For context, it's a very clear Nazi Salute — and Musk did it more than once. The NYT is implying doubt because they're afraid of losing access if they speak the truth and because some people who are financially dependent on Musk are denying what it was in public.
The 4 year myth needs to be dispelled. There is no magical reset button every 4 years. Damage done can't be magically erased at the end of a 4 year period.
We're entering a period of American decline that's going to last a lot longer than 4 years. Buckle up. As shitty as the 2000s have been for a lot of us, we're going to look back at the early 2000s as a golden age.
And in front of his employees asking for tips & suggestions. You know damn well he told every person he could to pump his ego. He's an insecure frat boy.
Fucking Hell NY Times can you please just not be a myopic piece of shit and actually call a nazi a nazi. All of this enabling hang-wringing pearl-clutching nonsense is part of how we got in this problem.
The goal of this is to get us flipping out while the Right and casual voters go "jesus, he just waved weirdly."
Now more than ever we have to pick our fights well. More than half the country voted trump in part because they think The Left is overreacting, please don't feed that narrative.
Yeah it's bait. But it's also dog whistling (if we can even call it that anymore). Obviously they don't care if we call them fascist anymore. But it's also a sign to their supporters and literally a call and acknowledgment to them.
It's more important to point out that yes, Elon Musk is courting the NeoNazis. And we must not forget these moments.
Yes it's bait and yes it's a dog whistle and yes it's a call and acknowledgement to their facsist supporters.
And it STILL doesn't really matter.
Here's one story that's already getting buried that's obviously far more important - Trump pardoning 1500 Jan 6 rioters. That's 1500 people who stormed the Capital, at Trump's urging, with the explicit stated goal of "stop(ping) the steal," which is to say, using whatever means might serve, clearly including violence for which they were not coincidentally already equipped, to prevent the Congress from carrying out its sworn duty in accordance with the Constitution and the law of the land.
No matter how you look at it, that's a FAR more grave threat to the US than a cringe manchild throwing a few sieg heils.
It's not important, it just makes us look like we're in hystrionics about Musk etc.
To most Americans, they're not worried about a handful of idiots in swastikas. When we take this sort of bait it just makes real criticisms look like more Lefty whining.
Fuck that, sound the alarm. Our defacto president threw up a Nazi salute during inauguration. I was done with allowing them deniability years ago. These stupid Nazis can suck a fat baby’s dick.
And that alarm was listened to by the same people who already believe he's a nazi, convinces and mobilizes zero people and makes the majority of voters who voted for trump even less likely to listen to us when someone isn't just making a stupid salute but actually doing dangerous shit that actually harms people.
I get that for spoiled mostly white kids online, life will pretty much go on and nothing that bad will happen. But to those of us who actually understand the potential harm, we also underground that how we react matters more than what feels good or is easy, like screaming nazi.