'Ready to lose money than curb my opinions': Elon Musk
Billionaire and Twitter owner Elon Musk is no stranger to controversies. The same proved to be true during an interview with CNBC's David Faber on Tuesday when he likened Jewish philanthropist George Soros to a supervillain from Marvel Comics. The Tesla top boss also said that he did not care if his companies lost money because of his tweets and opinions.
Musk a "lightning rod" for criticism?
During the conversation with Musk, Faber questioned why he was tweeting stuff that was making him a "lightning rod for criticism." He also asked the billionaire whether he was worried about the impact his opinions would have on the firms he leads, namely Tesla, SpaceX, and Twitter. Musk's response to this question was bound to catch the interviewer as well as viewers off guard.
'Will say whatever I want'
Musk responded to Faber saying, "You know, I'm reminded of a scene in The Princess Bride...where [Mandy Patinkin's character, Inigo Montoya] confronts the person who kills his father. And he says, 'Offer me money. Offer me power. I don't care." "I'll say what I want to say, and if the consequence of that is losing money, so be it," he added.
Why is Musk beefing with Soros?
Holocaust survivor Soros is a billionaire financier, whose family office, Soros Fund Management slashed its stake in EV maker Tesla recently. This seems to have not gone down well with Musk. In a tweet, he compared Soros with Magneto, a Jewish supervillain from the Marvel X-Men series. Musk also claimed that the 92-year-old liberal billionaire "wants to erode the very fabric of civilization."
Musk claims to be a "pro-semite"
When asked about the Soros controversy, Musk claimed he had no anti-semitic (anti-Jewish) intent, adding "I'm a pro-semite, if anything." All this shows that the SpaceX chief is fine with upsetting Twitter users and advertisers, Tesla buyers, as well as the investors in his companies, who may not agree with his position on various matters.
What's the way ahead for Twitter?
Newly appointed Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino has a monumental job of making the platform a welcoming place for advertisers. However, will her plans clash with Musk's outspoken stance on free speech? Only time will tell.
