rocket and electric car companies.

It turned out they needed all of the money, so I spent all of the money to give to SpaceX and Tesla and Solar City.

I just really wanted to be involved in technologies that would change the world.”

Elon emphasized the importance of being present at work and discussed the challenges faced by Tesla in manufacturing. 

Katherine Brodsky: “Do you think there’s anything that people might misunderstand about you?”

Elon: “No, nothing at all, ha ha. Me? Sarcasm? Ha ha. Never, I couldn’t think of something sarcastic. There’s so much printed about me, that I can’t even read it all. It would take a large portion of my day, simply to read all of the nonsense articles that are written about me. I find the regular media, often called the legacy news, I find it depressing, and speaking of misinformation, it’s remarkable how often there is just misinformation or sloppy information printed in some of the biggest publications in the world. The Wall Street Journal has now printed three articles claiming that I am high all the time. Which is really, I guess a compliment?”

KB: “You are high, in the sky!”

Elon: “From an altitude standpoint, I am high a lot, because I fly around like a lunatic working, not to visit a private yacht or an island. I don’t have a private island or a yacht or even a holiday home. In fact, someone looked at my flight schedule and put it to pinball music. Literally, my flight path looked like a pinball machine, which I think makes it clear, that you do have to be at work in person. You can’t really work from home and be as effective. If I could work from home, why am I flying around all the time? I fly around all the time because it makes a very big difference to be close.

I spent many of nights in the factory, at Tesla or SpaceX. Mostly at Tesla. Tesla has been much more of a challenge on the manufacturing front. Tesla is, in general, just much more of a drama queen (if that’s still a thing one can say, ) or a drama king. A drama monarch, ha ha.” 

Elon importantly explained misinformation and free speech, and the role of social media in free speech.

When Elon bought Twitter, he exposed the level of government control over Twitter through the release of the Twitter Files. He also believed that it was a civilizational risk. Free speech must be allowed in a functioning democracy, people must be able to express their opinions and access accurate information to make informed decisions.

Elon: “The amount of government control, the degree to which Twitter was at the behest of many arms of the government, that surprised me. There really were, in my view, many violations of the First Amendment. The government cannot exercise de facto control of the media (in the USA). The reason that amendment was put in place, is because people came from countries where they were forbidden to speak under penalty of prison or death. so they wanted to have the ability to speak freely without fear of severe punishment, or at least not from the government.”

Far-Left Control and the Niche Ideological Influence of Twitter

Elon: Twitter was very much controlled by far-left activists. Very far left. It was really controlled by a niche ideology that geographically is limited to the city of San Francisco and Berkeley, it does not even extend to the city of South San Francisco, or not even Palo Alto. 

Worm Time

That far-left ideology that would ordinarily be geographically contained, was effectively piping (an ideology) what most people would consider extreme to anywhere in the world that would allow Twitter to exist. 

I thought it was effectively worm time for the world, something needed to be done about that. I thought it was actually a civilizational risk.

In the context of a sudden, unpredictable change, “worm time” represents a profound and unsettling shift in reality that challenges our understanding. It can manifest as a social, political, or cultural change, or even alter the very nature of reality. This concept reminds us of the fragility of our understanding and the potential for transformative change beyond our comprehension.

Elon: I think if the United States does all that, then people think, ‘well, I’ll escape to New Zealand’ or some other place. That’s not realistic. 

If the United States falls, Canada is going to become a province in Russia and I don’t know what’s going to happen to the other countries but they’re not going to survive under the protective umbrella of the United States. The United States is the central pole to all that holds up the entire edifice of Western civilization. We have to make sure that the United States is strong and remains a democracy.

The rebranding of Twitter to X needed to happen. The old name no longer fits the platform’s expanding range of services. Elon compared it to naming a company after a single product and emphasized the need to let the bird fly free!

Elon: “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy. It cannot have a true democracy unless people can say things they want to say and learn the truth of things. Otherwise you will vote based on lack of information or a distorted view which will make the vote effectively meaningless. You don’t know on what basis to make your vote, so this is something that is extremely important and that’s the reason I acquired Twitter and I think we do want a fresh start, hence the different branding and also X is a much broader system than Twitter, which is a name that possibly made sense when you’re doing 140 character or short textual tweets. It was like birds twittering away. But once you start having a three hour videos and audio – video calling, and we’ll be launching payments later this year, then the name no longer fits. 

It would be like naming a company that has a broad range of products after one product. It does not make sense to do that. And also we want to free the bird and let it fly free and be something else.”

My thoughts

I think we’re pretty fortunate to be living during the rise of the incredible companies that Elon Musk has built and is still building. Watching the progress of SpaceX is incredible because SpaceX is ushering in a multi planetary era for civilization. Tesla is a joy of a company that brings happiness to people every day, with every car sold.

I have witnessed the Wall Street Journal and Business Insider, and Reuters and more spread false information about Elon Musk every week. Elon is correct that it is depressing. These and other publications are laying off many people, as reported in the past few months. The news happens on X, in real time, by people who are present where the news is happening. 

