# 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:** 83
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2022, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1641 "2022-11-27T23:26:54Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > I have never heard this usage of ‘88’ before as a code word for Nazis. Where does it comes from? “HH” as in “heil Hitler.” “H” being the 8th letter of the English alphabet. This is, like, old news, as in decades. Maybe you had to be in the right place at the right time, but I remember it from the late 90s, at least. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2022, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1642 "2022-11-27T23:34:54Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > “HH” as in “heil Hitler.” “H” being the 8th letter of the English alphabet. This is, like, old news, as in decades. Maybe you had to be in the right place at the right time, but I remember it from the late 90s, at least. It’s been brought up a number of times here on the SDMB, as well, even in the relatively recent past. > [@Nazi Rune As CPAC Stage- Coincidence Or Not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nazi-rune-as-cpac-stage-coincidence-or-not/933927/62): > > For those unfamiliar- the eighth letter of the English alphabet is H. 88=HH= Heil Hitler. 14 is a reference to the Fourteen Words “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children” OTTOMH The Magic The Gathering card “Prejudice” was actually the 1,488th card in the line. The company that makes MTG has since repudiated racism in general, that card in particular and the racist artist who painted the art for that card. > [@Does the cancel culture need to extend this far?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-cancel-culture-need-to-extend-this-far/969311/167): > > Now people, stop teasing poor Novelty\_Bobble. The significance of [the number 88](https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/88) in this context, of course, is that it is the number of keys on a standard piano keyboard. > [@Trivia Dominoes II — Play Off the Last Bit of Trivia — continued!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-ii-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia-continued/846950/3374): > > For those who don’t get it, the eighth letter of the alphabet is ‘H’ … 88 = HH = “Heil Hitler”. In play … The easiest way to differentiate the Nazi swastika from the Hindu swastika by observing in which direction the arms are bent. The arms on Nazi swastikas bend to the right; the original swastika of the Hindus and other Eurasian cultures bend to the left. -“BB”- ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2022, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1643 "2022-11-27T23:47:31Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > It’s been brought up a number of times here on the SDMB, as well, even in the relatively recent past. @Sam_Stone wouldn’t have known that. He barely posts here, and certainly not on politics or other contentious topics. There is absolutely no way he would have ever been exposed to that notion, and by extension neither could have Elon despite the fact that he is desperately trying to be the premier edgelord meme generator on the internet. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2022, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1644 "2022-11-27T23:48:39Z")
Shoulda figured something was up when Elmo specified 88 lines of code for each review… ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2022, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1645 "2022-11-27T23:52:33Z")
> [@glowacks](#): > > I highly doubt any programmers of that quality have gotten anywhere close to working at Twitter. Absolutely right. In my years in Silicon Valley I saw one so-called programmer that dumb, who got away with it because his management knew nothing about software. When I rewrote his code to be half the size and not need maintenance he got fired. But I feel for Sam for apparently having to work with nitwits who would write code he described, which should have got filtered out in CS101, and for management who would hire them. I’m sure there are places in Silicon Valley with junk programmers, but not at top tier companies like the old Twitter. The new Twitter - not so sure. > [@wolfpup](#): > > First of all, what he’s apparently doing, if it’s being accurately described, is not a code review. It’s a cursory, random examination of an arbitrary piece of code in isolation, free of context, and in the absence of the coder to provide explanation and context – if indeed it could even be attributable to any single coder. Absolutely right. I think I brought this up in the other thread. I don’t know about your code reviews, but the rules I’ve seen don’t allow managers in because it needs to be honest, not a CYA exercise. Not to mention that anyone smart enough to be employable would be selecting their best code, not average code. So, does this mean that no one ever did code reviews at Twitter? Real 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:** [November 28, 2022, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1646 "2022-11-28T00:00:27Z")
He’s going after Vindman now, of course. > ---
**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:** [November 28, 2022, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1647 "2022-11-28T03:59:43Z")
The Chinese government is now apparently spamming Twitter with nonsense tweets with the hashtag “#要要搞定個要” (which I’m told is pure gibberish in Chinese) in order to crowd out people tweeting about the anti-Xi protests. [https://twitter.com/search?q=%23要要搞定個要&src=trend\_click&vertical=trends](https://twitter.com/search?q=%23%E8%A6%81%E8%A6%81%E6%90%9E%E5%AE%9A%E5%80%8B%E8%A6%81&src=trend_click&vertical=trends) ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1648 "2022-11-28T11:07:58Z")
> **[Twitter failed to detect upload of Christchurch mosque terror attack videos](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/28/twitter-failed-to-detect-upload-of-christchurch-mosque-terror-attack-videos)** > > Footage was taken down only after the New Zealand government alerted Twitter, which had failed to pick up the content as harmful Perfectly normal for a modern social media platform to deprioritize the filtering of terror videos. I’m sure this will win back the confidence of the spooked advertisers. You betcha. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1649 "2022-11-28T14:28:33Z")
