# Now that Elon Musk has bought Twitter - now the Pit edition (Part 2) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** elon-musk\ **Created:** [August 13, 2024, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634 "2024-08-13T00:48:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 84
**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:** [February 17, 2025, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1682 "2025-02-17T04:55:12Z")
ＰＡＲＡＮＯＩＡ ＳＴＲＩＫＥＳ ＭＥ Seems the State Department is looking for $400 million in armored Teslas. OOPS. They had to go back and strike out Tesla (for now) and make it generic. With 'mericans about to suffer a little pain (medicare, SNAP, services cuts); some folks might be a little upset. Can’t have our Senators, Reps, Govt officers in plain limos. And what better to showcase Full Self Driving bullet proof autonomous vehicles. That they have been know to drive over protesters pedestrians is a plus actually. And with Eloon able to target individual cars, your Representative, Senator, Judge who’s thinking of bucking dear leader might just find his/her vehicle trying to ford the Potomac with the doors locked, windows up, and on fire. LATimes and others. > **[State Department halts plan to buy $400 million worth of armored vehicles...](https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2025-02-14/state-department-halts-plan-to-buy-400m-worth-of-armored-vehicles-from-musks-tesla)** > > The State Department had been in talks with Elon Musk’s Tesla company to buy armored electric vehicles, but the plans have been put on hold by the Trump administration after reports emerged about a potential $400-million purchase. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2025, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1683 "2025-02-17T07:13:10Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > The sooner we get to “immobile skeleton man strapped to a life support machine for eternity”, the better Some unspecified number of years ago, I read a short story wherein the visitor to another world was brought in by the natives and brutally tortured and maimed. When he reached the point where he was blind and crippled and helpless, they made him their ruler, because he had nothing to gain from anything he might do and so would not be motivated by evil ends. That would probably not work right on Ell’no. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2025, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1684 "2025-02-17T15:29:13Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > because he had nothing to gain from anything he might do and so would not be motivated by evil ends. Soneone forgot about “revenge”. Which is exactly what you would have worry about if we gave Elmo that treatment. ---
**Author:** ![keeganst94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a6a055/32.png) [@keeganst94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keeganst94)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2025, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1685 "2025-02-18T15:58:18Z")
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but I was under the impression that we _could_ do this (and do, in other species), we just don’t do it in humans because it’s highly unpredictable and highly unethical. ---
**Author:** ![Pazu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pazu/32/15522_2.png) [@Pazu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pazu)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2025, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1686 "2025-02-18T17:29:58Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > There’s a step in IVF where the batch of fertilized embryos is examined for viability and quality, in order to prioritize which represent better odds for implantation. It’s possible Musk misinterpreted what they were saying and came away with the impression that “we chose the best embryos” means more than it does. PGT-M just stands for “pre-implantation genetic testing for monogenic disorders”, which is sequencing analysis for various pathogenic mutations or aneuploidy. It’s something that seems to be routinely offered through various fertility clinics. There’s no way in hell anyone is doing CRISPR in these circumstances though. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2025, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1687 "2025-02-19T23:33:40Z")
> [@keeganst94](#): > > Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but I was under the impression that we _could_ do this (and do, in other species), we just don’t do it in humans because it’s highly unpredictable and highly unethical. If it’s possible to achieve a live, healthy human birth by mixing in (say) squid genes with the human ones, that would certainly be interesting and highly newsworthy. I wasn’t aware it had been done (which is what I was trying to say in my previous post). ---
**Author:** ![keeganst94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a6a055/32.png) [@keeganst94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keeganst94)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2025, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1688 "2025-02-20T00:03:24Z")
Ah, I thought you were questioning whether or not it could be done, not whether it had been done. From a purely technical perspective, I’m fairly confident we could make a transgenic human - we’ve done it in sheep, cows, pigs, and some primates, after all - but the “healthy first time” thing would probably be a challenge. ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1689 "2025-02-20T03:00:10Z")
Elmo has been whining about “defunding Wikipedia” again because they can’t be bought, and their front page featured article for today is definitely a poke at him; > **[Tesla and unions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tesla_and_unions)** > > Tesla, Inc., an American electric car manufacturer, as of January 2024\[update\] employs more than 140,000 workers across its global operations, almost none of whom are unionized. Despite allegations of high injury rates, long hours, and below-industry pay, efforts to unionize the workforce have been largely unsuccessful. Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, has commented negatively on trade unions in relation to the company. Tesla has been involved in labor disputes in the United States, Germany and Sweden... ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2025, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1690 "2025-02-20T03:10:13Z")
Isn’t Wikipedia mostly funded by donations? Regardless, it doesn’t appear to be funded by the Fed so what the fuck, El Shmucko? ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1691 "2025-02-20T03:11:58Z")