It’s beautiful to see X changing so rapidly. Everyone I have spoken with feels the same way. They can’t imagine what would have happened if Elon had not purchased Twitter. The changes happening are on a complex engineering level, but also on an ideological level that promotes free speech, and the First Amendment. Elon said, it’s important that people understand all of the information and not have a distorted view before they vote. Casting a vote without proper information renders that vote meaningless.

I’ve enjoyed putting together part one for you. I hope you enjoyed reading it. I will be thrilled to share part two soon. Elon’s interview with Ms. Brodsky was two hours in length. There are a lot of chunks of information there. That’s why this is a four part series. Take care, God bless you, and feel free to comment, that helps me know what you’re thinking and also gives support to my writing.

I had a chance to listen to the first X Spaces hosted by David Sacks and Elon Musk in order to introduce people to presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

Author’s Note: X is the new branded name for what was once called “Twitter.” This blog is renamed “What’s Up X?”

Ramaswamy is an American entrepreneur and a candidate in the 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries.

David Sachs hosted the XSpace and introduced Ramaswamy and then he was welcomed to speak by Elon Musk. 

The first topic touched on the meaning of existence, and Ramaswamy mentioned that he’s 37 years old, the first millennial to run for president, and he said that many in his generation are looking for a way to be involved, but when people ask them what it means to be an American, many cannot answer that question. Elon Musk said he thinks young people should aspire to be the good guys.

Turning Fiction into Reality

Elon explained that he grew up watching shows where Americans were the good guys and he thinks people can find meaning in life by trying to understand the nature of the universe. Inventing and building new things is also something he thinks the younger generation can aspire to.

Elon said this is the reason that he is a big fan of expanding the scope and scale of humanity and that consciousness should be expanded, and we should believe that civilization is a good thing and not a bad thing. 

Elon made a point that we’ve seen amazing fictional movies and read sci-fi books about the future, and he believes those things should come to pass, and not remain fiction. He believes we should become a multi-planetary species because this gives people purpose and a reason to wake up in the morning and be excited about the future.

Amidst cheerful sounds of Elon’s son, Lil X, playing in the background, Elon spoke about truth, saying that it’s important to believe there’s truth, and we should be aspiring to truth.

Ramaswamy asked what the conditions are that allow people to aspire to truth. 

Elon said Earth is not the worst place and we should make it the best place possible, and he’s not thinking of colonizing Mars because Earth will never be a viable option in the future.

Instead, it will be nice to see the fictional life of Star Trek come to pass, where we are a multi-planet species. 

How To Address Problems at Schools and Universities

Ramaswamy said that on this planet, he believes a revival (religious) of a sense of grounding and belief in a strong family is important. This led Elon to bring up another interesting point that at many Ivy League and top universities, students are being taught that it is not good to be a patriotic American. He believes it is a grave mistake to teach this to students.

I can attest, as I have a daughter, who works at the University of Texas, Austin, and the American flag is considered offensive, while the LGTBQ+ flag is considered politically correct. David Sachs added that in San Francisco, they ripped Abraham Lincoln’s name off one of the high schools.

Ramaswamy agreed with Elon saying, when students are successful, they are often ashamed of that success, and try to hide it, he says it’s because America has always been number one, and students are taught to believe it is not good to be number one. Ramaswamy said part of America’s role in the world was to provide an example of what is possible when you have a country founded on those ideals, but once you start apologizing to the world for those ideals, there’s a permanent loss of history.

Ramaswamy asked Elon Musk what he would do about it. This was Elon’s answer.

Elon said we should be castigating the schools and universities for doing this to our kids. He advised donors to universities and high schools to rescind their donations and ask for change before they donate again.

It sounded like Elon also was going to say stop sending your kids to those schools if they continue that, but he was cut off by Vivek who said “We want to make sure that America remains a meritocracy where smarts and hard work are rewarded instead of having an elite ruling class.”

Ramaswamy made the point that when students are ashamed of the exceptionalism of America, and when they apologize for being American, it’s like self-flogging. He said it’s like when you wear a burlap hair shirt and beat yourself with a stick. Elon disagreed when Vivek said that the climate movement is a form of self-flogging.

Helping Our Earth’s Climate is Not Far-Right Wing

Elon said that he believes he may have done more for our earth’s climate, than any other individual past or present. 

He says he feels it’s extremely bizarre when people label him as a far-right extremist. Elon said that he has literally been pouring blood, sweat, and tears into protecting the environment. He doesn’t understand what these people are talking about when they say that he’s a far-right conservative and he perceives himself to be a moderate, he cares about humans and our civilization, he is not far left, nor far right, but a centrist. 

Why Are ESGs (Environmental, Social, Governance) Harmful?

The discussion turned to ESGs. You may already know that ESGs allow companies to be rewarded for woke policies of diversity and inclusion but then exclude many people. 

Essentially, both Ramaswamy and Elon agreed that ESGs are harmful not only to companies but for people in the United States.

Elon said that fundamentally people have been misled and they’ve given their savings over to 401(k) plans that rate high on the ESG scale. Elon explained that people are having their money invested in index funds and ESG funds with the hope of the funds gaining in value so that they can have a secure retirement. Contrary to what people think, the voting that happens in these mutual fund environments is not in the best interest of profit nor in the interest of people. 

