Elon Musk Makes Cash Offer for Twitter

[noseybutt]

Not gonna lie. I have never had a Twitter account but am popping the popcorn for this one. 

[47of74]

Elon’s fornicate head ideas are working as well as expected 

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At 2:29pm, Adam Schefter of ESPN reported news that would shake up the NFL: Josh McDaniels, head coach of the Oakland Raiders, was fired. 

The tweet racked up more than 3,000 likes and thousands of retweets, as all Adam Schefter tweets do. After all, he’s the primary source of breaking news around the NFL and he is verified on Twitter so people can tell at a quick glance they are looking at real news from a trusted source.

Except, it wasn’t Schefter who tweeted that—despite the account’s display name reading “Adam Schefter” and a blue checkmark appearing next to it. It was @AdamSchefterN0T, an account created earlier that day by a 19-year-old college kid who had $8 to spare. 

The phony Schefter page was set up to be identical to the real one; it had the exact same avatar and display name. It also had a blue checkmark, previously only given to accounts to indicate the person operating it was who they claimed to be. It was only on the account page that users saw a pinned tweet stating, “I am not Adam Schefter this is a parody account.”

 

[47of74]

No one likes you Elon

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All of us have at one time or another encountered a person who didn't like us. But have you ever been so intensely disliked that even an inanimate architectural landmark drags you on Twitter?

Tesla CEO and new Twitter owner Elon Musk can now count such a situation among his accomplishments after the Eiffel Tower's official Twitter account joined in mocking Musk after popular French influencer Arkunir roasted him for constantly deleting his unpopular tweets.

La tour Eiffel got into the fray with a meme, seen below, that perfectly put Musk in place in the most absurd way possible. 

The meme shows a photo of the iconic Parisian landmark and the small replica of New York's Statue of Liberty that stands nearby it, hilariously depicting the hulking Eiffel tower as Arkunir and the diminutive Liberty as Musk with onscreen text.

 

Edited November 10, 2022 by 47of74

[47of74]

Yeah that was a real smart move Elon

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Eli Lilly posted an unusual message on Twitter yesterday. The pharmaceutical giant apologized for a misleading tweet in which someone pretending to be the company wrote, “We are excited to announce insulin is free now.”  

The company sells insulin, and it is not free. 

Eli Lilly (real handle @LillyPad) can thank changes at Twitter introduced since Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover for the confusion. The pranksters were able to easily make an official-looking Twitter account—with a blue checkmark for the fake user name “EliLillyandCo”—by paying $8 monthly for Twitter Blue. The new subscription service, introduced under Musk, comes with a blue check that previously signified that accounts were legitimate.

Hours after the fake post, Eli Lilly’s stock fell sharply. How much the drop was related to the post isn’t entirely clear. But similarly, Lockheed Martin shares fell after a fake account—again using Twitter Blue—said the company was stopping weapons sales in some countries.

 

[noseybutt]

24 minutes ago, 47of74 said:

Yeah that was a real smart move Elon

 

And why would these companies who feel the need to apologize turn around pay Twitter for advertising?  Why would any company?

🍿🍿🍿🍿

[CTRLZero]

I’d run from Twitter at this juncture if I was an advertiser.  It’s turning into a company only MyPillow guy could love.  What a mess. 

[noseybutt]

Twitter is the new Onion. 

Entertaining satire.

[yeahthatsme74]

7 hours ago, noseybutt said:

Twitter is the new Onion. 

Entertaining satire.

Until someone's nonsense causes such a kerfuffle that people end up dead over it. What a shitshow. 

[noseybutt]

11 hours ago, yeahthatsme74 said:

Until someone's nonsense causes such a kerfuffle that people end up dead over it. What a shitshow. 

I share that concern. These large social media sites have become channels for official information during emergencies, and it’s very tenuous. 

[47of74]

Musk may have fornicated with the wrong US Senator. 

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If Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk is going to antagonize U.S. senators, he might want to think twice about taunting Sen. Ed Markey(D-Mass.), who sits on numerous subcommittees with oversight into his companies.

After a Washington Post reporter was able to create a verified Twitter account impersonating Markey on Saturday, the senator wrote a letter to Musk demanding an explanation. “Selling the truth is dangerous and unacceptable. Twitter must explain how this happened and how it will prevent it from happening again,” Markey wrote, adding that Twitter has become the “Wild West of social media.”

Seemingly unbothered by the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation on his platform, Musk replied to Markey with a snarky tweet on Sunday morning, writing, “Perhaps it is because your real account sounds like a parody?”

This surely isn’t the last we’ll hear from Markey about Musk’s Twitter debacle, especially now that Democrats have maintained control over the Senate. The senator sits on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and is on numerous subcommittees that have oversight not only into Twitter but also two other Musk-owned companies, SpaceX and Tesla. Markey is a member of the Senate’s Subcommittee on Communication, Media and Broadband, as well as the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Data Security, both of which could investigate Twitter. He is also on the Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, Maritime, Freight, and Ports. That subcommittee has oversight on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is currently investigating Tesla over the safety of its autopilot feature (as Markey put it, “for killing people”). And Markey sits on the Subcommittee on Space and Science, which has oversight on SpaceX.

