The dramatic highpoint in director Christopher Nolan’s masterpiece The Dark Knight comes as Batman grills the Joker in the interrogation room over the whereabouts of Rachel Dawes. The normally judicious Batman loses himself to fits of violent excess as the Joker taunts him. Eventually, Batman pins the door shut so that others can’t stop his use of “enhanced interrogation methods,” to use the parlance of the Bush/Cheney era in which the film was released. For more than a moment, it’s difficult to tell where the good guy ends and the bad guy begins.
I’ve recalled this scene a number of times since
Elon Musk
began his reign as owner and CEO of Twitter. It is difficult to know exactly what to make of this new main character of American politics — and he seems to prefer it that way.
To be sure, the debonair playboy has plenty of Bruce Wayne in him, from his cool cars that operate with semi-intelligence to his well-chronicled flair for the dramatic. Like Wayne, Musk operates as something like his own country, using his significant means in service of the greater good. For instance, Musk’s Starlink satellite system has played a central role in Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion by single-handedly keeping the country online. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Olga Stefanishyna went so far
as to describe Musk’s aid as “the turning point in our survival.
” (That he receives no credit for this among
Ukraine flag-waving Democrats
is more proof that they don’t really believe in anything.)
To be certain, Musk’s single-handed overthrow of the
corrupt and malicious Twitter regime
in the name of free expression is the stuff of movies itself. His stated motives could have hardly been
nobler or better articulated
. Free speech is not simply one right among many in a democratic society, as he’s correctly noted on a number of occasions, but rather the right upon which all others rest.
Tyranny instantaneously befalls a society that cannot openly challenge the authority of its ruling class. American history has seen its share of assaults on free speech, but there is something particularly sinister about recent efforts to restrict speech online, as they have no precedent and occur largely in the shadows. As such, Musk’s
Twitter
takeover is a historic victory for the primacy of individual conscience and the right to individual expression in the digital age.
But despite his many good works, Musk seems almost addicted to a kind of bedlam that only Batman’s greatest foe, the Joker, would applaud. This leaves many justifiably confused as to his true intentions. Again and again, Musk has needlessly squandered his hard-earned social capital by behaving like a teenager, whether by repeatedly lobbing
Trumpish insults at political opponents
or by using the number “420” in his bid to purchase Twitter. In eye-blinks, Musk morphs back and forth from being the Defender of Gotham to its Clown Prince.
We live in a grave moment in history. The inexorable advancement of technology has provided the powerful with an unparalleled mechanism for mass manipulation and control. No one knows this better than Musk himself. And yet, he often comports himself in a way that weakens his social position and, consequently, his ideals. His boorish behavior allows his foes, along with a large swath of the public, to dismiss him as an attention-seeking clown. There’s a chance that history will remember him for this, perhaps above all else.
Just last month, Musk took a poll of Twitter users as to whether or not he should stay on as CEO or replace himself with someone else, claiming that he would abide by the results. Voters overwhelmingly voted for him to step down. He has since claimed that he will step down once he finds an adequate successor. It was just another moment among many in recent history that gave the impression of anarchy in an organization that dictates so much of the national conversation.
Musk’s chaotic behavior in general often gives the impression that, despite his stated desire to save the world, he takes a certain amount of joy in watching it burn.
Perhaps he will step down, perhaps he won’t. Regardless, Musk likely will remain the main character of the drama for the foreseeable future. If nothing else, he has replaced former President Donald Trump as the primary trigger of the public amygdala. Some like to credit Florida Gov.
Ron DeSantis
with Trump’s diminishment, but Musk’s rise offers a better explanation. Trump knew it all along and knows it now, which is why he refuses to return to his beloved Twitter despite the reinstatement of his account. He won’t play second fiddle to a younger, smarter, and vastly more successful version of himself.
We can only hope that, unlike Trump, Musk matures into the hero we need, as opposed to the one we probably deserve.
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Peter Laffin is a writer in New England. Follow him on Twitter at @Laffin_Out_Loud.
