# Now that Elon Musk has bought Twitter - now the Pit edition (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 25, 2022, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442 "2022-04-25T22:50:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 236
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4704 "2023-05-12T00:08:12Z")
Elmo’s latest decree; log in every 30 days or I’ll ban you. > Funny enough, a certain someone who hasn’t logged in or posted since January 8, 2021 appears to be exempt from this rule. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4705 "2023-05-12T01:03:13Z")
> ---
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4706 "2023-05-12T01:20:10Z")
New name change incoming: Twinder. > For bonus points, the guy who floated the idea > His tweet quoted Musk, who expressed concerns about a “population collapse” in response to a study that showed declining fertility rates in Nordic countries. Nothing suspicious about Elmo being worried about not enough Nordic people reproducing leading to him conclude that > “A collapsing birth rate is the biggest danger civilization faces by far,” Musk claimed. ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4707 "2023-05-12T02:26:29Z")
…Dionne Warwick has an announcment. > [@](#): > > I am excited to officially take on the role as CEO of Twitter. This has been in the works for months. > > > ABC News @ABC (Not true, obviously. But Dionne Warick has one of the most unexpectedly funny Twitter accounts) ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4708 "2023-05-12T02:55:55Z")
Send Nick Cannon on mission. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4709 "2023-05-12T08:27:45Z")
I’m expecting Tucker Carlson to be named as the new CEO of twitterx. SuntanLotion, I don’t think Nick Cannon fits the bill for these folks. But I’ve been wrong before. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4710 "2023-05-12T11:41:49Z")
> [@Banquet\_Bear](#): > > Not true, obviously. Not so obviously. You know that any number of celebrities probably think they could do the job (even ignoring the ones who think _anyone_ could do better than Elon). ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4711 "2023-05-12T14:58:49Z")
I meant he could help with reproduction of the Nordic people. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4712 "2023-05-12T15:42:13Z")
New non-CEO. Apparently sufficiently Reich-wing. No actual power, just a figurehead. I’m expecting a pregnancy announcement soon. Bet the child’s name is already AI generated. ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4713 "2023-05-12T16:14:43Z")
I was sort of expecting the new CEO to be Grimes. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4714 "2023-05-12T16:24:32Z")
Or Grimey, as she likes to be called… ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4715 "2023-05-12T17:37:04Z")
(chuckles)…good old Grimey. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4716 "2023-05-12T17:48:29Z")
What proportion of employees who remain at Twitter because they’re Musk fan-bois hold misogynistic views, and will balk at working for a female CEO? I’d guess the number is not zero. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4717 "2023-05-12T17:50:43Z")
At this point, a large proportion of remaining employees are the H1-B-shackled ones. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4718 "2023-05-12T18:01:55Z")
I still don’t understand the H1B = can’t leave argument. The people on H1B’s who stay risk being laid off and not finding a job in time to transfer the visa; the people who look and find another job with sponsorship, which is common in tech, will have the clock start over with a new application. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4719 "2023-05-12T18:19:43Z")
That’s the Catch-22. The H1B shackled employees are almost certainly being overworked - remember the beds they set up? If you are expected to be at work almost literally around the clock, it does not leave much time to go job hunting, much less be presentable or prepared during any interviews. And that’s against the backdrop of big layoffs at several major tech companies, i.e. there aren’t so many jobs around anymore to get, much less at the companies who would offer visa sponsorship. So, yes, technically they can find other opportunities but there are major structural roadblocks in place (whether deliberate or not) to make the process exceedingly difficult. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4720 "2023-05-12T19:35:25Z")
Did anyone actually check the numbers? I just did. According to CNN, before the layoffs Twitter had approximately 300 H1(b) workers. The linked article states that it’s unknown how many of them left or were terminated. Twitter now has about 1100 employees, so even if every single H1b was spared, that’s less than 30% of the work force. But it’s likely that there were heavy cuts to them as well. So if the H1b ratio remains the same as it was before the lyoffs (about 8% of staff), there might be roughly 100 H1b employees left at Twitter. Other sites say the number of H1b employees was 600-750 before Musk. I don’t know who is correct. But that doesn’t speak to how many are left. Manybe CNN’s numbers were post-layoff, in which case 300 out of 1100 are H1(b). So probably somewhere between 100 and 300. [https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/18/politics/twitter-layoffs-visas-h1b/index.html#:~:text=In%20fiscal%20year%202022%2C%20Twitter,1B%20visas%2C%20the%20data%20shows](https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/18/politics/twitter-layoffs-visas-h1b/index.html#:~:text=In%20fiscal%20year%202022%2C%20Twitter,1B%20visas%2C%20the%20data%20shows). ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4721 "2023-05-12T21:46:50Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Elmo’s latest decree; log in every 30 days or I’ll ban you. Well, my account is probably going to get banned then. I am so concerned. 😐 ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4722 "2023-05-12T22:22:30Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > According to CNN, before the layoffs Twitter had approximately 300 H1(b) workers. […] > > Other sites say the number of H1b employees was 600-750 before Musk. I don’t know who is correct. [Forbes about 6 months ago](https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/11/04/twitter-and-other-tech-layoffs-raise-h-1b-visa-employment-issues/?sh=4afed54b4db6) reported that > [@](#): > > There are approximately 625 to 670 Twitter employees in H-1B status, or about 8% of the company’s [7,500 employees](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/03/technology/twitter-layoffs-elon-musk.html), based on a National Foundation for American Policy analysis of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) data. (This is an estimate since Twitter has not published a precise number.) Some of the apparent discrepancy might be explained by the fact that, AFAICT, H-1B workers whose employer has applied for a (typically one-year) extension of their visa are allowed to continue working, for up to 8 months after the expiration of their original 3-year visa period, while extension approval is pending. So it well might be that pre-Musk Twitter had in a given fiscal year a few hundred employees “approved to work on H-1B visas”, as your linked cite phrased it, and also a few hundred employees whose H-1B visa extension approval was pending. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/4723 "2023-05-12T22:58:48Z")
Oh dear, the new Twitter CEO is pro VAX, and many of Elmo’s loyal followers are unhappy. > [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442.md?page=235) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442.md?page=237)