July 16, 2018

"Elon Musk, insisting he helped in Thai cave rescue, calls actual rescuer a ‘pedo.'"

WaPo reports.
The Silicon Valley engineer and billionaire was briefly seen in Thailand last week, hauling a miniature submarine to the mouth of the cave just before an international dive team rescued the boys without it... ... Musk insisted that his submarine (designed in consultation with “cave experts on the Internet,” he wrote) would have worked. He bragged that he would one day pilot it through the now child-free cave system as proof.

And midway through his rant, for some inexplicable reason, he accused [Vernon] Unsworth of sex crimes. “Sorry pedo guy, you really did ask for it,” Musk wrote, clarifying in a follow-up tweet that he meant “the Brit expat diver” was a pedophile....

“Bet ya a signed dollar it's true,” Musk wrote late Sunday morning, a few hours before he deleted his tweets — too late to avoid yet another deluge of public criticism.
BBC writes that Unsworth is considering suing. I think this is a situation where Unsworth must sue, because the defamation is so severe and so specific that failure to sue leaves a cloud.

It's strange to see this other Elon Musk story in the news at the same time: "Elon Musk draws fire for donating $38,900 to a Republican fundraising committee" (Business Insider).

85 comments:

Shane said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

The leftists are watching for mind crime. Watch your P's and Q's.

mockturtle said...

Assuming there is no evidence the diver IS a pedophile, I hope he sue's Musk's socks off.

Sharc 65 said...

"I think this is a situation where Unsworth must sue, because the defamation is so severe and so specific that failure to leaves a cloud."

Unless, of course...

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Looks like Musk is polishing the skills needed for a Presidential campaign. You heard it here first. ( Yeah, it will require a Constitutional Amendment, which he'll get right on after the Mars colony is up an running. )

Anonymous said...

Musk's recent erratic behavior fits a pattern of him being bipolar. As does his genius.

Bob Boyd said...

Musk might need Unsworth to come save him when his submarine gets jammed in a bend in the cave.

Sharc 65 said...

So if you really were a pedophile, would there be any possible benefit to suing a billionaire for defamation? He's not going to settle with you, and you would be open to all the discovery the defendant could afford. Which is a lot of discovery.

MikeR said...

Wait, what?

traditionalguy said...

Musk is showing off. He can spot pedos a mile off. And it is still a crime to steal and rape kids. And the prison inmates still take vigilante justice on them. No wonder the gun control nuts are desperate to disarm Americans.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

It's illegal to give money to Republicans. Also, Must should be harassed by Antifa.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

BBC writes that Unsworth is considering suing. I think this is a situation where Unsworth must sue, because the defamation is so severe and so specific that failure to leaves a cloud.

Suing in a U.S. court might remove the cloud. Suing in a U.K. court would not, since truth is not a defense against defamation in the U.K system.

Expat(ish) said...

To the extent that there is actually much to discover.

For example, if someone tried to sue me, the discovery process would be very easy. I could turn over my google cloud drive in 10 seconds and some drone could go through our single file cabinet of stuff in less than a day. Unlike a public official or rich or famous person there isn't much there there. I imagine even less for a younger person like this diver dude.

I can't imagine the interview taking very long as I (honestly) have a very poor memory and would say "Did I really say that?" a LOT.

Not saying it would be a picnic, but this is asymmetrical warfare.

-C

Nonapod said...

The whole thing is a bit weird. It was odd that the guy told Musk to "stick his submarine where it hurts" when he could have just said he didn't think the sub idea would work or whatever. And Musk then goes way over the line in response. Do this guys have a history already?

I mean, there's an art to properly throwing shade. The first counterattack shouldn't be the nuclear level accusation of pedophilia apropos of (supposedly) nothing.

rcocean said...

He should have called him a Nazi or a Racist.

People can't sue over that.

BTW, when you find a never married 63 y/o Englishman living in Thailand, well...lets just say Arthur C. Clark loved Thailand and scuba diving too.

rcocean said...

How long was the tweet up?

Doesn't that make a difference.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

I think this is a situation where Unsworth must sue, because the defamation is so severe and so specific that failure to leaves a cloud.

What cloud? How would Unsworth be harmed by his words? Does anyone listening to them consider them reality in any way?