> **[High-profile Republicans gain followers in first weeks of Musk’s reign](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/high-profile-republicans-gain-followers-in-first-weeks-of-musk-s-reign/ar-AA14DI8K)** > > Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have lost tens of thousands of followers, while Republicans such as Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene have seen big increases. [Note this is unpaywalled MSN repost.] ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1650 "2022-11-28T14:47:28Z")
I even remember stuff about people who were born in 1988 lamenting they couldn’t just stick their birth year at the end of their username. It’s pretty well known online, @Sam_Stone. If you don’t like the ADL, here’s another reference: > **[88 (number) | In neo-Nazism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/88_(number)#In_neo-Nazism)** > > Neo-Nazis use the number 88 as an abbreviation for the Nazi salute Heil Hitler. The letter H is eighth in the alphabet, whereby 88 becomes HH. > Often, this number is associated with the number 14, e.g. 14/88, 14-88, or 1488; this number symbolizes the Fourteen Words coined by David Lane, a prominent white supremacist. Example uses of 88 include the song "88 Rock 'n' Roll Band" by Landser, and the organizations Column 88 and Unit 88. > The number is banned on Austrian license plates due to its asso... It’s even banned in license plates in Austria because it was used so much. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1651 "2022-11-28T16:54:03Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I even remember stuff about people who were born in 1988 lamenting they couldn’t just stick their birth year at the end of their username. It was a recurrent low-level controversy with poster Huerta88, who looks to have been posting around here for about a decade. Here is a [long Pit thread from 2006](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huerta88-your-handle-hurts-you/358344/) (that devolved quickly) started by Bricker of all people and with a lot of push back from various posters, but also others acknowledging that it was a known issue and did influence perception. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1652 "2022-11-28T17:21:27Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Deciding to quickly form a loyal opposition, I am going on the record as saying this is more-likely-than-not a reference to the original tweet which was itself referencing the linked Wiki article which mentioned “88 million years”. > > Sometimes a cigar is just a smoke, ladies and gentlemen. 😉 If George W. Bush made that Tweet, I’d be right there with you. If Liz Truss or Liz Cheney or Brian Kemp or Mitt Romney made that Tweet, I’d agree. The reason I’d agree is that: 1. None of those conservatives have a [history](https://www.foxnews.com/tech/elon-musk-trolls-critics-new-stay-work-merchandise-following-woke-discovery) of [trolling](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/apr/26/elon-musk-king-of-trolls-purchase-twitter-dangerous) [people](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jul/15/elon-musk-british-diver-thai-cave-rescue-pedo-twitter) [via](https://nypost.com/2022/11/21/elon-musk-taunts-twitter-holdout-trump-with-crude-jesus-meme/) [Twitter](https://nypost.com/2022/10/31/elon-musk-trolls-new-york-times-with-false-news-tweet/). 2. None of those conservatives have a history of drawing on [Nazi](https://www.timesofisrael.com/musk-tweets-meme-with-soldier-of-nazi-germany-mocks-fleeing-users/) [imagery](https://theblackwallsttimes.com/2022/02/21/elon-musk-draws-backlash-after-posting-hitler-meme-on-twitter/) and [alt-right memes](https://www.indy100.com/viral/elon-musk-ivanka-trump-red-pill-twitter-meme-alt-right-9520171). Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. But if Bill Clinton is holding a cigar and leering at you, watch out; and when Elon Musk Tweets 88, Occam’s Razor suggests that he’s smoking weed and trolling Twitter to please his alt-right fanbase. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1653 "2022-11-28T17:22:14Z")
Regardless of whether @Sam_Stone does or does not know the reference to “88”, [he is trying to imply that Elon Musk would not have known about it either](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter/963442/1638), which is pretty unlikely given Elon’s propensity as a troll who courts the political extremes for material. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1654 "2022-11-28T17:56:31Z")
Isn’t this the same Elon Musk who makes 4:20 jokes? He knows what numbers refer to. ---
**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:** [November 28, 2022, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1655 "2022-11-28T17:59:04Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Regardless of whether @Sam_Stone does or does not know the reference to “88”, [he is trying to imply that Elon Musk would not have known about it either](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter/963442/1638), which is pretty unlikely given Elon’s propensity as a troll who courts the political extremes for material. I never implied anything of the sort. Stop lying about me. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1656 "2022-11-28T18:08:47Z")
---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1657 "2022-11-28T18:10:07Z")
**Modnote** : Too many attacks on other posters. Too many flags for one thread. The Noise to Content ratio is extremely bad in this thread. I’m closing it and will probably leave it closed. * * * * * * Reopened in the Pit by Popular demand. Was in IMHO. Going forward, maybe all Elon Musk threads need to be in the Pit. It will save the posters and mods a lot of grief ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1658 "2022-11-29T03:22:01Z")
---
**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:** [November 29, 2022, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1659 "2022-11-29T03:24:39Z")
Thanks, W\_E. Apparently, Apple has pulled nearly $50 million of advertising from Twitter. That’s not a giant amount relative to the $4 billion in total ad revenue, but it’s clearly enough to piss him off. > ---
**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:** [November 29, 2022, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442/1660 "2022-11-29T03:26:58Z")
In before we rename this forum the Musk Pit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442.md?page=82) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-1/963442.md?page=84)