• Queen HawlSera@lemm.ee
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    2 days ago

    Joke? What joke? President Musk is proof that the American Dream is well and alive if a South African who isn’t even legally a US American Citizen can buy himself a country as long as he works hard spending the money earned from his father’s child-slave powered emerald mine… Well there’s hope for the rest of us*

    • = Provided we become sociopaths with large resources
    • boonhet@lemm.ee
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      1 day ago

      as long as he works hard spending the money earned from his father’s child-slave powered emerald mine…

      I hate this misconception. Barely any of it is emerald money. His wealth is all based off defrauding his customers, investors and the US government, lying about everything, and doing tons of illegal stuff like pump n dumps.

      • Queen HawlSera@lemm.ee
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        1 day ago

        Yes, but without the Emerald Mines he wouldn’t have enough money to be in a position where he could tell lies on that scale. Stealing is a lot easier when you already have a ton of cash.

        No one’s going to listen to a crazed drunken hobo when he tries to sell you a timeshare, but if a guy tripping balls on cocaine wearing a nice suit with a proper haircut promises you the literal god damn moon… Well that’s a different story now isn’t it?

        It’s not the lie itself, it’s the image you have while telling the lie.

        If you see a man’s face and name on a billboard, then see that same man telling you he can spin hay into gold, you believe him. Because how could he have that fancy billboard if he couldn’t?

        Also Pump and dumps aren’t illegal anymore

        • boonhet@lemm.ee
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          1 day ago

          You don’t need to be a millionaire to have a nice suit, proper haircut, and cocaine. And yes, those things combined with a load of confidence and the ability to spin bullshit, will sell almost anything to a lot of people.

          • funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works
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            1 day ago

            but in Musks specific case, it was family money that allowed him to tool around America with no job and getting into boardrooms with C level big bank owners as a teenager. If I had put on a suit and done the same thing I’d be politely asked if I had an appointment and then asked to leave.

        • boonhet@lemm.ee
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          1 day ago

          No you don’t, you can always borrow money, or dupe investors. The WeWork dude had his girlfriend (now wife) pay for their dates because he was so broke. Fast, confident talking is more important than money. If you’ve already got money, you don’t need to work to get more money.

      • Queen HawlSera@lemm.ee
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        23 hours ago

        He got his visa under false pretenses and stayed after it was no longer valid, people have been deported for less