The Inspiring Eloquence of Elon Musk

Defined as ‘skillful and graceful expression, especially in speech,’ eloquence is fast disappearing from public conversation, possibly because debate has long been gone from the public schools.

President Lincoln was said to believe, ‘if you want to know the true character of a man, give him power,’ and we Americans have come to equate money as an essential source of power. But the educated man, and the thoughtful man or woman is best evidenced in their ability to express themselves with both skill and grace. Consider Thomas Jefferson, or Eleanor Roosevelt in times past, and Neil deGrasse Tyson in more current public discourse.

And thus, we come to Elon Musk, a man of great power, but increasingly questionable character

My story is short, but illustrative. Bear with me.

The orange man in the oval office has determined to essentially end immigration and ferret out some 15 million immigrants for deportation. The Musketeer, his hatchet-man for all things bureaucratic, insists upon continuing the H1-B visa exemption, a foreign worker visa in the United States that allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in so-called specialty occupations.

Those visas are a prized source for tech workers of interest to Musk in his businesses, for two reasons. First, they are highly educated and come cheap, hoping to work their way up and apply for long-term employment or citizenship. But second, and of more interest, visa holders must maintain employment with their sponsoring employer for the entire six years allowed. Should they quit or be fired, they must either leave the country or find a new sponsor within 60 days.

Essentially, that requirement amounts to indentured servitude, in older days called slavery

Steve Bannon, a one-time close advisor to the orange man, called out Elon on that very matter relating to H1-B visas, and got this sharp reply: “Take a big step back and FUCK YOURSELF in the face. I will go to war on this issue the likes of which you cannot possibly comprehend.”

Ah, yes, the eloquence one would expect from a man of wealth, grace, and power—an unelected man, chain-sawing his way through the time-tested bureaus of American government that, up until now, made us the envy of the free world. “Go to war on this issue the likes of which you cannot possibly comprehend.” In the context of his newly appointed power, handed down by the orange man for a mere quarter-billion dollars (the single best investment of his entire career), one can but wonder what he means by “which you cannot possibly comprehend.”

Irrefutable evidence that the orange man’s foolish hunt for immigrants is the Musketeer’s route to even greater wealth.

Perhaps eloquence is not a requirement, when brute force and illegality will suffice.