Elon mentioned the names Vanguard, Blackrock, Fidelity, and T Rowe. He said that these companies are lying to shareholders.

Essentially, it’s possible that these mutual fund companies are setting themselves up for one of the largest class action lawsuits ever. This is because they are lying to their shareholders. Elon said it’s because they are breaking the deal with their customers, and they are not maximizing shareholder value.

The Government Monopoly on Violence 

Elon also explained that the government is a corporation in the limit. “It is the most important corporation and the biggest and it’s got a monopoly on violence. And so you should say, how much violence do you want the government to do? Not that much, less, generally not more.” 

As background, in political philosophy, a monopoly on violence or monopoly on the legal use of force is the property of a political system that is the only entity in its jurisdiction to legitimately use force, and thus the supreme authority of that area. 

“As we speak, the flower of Ukrainian youth is dying in trenches.” – Elon Musk

On Ukraine, Elon mentioned we should know that our money is going to help the people of Ukraine, not a handful of oligarchs. 

Elon Musk said, sadly, 

“There has to be forgiveness, and there has to be some realism. And we have to look at Ukraine and Russia by not turning Russia into a devil and Ukraine into an angel. There are no angels in war.

“The flower of Ukrainian youth is dying in trenches. Why are these boys dying? For what?” 

“We should also be sad that there are Russian boys dying in trenches. Why are these young men dying because of disagreements between old men? Why? And entrenched warfare where only a few miles are exchanged? At what price? How many lives per mile is a life worth?

“If you don’t forgive your enemy, you’re stuck in a circle of retribution forever. There has to be forgiveness.”

Ramaswamy said if he was voted into office, he would strike down legislation that President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed into law, which has prevailed ever since. He said he would strike that law down, and most likely it has evolved into something it was never intended to be. He carefully explained that we should be rewarded for the value of our contributions and that it should not be based on any other factors. 

I’m unclear which law Ramaswamy plans to strike down, as the Civil Rights Act was passed by Congress and signed by LBJ in 1964, outlawing segregation in businesses such as theaters, restaurants, and hotels.

On June 29, 2023, the US Supreme Court ruled affirmative action is unconstitutional, ending race-conscious admissions in higher education. He could be referring to Executive Order 11246. President Lyndon B. Johnson issued Executive Order 11246, in 1965 prohibiting employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, and national origin by those organizations receiving federal contracts and subcontracts. This order could legally be struck down by Congress. 

Interested in Etymology? 

Lightening up the conversation about race, Elon mentioned that he owns etymology.com, which if you link to it, is simply an orange emoji. Elon announced that if there is somebody who would love to expand that, and go hard-core on it, he may be willing to sell it to that person.

FBI/CIA

Another point Elon brought up is that he has met a lot of people who work at the FBI and the CIA, and he stated that he thinks they have a lot of integrity.

Closing Thoughts

In closing, Elon said the discussion with Ramaswamy was important and that many people may agree with his position, and that he likely has won over a lot of people. He added there are a lot of things that sound pro-democracy and are ballot harvesting and are used to hack (votes). He said Goerge Soros is a talented arbitrator and he’s applied that talent monetarily and politically and he figured out that through charitable organizations you can promote a cause with pre-tax money and that doesn’t count in any of the political stuff. It is effective because you do not attack the candidate, just the positions that they hold. Then you hire a big team to harvest ballots from Nursing Homes and all that sort of stuff. “There are real things that have happened. I don’t think we should counter corruption with corruption but there does need to be a get-out-the-vote campaign. Clearly, Republicans need to work harder at winning over voters. Especially in key House and Senate races and Presidency.” 

Ramaswamy said this country has blessed him with so much. He said he wants to win the Presidency and has invested mostly his own dollars in his campaign thus far. He says it takes $2B to get elected and he raises money through donors. He invited listeners to donate. His link is on his X account profile. 

Elon said it is “Rare to meet a politician that is not an NPC.” referring to Ramaswamy. 

ᴀʀᴛɪᴄʟᴇ ʙʏ ɢᴀɪʟ ᴀʟꜰᴀʀ. ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ ʟᴇᴛ ᴍᴇ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴏꜰ ᴀɴʏ ᴇʀʀᴏʀꜱ ɪɴ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴀʀᴛɪᴄʟᴇ, ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴅᴏɴᴇ ᴍʏ ʙᴇꜱᴛ ᴛᴏ ɪɴᴛᴇʀᴘʀᴇᴛ ᴛʜɪꜱ xꜱᴘᴀᴄᴇ ꜰᴏʀ ʏᴏᴜ ʜɪɢʜʟɪɢʜᴛɪɴɢ ᴛʜɪꜱ ʜɪꜱᴛᴏʀɪᴄ ꜰɪʀꜱᴛ-ᴇᴠᴇʀ xꜱᴘᴀᴄᴇ. ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴀʀᴛɪᴄʟᴇ ɪꜱ ʙʀᴏᴜɢʜᴛ ᴛᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʙʏ ʙᴜʀɴᴛ ʜᴀɪʀ ᴄᴏʟᴏɢɴᴇ.