Elon Musk, the Chief Executive of Tesla (TSLA) -) and the owner of around half a dozen other companies spanning the technology and software sector, is the world's richest man by a margin of nearly $50 billion. Musk, worth $204 billion after taking a multi-billion-dollar loss in the wake of Tesla's recently weak stock performance, is regarded by many as one of the most impactful innovators of his time.
He helped usher in the age of electric vehicles; he remains intent on disrupting and evolving several layers of transportation, from space travel to highways; he is focused on applying artificial intelligence in a host of new sectors, from self-driving cars to brain implants.
And he thinks capitalism, the for-profit economic and political system that has long existed in the U.S., is more than just a good thing.
Related: Why Elon Musk changed his Tesla tune between the second and third quarters
"Capitalism," Musk wrote, highlighting the book "The Capitalist Manifesto: Why the Global Free Market Will Save The World," by Johan Norberg, "is not just successful, but morally right."
Norberg argues that the global free market has "created greater prosperity and more technological innovation than all the previous generations combined," citing evidence that shows capitalism has lifted "millions" from poverty.
Norberg, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, argued in a September post that the global supply chain highlighted during the Covid-19 pandemic is proof of this concept.
Morally right with capitalism in the same sentence.🤭 pic.twitter.com/xT3Cs81kUj
— ANTENOR (@Tenor_HT) October 23, 2023
Trade, he said, "saved us," as it was pivoting businesses responsible for developing the masks, tests and vaccines that allowed the world to regain functionality. Pfizer's success in creating the vaccine, he said, further revealed the importance of global infrastructure; with air traffic banned, Pfizer was able to continue research by flying genetic material overseas on corporate jets.
"During the pandemic, trade and commerce managed, yet again," Norberg wrote. "It is a dark irony that legislators react by putting even more obstacles in their way and make adaptation to the next crisis more difficult."
This new support of Norberg and his capitalist-first ideals comes just a few days after Musk continued his public war against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and more government regulation, saying: "Our civilization is being slowly strangled to death one regulation at a time."
"There needs comprehensive deregulation. Period," he added.
💯💯 Capitalism fuels innovation, empowers individual choice, and has lifted millions out of poverty. It’s a system where ambition meets opportunity! 💪🏽
— Ramy (@TeslaXplored) October 23, 2023
A 2022 Pew Research study found that 57% of the American public views capitalism favorably, a number that fell from the 65% that supported the system in 2019. Only around 36% of U.S. adults said they viewed socialism positively, a number that likewise fell from the 42% that supported the idea in 2019.
Related: Elon Musk comes back at investors begging Tesla to make one major change
Several Twitter users were quick to point out the pay discrepancies between CEOs and average workers, questioning the "morally right" perspective of capitalism that Musk highlighted.
Except, they aren't free markets. Nothing close to free markets, and America is mostly to blame.
— MyBrainHz (@Badbitcoinorg) October 23, 2023
In the stone Age we had full on International Free Trade, yes Stone Age ships, but thankfully we didn't have USD and Wall St.
And we didn't have "America"
In 2022, CEOs were paid 344 times more than the typical worker, according to the Economic Policy Institute. In 1965, CEOs were paid 21 times more than the typical worker.
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