> **[Elon Musk Wants What He Can’t Have: Wikipedia](https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2025/02/elon-musk-wikipedia/681577/)** > > Musk and other right-wing tech figures have been on a campaign to delegitimize the digital encyclopedia. What happens if they succeed? > [@](#): > > Musk’s latest attack—“Defund Wikipedia until balance is restored!” he [posted on X](https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1881752947379642825) last month—coincided with an update to his own Wikipedia page, one that described the _Sieg heil_ –ish arm movement he’d made during an Inauguration Day speech. “Musk twice extended his right arm towards the crowd in an upward angle,” the entry read at one point. “The gesture was compared to a Nazi salute or fascist salute. Musk denied any meaning behind the gesture.” There was little to be upset about; the Wikipedia page didn’t accuse Musk of making a _Sieg heil_ salute. But that didn’t seem to matter to Musk. Wikipedia is “an extension of legacy media propaganda!” he posted. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2025, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1692 "2025-02-20T03:27:55Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Some unspecified number of years ago, I read a short story wherein the visitor to another world was brought in by the natives and brutally tortured and maimed. When he reached the point where he was blind and crippled and helpless, they made him their ruler, because he had nothing to gain from anything he might do and so would not be motivated by evil ends. _“On The Uses Of Torture”_ by Piers Anthony. ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1693 "2025-02-20T04:55:33Z")
People get bent out of shape all the time for having Wikipedia articles they can’t control. There was a sham “charity” that we made sure to try to represent as fairly as possible in an article given what reliable media sources reported on it. So the article wasn’t especially flattering. A couple of people representing the charity demanded that we essentially use only their press releases as sources. We countered that they were only useful to mention what the charity “claimed” but that we couldn’t exclude what journalists reported about the organization. So naturally there was a lawsuit, because it’s illegal to repeat what legitimate news organizations report on an organization. 🙄 The lawsuit was even mentioned in the news which was kind of freaky, and I was one of the people sued. Of course, all they had was my username so it was impossible to _actually_ sue me, and I ignored the frivolous bullshit. 😆 Literally, my Wikipedia username was listed as a target. So this shit happens all the time. The only thing that’s scary here is that the Wikimedia Foundation is based out of San Francisco, and who knows what kind of info Elon can get steal that he can use against them under the cover of DOGE. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2025, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1694 "2025-02-20T10:22:08Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > So naturally there was a lawsuit, because it’s illegal to repeat what legitimate news organizations report on an organization. 🙄 The lawsuit was even mentioned in the news which was kind of freaky, and I was one of the people sued. Of course, all they had was my username so it was impossible to _actually_ sue me, and I ignored the frivolous bullshit. 😆 Literally, my Wikipedia username was listed as a target. Did you send them a link to the Wiki page on the Streisand Effect? ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1695 "2025-02-20T10:43:09Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > So naturally there was a lawsuit, because it’s illegal to repeat what legitimate news organizations report on an organization. Don’t leave us hanging! How long did it take for the judge to laugh the lawsuit out into the street? ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1696 "2025-02-20T15:00:04Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > Don’t leave us hanging! How long did it take for the judge to laugh the lawsuit out into the street? I’m not sure. After a moment of panic until I realized it’s impossible to be sued through an anonymous web site username, I ignored the whole thing. ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1697 "2025-02-20T15:28:44Z")
Heh. If this ever went to trial, though, that would be a matter of public record. Did you ever google? ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1698 "2025-02-20T16:14:33Z")
I can try to dig through to figure out what organization it was. Maybe if I go to my talk page on Wikipedia I could find it. It was well over a decade ago, maybe 15 years? I can probably find it. I don’t mind saying the organization and I can find out what happened, the only reason I haven’t said it is because I literally can’t remember. 😆 ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1699 "2025-02-20T17:56:25Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > If this ever went to trial, though, that would be a matter of public record. I found it! It sure took awhile, LOL. It took quite a bit of digging. Apparently they withdrew the lawsuit because they were afraid that there was going to be some blowback due to SLAPP laws in California. Here is a “report” on Wikipedia discussing the incident: > **[Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2014-07-16/Special report](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2014-07-16/Special_report)** > > On the same day the Wikimedia Foundation announced it would offer assistance to English Wikipedia editors embroiled in a legal dispute with Yank Barry, the lawsuit has been dismissed without prejudice at the request of Barry's legal team—but only as a "strategic" move so that they can refile the lawsuit with a "new, more comprehensive complaint." > Barry, who was a musician in the 1960s and 70s before becoming an entrepreneur and philanthropist, launched the action against five editors who he alle... And I guess it wasn’t _well_ over a decade ago, it was 11 years ago. (I mean, still over a decade ago.) Here are a couple of news articles about the lawsuit from that time: > **[Canadian businessman sues Wikipedia editors for defamation | Metro](https://archive.ph/20140627113416/http://metronews.ca/news/canada/1077668/canadian-businessman-sues-wikipedia-editors-for-defamation/)** > > archived 27 Jun 2014 11:34:16 UTC > **[Wikipedia editors named in $10 million lawsuit brought by businessman Yank Barry](https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/wikipedia-lawsuit-yank-barry-10-million/)** > > Businessman Yank Barry says legal action was his last resort. Only 4 people were listed by name (those are the people who voluntarily provided their real life identities as editors who were involved in the article). I was part of the list of “Does” mentioned in one of the articles (I assume that’s a “John Doe” reference since they had no idea who any of those people actually are). ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1700 "2025-02-20T20:10:37Z")
Thanks for digging this up! (Also: “Yank”? "Yank _Barry?"_ That sounds like something you’d hear in a tale about a pub brawl in Dublin. “Yeh, 'e got 'im by the yankberries, 'e did.”) ---
**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:** [February 20, 2025, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634/1701 "2025-02-20T22:03:50Z")
If you had Elmo calling an astronaut ‘retarded’ (I certainly did), today is your day! > **[Joey Politano🏳️‍🌈 (@josephpolitano.bsky.social)](https://bsky.app/profile/josephpolitano.bsky.social/post/3limywjyb4k2f)** > > Elon’s busy schedule today is claiming astronauts were left in the ISS for political reasons, getting corrected by an ISS astronaut, throwing a fit where he calls the astronaut a slur, then complaining that we should deorbit the ISS [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634.md?page=83) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-elon-musk-has-bought-twitter-now-the-pit-edition-part-2/1005634.md?page=85)