Musk’s Holocaust Minimalization
Words to the AfD.

So, to add to hand gestures that looked an awful like a Nazi salute, using Nazi names as little funnies, and embracing alt-right online culture. Musk spoke to the AfD meeting and told them they shouldn’t feel guilty about Germany’s past. The AfD is a far-right nationalist party in Germany (a well-known happy convergence of words) and, in case it isn’t obvious, the past the Germans might still feel guilty about is the Holocaust.
Here’s the video. The relevant portion starts at ~2:35.
So yes, there are plenty of reasons for Germans to be proud of themselves and their culture (my wife is one-half German, FWIW). But I also think that the dominant German approach to the Holocaust and the Nazi regime is the appropriate one. Which is to be transparent in their deep national shame over the events and be dedicated to a sincere stance of “never again.” Indeed, I think that the German approach to their past is far healthier than the US’ continued struggle to fully come to terms with its own.*
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that a scion of Apartheid Era South African elites wouldn’t want to think too much about the past. Still, let’s be clear: he is saying that the time has come to minimize the Holocaust.
In just a few days he is certainly raising the question of looking like, sounding like, and walking like a duck.
This matters, to me at least, because he is a very influential individual globally and has risen to substantial prominence within the US government. I don’t like the idea of far-right nationalists who minimize the holocaust influencing a US president, but perhaps I am hopelessly old-fashioned in that way.
A side note is that I find it utterly laughable when he inveighs against “global elitists” around the 3:30 mark. You know, the South African who has additional citizenship in Canada and the United States, who has several transnational businesses, and who is seeking to influence politics in multiple countries is warning us against the influence of international elites.
If he is really so concerned, I suggest he return to his fatherland and just do business there where he can focus on his South Africanness and leave the rest of us alone.
*I am not going to go down that rabbit hole at the moment, but I have written quite a bit about this, including, but not limited to, the following:
Pretty bad when someone else is giving Trump a run for his money – if you’ll excuse the expression – in the lunatic department. I’ve heard reports that Trump personally is getting increasingly annoyed with EM for getting so much attention.
But this one Trump’s going to lose because I’m sure the other billionaire tech bro’s are quite happy to see him out there getting all the attention while they keep their heads down and out of sight, simply getting what they want and screwing the American tax-payer. And they own Trump lock stock and barrel.
It is beyond me as to why anyone still thinks there is a question
Heil Texla!
@Jay L Gischer:
@Andy:
I’m reposting this from the previous Elon thread, posted very late yesterday.
A woman duplicated Elon’s Salute and now it’s cost her several jobs
Stop normalizing Nazi Salutes.
Re Musk and global elites. Trump is a billionaire with hotels all over the world. Koch, Inc. is a multinational conglomerate. Miriam Adelson is Israeli born and has interests in casinos all over the world. Harlan Crow’s company develops real estate internationally, Peter Thiel runs a global hedge fund, and so on, and so on. MAGA populism, centered on resentment of globalist elites, has always been a con, perpetrated by globalist elites.
Musk is going to make trouble if he keeps breaking the kayfabe by showing off as a global elitist.
I knew Musk would make a fool out of the intellectuality lazy performative contractions downplaying and denying his Nazi games. I just didn’t think it would happen this quickly.
Again, some are so dense Trump and Musk could be hit them in the head with a 2×4 that says “We’re doing Nazi stuff,” and the fence-straddlers would still get up from the blow in denial. Even though Musk himself has not denied it was a Nazi salute. Because it was a Nazi salute.
So it’s easy to understand ‘how it happened’ in 1920s-30s Germany. Unlike those good people, we have sophisticated digital communication + the benefit of hindsight. Some still can’t face reality. Smh
Those who wish you would forget history are likely to repeat it.
@Daryl: From back in his own defensive zone, a blistering slap shot…
…Scooooore!!!
Understandable sentiment from Musk who appears to be building upon the sins of his parent (father), and hardly shows any guilt over anything. Much like Trump in both respects. Also like Trump, a stunted, adolescent fixation on power icons over mature values that reflect a healthy regard for humanity and community.
Let’s all just gloss over the contribution of progressives who accused Israelis of being Nazis. And belittled the Holocaust by equating it with the deaths of 3% of the Gazan population. And chanted slogans that encouraged the ethnic cleansing of Jews in Israel.
It’s rather like progressives who were busy banning books right up until conservatives started banning books. Hypocrisy is a poor foundation for resistance.
@Rob1:
Seems Musk’s Hitler-fanatic maternal grandparents may be the operative familial influence here.
@Daryl:
Those of you who wish you’d forget history would like you to repeat it.
FIFY
@Not the IT Dept.: “And they own Trump lock stock and barrel.”
‘When you’ve helped install a strongman, you don’t own him. He owns you.’
@Michael Reynolds: Michael, FascIntern is quite capable of doing things on their own. The progressives are just convenient scapegoats.
And the people on the right are quite happy to cuddle up with actual Nazis.
@Michael Reynolds: I think you are grinding this axe in the wrong way, at the wrong time.
I also think you are exaggerating the degree to which the things you are asserting was sufficiently widespread to warrant your conclusions.
And I will end by noting that why can’t it just be that maybe fascists/neo-fascists/etc. are just be responsible for their own bad behavior?
And Trump is calling to “clean out” Gaza and plotting to denationalize people by his fiat; I’m about done with people concern trolling about over using fascism.
@Steven L. Taylor:
When all one has is an axe, everything looks like Mr. and Mrs. Borden’s heads.
If Biden had given a White House office to a powerful progressive advisor who compared Israelis to Nazis and then appeared at a Hezbollah conference by video, all here would’ve had shared thoughts. Big, big thoughts.
But that didn’t happen. That kind of leftist exists in anonymous tweets and below a sign at some random astroturfed protest in Dearborn, but they have no real cachet or power. They’re not the unelected co-president and world’s richest man.
Blessedly, outside of a few knuckleheads the regular commentariat here is skilled at triaging their focus towards real threats — like housing and healthcare costs, or the other parasitic billionaires looking to control Western democracy.
I notice folks here trend away from swinging the axe at the oligarchy’s favored deflections — trans woke DEI migrant pronouns or those darn Zoomers protesting on the lawns of Boomers who yell at clouds.
This is to y’alls credit. Much applause to Americans who, like our hosts here, still have common sense.