 

[47of74]

And Elon is getting his ass handed to him online about his picking a fight with Senator Markey

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For someone who just bought a flailing platform to the tune of $44 billion, Musk has sure spent a lot of time trolling and picking fights on Twitter rather than actually do anything to try to fix the very problems he has created for both Twitter and, by extension, Tesla. And it wasn’t long before Markey and others pointed that out — along with the fact that Tesla is being actively investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

And Markey himself actually sits on a Senate subcommittee that has oversight on the NHTSA.

While Musk fans tried to spin this as the senator threatening him over a Twitter fight, rational people reminded them that it’s Musk and his companies who have already gotten themselves into hot water with faulty products and now this latest Twitter verification chaos. Pointing out that something needs to change isn’t a threat, it’s holding someone who would rather claw for clout on the internet than address genuine concerns accountable.

Whether Musk wants to hear it or not, Markey’s advice seems wise. Billionaires may get away with far more than is remotely just, but it doesn’t always last forever. As much as Twitter’s new CEO loves seeming edgy and like someone who doesn’t play by the rules, when his companies wreak havoc in the process, there may actually be consequences somewhere down the line.

 

[47of74]

Oh Jesus Christ 

 

[clueliss]

All the tidbit I stumbled across today involves don’t log out of Twitter if you have two factor authentication. Guess what they turned off accidentally or something?  Oopsie 

[47of74]

The SPLC investigated and found reich wing extremists are taking advantage of Elon fucking up the verification system

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Dozens of extremists on Twitter now sport the “blue check” once reserved for verified accounts, after signing up for the paid Twitter Blue service under policies instituted by the platform’s new proprietor, Elon Musk.

Previously, verification was carried out at no cost to users in order to authenticate accounts belonging to public figures, news outlets, government agencies and reporters.

Between Nov. 9-11, however, users were able to sign up for a paid tier of the service – Twitter Blue – which for $7.99 per month would add to their profile a “blue checkmark, just like the celebrities, companies and politicians you already follow.” Twitter prevented new signups to Twitter Blue late on Nov. 11 after a rash of impersonator accounts, including one targeting Musk’s other company, Tesla, created an impression of chaos on the site.

The vast majority of Twitter users passed up this offer, and reports on Twitter’s internal discussions put the number of subscribers at just 140,000 of Twitter’s 450 million active users signing up. But dozens of extremists acquired blue checks during the two-day window of availability.

Captain Pike said this in Strange New Worlds. 

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We called it the Second Civil War, then the Eugenics War, and finally just World War III. This was our last day. The day the world we knew ceased to exist.

I fear it may come to pass due to douche fuck cannons like Elon.

[noseybutt]

Reading the ultimatum Elon gave his employees and I sincerely hope there is a massive brain drain.

Why are people conditioned to accept terrible working conditions?

It’s unhealthy for all.

[Smash!]

7 hours ago, noseybutt said:

Reading the ultimatum Elon gave his employees and I sincerely hope there is a massive brain drain.

Why are people conditioned to accept terrible working conditions?

It’s unhealthy for all.

Especially coming from the richest man in the world not a start up. Musk is terrible.

[47of74]

Yeah it looks like Elon's ultimatum backfired on him

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On the platform Thursday evening, where #RIPTwitter was the top trend worldwide, users wrote what they feared might be their last posts, offering apprehensive goodbyes and listing the other (more stable) social media platforms where they can still be found.

They were reacting to the dire news emanating from inside Twitter. Scores of remaining employees at the social media company on Thursday appeared to reject owner Elon Musk’s ultimatum to work “extremely hardcore,” throwing the communications platform into utter disarray and raising serious questions about how much longer it will survive.

In fact, Twitter management was in panic mode hours before the deadline passed, people familiar with the matter said, explaining that senior leaders were “scrambling” to convince talent to stay at the company.

And Twitter seemed to grasp the mess on its hands Thursday evening, sending an email to staff notifying them it has once again shuttered all of its offices and suspended employee badge access, presumably to protect its systems and data.

I'm going to hang on to my twitter account for now but if it goes away I have an account ready on a Mastodon server.  Only way Space Karen could chase me off is if he started charging me for the platform.  (Space Karen is trending on Twitter this morning).

BTW I joined the server that George Takei decided to join - https://universeodon.com/home

[47of74]

Someone trolled Space Karen hard last night

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We’ll say this: If Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter produces nothing of any value—and gosh, but is that an “if” that feels like an increasingly solid bet as every new day ticks by—at least it will produce one image that will live on for years in our mind’s eye: A scrolling set of insults, including “dictator’s asskisser,” “mediocre manchild,” and, most beautifully, “space Karen,” projected on the side of the social media company’s headquarters tonight. Said building, of course, is currently shuttered, amidst the company’s latest “mass exodus” of employees in the span of a handful of weeks.

