Mate, he is on a very self destructive spiral doing those nazi salutes at the inauguration. That’s not a smart move. He’s let his fantasies get the better of him. If he was really smart he would shut the fuck up about politics. He has everything, And consequently he values nothing.

You’re right, the term is very subjective. The lower bound for me is owning multiple properties, owning a business and making money from the labour of others.

I agree. If you started from 0 and got rich you became a class traitor.

I’m not sure what you mean. I’m not American, and I don’t place much value on enormous wealth accumulation. I’m just acknowledging that there is a difference between gaining enormous wealth with a hefty leg up from family wealth versus doing it from scratch, like growing up in poverty for example.

I think he is dedicated, dangerous and awful. I just don’t think he is smart. I’ve known people who achieved wealth, started successful businesses etc. They had domain expertise and ambition. But they also neglected and fucked up other critical aspects of their lives (like their relationships with partners and kids). I didn’t consider them to be smart. In my mind, smart implies a well roundedness, and the capacity for self reflection, and empathy. Musk just has the personality traits, and family wealth, to enable him to “succeed” in our current society.

I have to question the judgement of Bill Gates when he calls Musk “super-smart”. Maybe if Musk started out with no money, that would be fair in some sense. I think he was just lucky and unencumbered by ethics or self-doubt.

Stupid? Would a stupid man star in Baby Geniuses 2? I’ll just leave this here. youtube.com/watch?v=sT3coep3EW0

Lol. Stay a while and listen was the first thing that came to my mind. Your soul shall fuel the hellforge.

Do a barrel roll!

I don’t think you can generalise white collar jobs that way. I’ve done both, and writing software all day takes way more out of me than when I did manual labour. But some white collar jobs don’t require much effort at all. I wish it was easier to balance using your brain and your body for work.