Musk’s muddle
Stick to innovative business ventures, OK?
Elon Musk became one of the world’s most celebrated minds thanks to his innovation and entrepreneurial spirit. But lately, Mr. Musk has wasted that goodwill by behaving in a self-serving and crass way on Twitter.
Take the recent incident in which 12 soccer players and their coach were dramatically rescued from a flooded cave in Thailand. The international effort to save the boys was the feel-good story of the year, a triumph of human spirit and determination.
But before the story had been resolved, Mr. Musk, who has said that he does not need to advertise for his companies because he generates so much media attention, swooped in with a harebrained scheme to save the boys.
Mr. Musk and engineers from two of his companies — SpaceX and Tesla — developed a child-sized submarine with rocket parts. The contraption was delivered to the rescue operation in Thailand. The only problem was that the device did not work.
According to the chief of the rescue mission, Mr. Musk’s submarine was “not practical” and it would have been unable to traverse the narrow passageways of the cave. Many observers accused Mr. Musk of using the incident as a means of promoting himself and his companies.
Vern Unsworth, a British diver involved in the rescue, added: “It just had absolutely no chance of working. They had no conception of what the cave passage was like ... It wouldn’t have made the first 50 meters into the cave from the dive start point.”
Miffed by the comments, Mr. Musk took to Twitter last Sunday to call Mr. Unsworth a pedophile.
The comment, which seemingly has no basis in fact and has drawn the possibility of litigation for defamation, quickly drew condemnation from around the globe. On Wednesday, Mr. Musk apologized, saying he made the comments in anger and was wrong to do so.
In light of his zany antics, it can be easy to forget that Mr. Musk first entered the public eye thanks to his inventive ideas, such as Hyperloop, and an interest in exploring space. There aren’t many people out there like Mr. Musk, people who want to explore, experiment and innovate.
But Mr. Musk has stirred the pot on Twitter frequently in recent months, drawing widespread condemnation for thoughtless remarks. His comments about Mr. Unsworth were the culmination of a monthslong online implosion.
Mr. Musk would be wise to sign off Twitter for a while and refocus. His many talents should be directed toward managing his businesses, creating jobs and shooting for the stars, rather than spewing stupidity online.