 

And video of the Space Karen projection got more than 9 million views according to Newsweek.

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A video showing anti-Elon Musk insults including "supreme parasite" and "Space Karen" that were projected onto Twitter's headquarters last night has gone viral on the social media platform, getting more than 9 million views.

 

[47of74]

Looks like it was about 1,000 to 1,200 employees who had enough of Space Karen.

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Elon Musk has reportedly sent a company email to the Twitter engineering team asking anyone who writes software to report to Twitter HQ in San Francisco Friday by 2 p.m. The email was reported by Platformer editor Zoë Schiffer and corroborated by a report in Fortune. The Fortune report also cites a source indicating that between 1,000 to 1,200 employees effectively resigned Thursday by declining to click “yes” on a form Musk sent out requiring employees to commit to working long hours at intense pace if they wished to remain at Twitter.

Musk’s demand that Twitter staff go ‘hardcore,’ or leave was apparently not well received by Twitter’s remaining employees. The employees who declined to click yes had effectively submitted their resignation, according to the terms laid out by Musk.

The mass resignations follow mass layoffs two weeks ago, in which the Tesla CEO and self-proclaimed “Chief Twit” laid off half of the company’s staff, about 3,700 people. It’s currently unclear how many people remain at Twitter.

Musk’s call out to coders and the reported resignations come amid speculation that Twitter could be dangerously understaffed. On the eve of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, there is speculation that Twitter may not be able to handle the surge in use and could go dark at a time when it’s not clear if there are enough remaining staff members to fix it.

 

[47of74]

Space Karen is creating real challenges for government agencies who use the service to get info out to the public.

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It underscored the challenge for the people tasked with getting public safety information out to communities. Now, they don’t only have to get information out quickly. On the new Twitter, they also have to convince people they are actually the authorities.

Disasters also provide fertile ground for false information to spread online. Researchers like Jun Zhuang, a professor at the University of Buffalo who studies how false information spreads during natural disasters, say emergencies create a “perfect storm” for rumors, but that government accounts have also played a crucial role in batting them down.

Amid the slew of changes at one of the world’s most influential social media platforms, the public information officers who operate government Twitter accounts are cautiously waiting out the turmoil and urging the public to verify that it really is their accounts appearing on timelines. While it’s an issue they’ve always had to contend with, it’s especially worrisome now as a proliferation of brand impersonations spreads across the platform and changes to verification take hold.

Twitter’s changes could be deadly, warned Juliette Kayyem, a former homeland security adviser at the state and national levels who now teaches at Harvard’s Kennedy School.

 

[noseybutt]

On 11/19/2022 at 11:14 AM, 47of74 said:

Space Karen is creating real challenges for government agencies who use the service to get info out to the public.

 

That is a huge issue with social media. They are NOT public channels and IMO should be secondary sources of information in emergency situations. 

Also. Trump saying Naaaaaaah to the removal of his Twitter ban is cracking me up. 

[47of74]

I imagine some shit is about to hit the fan. 

[47of74]

I just deactivated my twitter account today after posting a farewell tweet. 

Fuck Elon and all the reich wing fucksticks turning it into an online shithole.

I've got better places - such as a certain place called FJ - to spend my time at.

[47of74]

When Space Karen said that he was reinstating fuck face cause "Vox populi, vox Dei" well a number of people pointed out that maybe said Space Karen should've read the whole quote first.

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"Nec audiendi qui solent dicere, Vox populi, vox Dei, quum tumultuositas vulgi semper insaniae proxima sit."

 "Ignore those who say the voice of the people is the voice of God, because the mob is always close to madness."

— Alcuin of York.

Alcuin had a point.  Especially when the loudest voices are all fuck face devotees.

[47of74]

Space Karen is stiffing vendors and his own people. 

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Before Elon Musk bought Twitter last month, the company’s executives had racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in travel invoices that the social media service planned to pay.

But once Mr. Musk took over the company, he refused to reimburse travel vendors for those bills, current and former Twitter employees said. Mr. Musk’s staff said the services were authorized by the company’s former management and not by him. His staff have since avoided the calls of the travel vendors, the people said.

Mr. Musk has embarked on an enormous cost-cutting campaign since closing his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter. He initially slashed half of the company’s 7,500-person work force, fired workers and continued with layoffs as recently as Monday. But he has also conducted a sweeping examination of all types of other costs at the company, instructing staff to review, renegotiate and in some cases not pay Twitter’s outside vendors at all, eight people with knowledge of the matter said.

Mr. Musk and his advisers have trained their sights on computing costs that support Twitter’s underlying infrastructure, travel expenses, software services, real estate and even the company’s normally lavish in-office cafeteria food. Twitter’s spending has dropped, but the moves have spurred complaints from insiders — as well as from some vendors who are owed millions of dollars in back payments.

I wager there will be plenty of twitter related work for lawyers thanks to Space Karen.