Then again, if some filthy rich weirdo said something obviously bullshit about me, I guess maybe I'd start looking at vacation homes and Rolexes.

Unknown said...

TESLA is going to go bankrupt. The guy is under a lot of stress lately.

Wince said...

And midway through his rant, for some inexplicable reason, he accused Unsworth of sex crimes. “Sorry pedo guy, you really did ask for it,” Musk wrote, clarifying in a follow-up tweet that he meant “the Brit expat diver” was a pedophile.

Where's the full text of the "follow-up Tweet"? Did WaPo leave it out?

Did Musk really accuse Unsworth of actually committing "sex crimes"?

So the next time someone is accused of the familiar litany "racist, sexist, misogynistic, homophobic, etc." he can sue?

tcrosse said...

It didn't work out well for Oscar Wilde.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

a never married 63 y/o Englishman living in Thailand

maybe not obviously bullshit

Knew a lot of those sorts of guys when I lived in Saudi Arabia. They liked their trips to the Philippines and Thailand. Just sayin'.

Michael K said...

Unknown said...
TESLA is going to go bankrupt. The guy is under a lot of stress lately.


That may be it. Trump is the only guy around who can handle that level of stress and I don't know how he does it.

Michael K said...

lets just say Arthur C. Clark loved Thailand and scuba diving too.

I think it was Ceylon but yes the point is valid.

narayanan said...

Bob Boyd said...

Musk might need Unsworth to come save him when his submarine gets jammed in a bend in the cave.

Musk will have a BORING machine lead/towing the submarine - enlarging holes as it goes.

rhhardin said...

A submarine is no good without torpedos.

narayanan said...

there is cloud over Arthur C. Clark also in Sri Lanka

narayanan said...

what is payoff for Unsworth? $$ or lifting cloud?

Suing in a U.S. court might remove the cloud subject to discovery. Suing in a U.K. court would not, since truth is not a defense against defamation in the U.K system and so no discovery as I understand.

Clark said...

Being a British expat in Thailand because you are a pedo is actually a thing. I was surprised the first time I crossed paths with such a person. It's not as if they go to extremes to hide it.

narayanan said...

Suing in Thailand on the other hand??!!!

PM said...

I don't see the humor in a very serious, very sick crime - money to Republicans.

rehajm said...

That's a tough spot for lefties- A Tesla is the gold standard for virtue signaling. But he gave money to Republicans? What to do... What to do?

rhhardin said...

Psychiatrist Adolf Guggenbuhl-Craig says borderline pedophiles make good teachers, because they can maintain an interest in what the child is saying well past where a normal adult tunes out.

May be the same for boy-rescuers, or any child-related adult activity.

In the absence of any information, that effects the odds, in particular that Musk knows something.

TWW said...

Did you notice who was leading the kids out of the cave? Brian Williams.

rhhardin said...

What would push Musk to say that, which seems out of the blue.

Boys to befriend might be a motive he suspects.

rcocean said...

And lets not forget Gore Vidal.

Lots of visits to Bangkok, when he got older.

No doubt because of the delicious curry.

Trumpit said...

Fact: Most perverts are heterosexual men. Why do you think that the Trumptards were unfazed by the numerous documented accusations of sexual impropriety against Trump? Because many of the Trumptards are perverts as well. Incest among Rednecks and Trailer Trash is well documented. Most of those perverts voted for Trump. Trump won the erection on account of the "pervert vote." We are now being ruled by the modern-day leader of Sodom and Gomorrah, Donald "Long Gold Dong" Trump.

gspencer said...

I'd like to see Musk call the Muslims' prophet (so-called) the accurate description of real pedophile. No "alleged' when that Big Mo is so described. He was also a murderer, a thief, and a slave owner.

PatHMV said...

He said something stupid on social media, and deleted it within a few hours. Does it REALLY need to be a thing, with a WaPo article and all that? We pay attention to the absolutely stupidest stuff. Why is this news?

Seriously, the rescue of the Thai children is a tremendous thing. Why give Musk (who had nothing to do with it, but tried hard to insert himself into the coverage anyway) publicity, and cast a pall over the heroic efforts of the massive team of people who rescued those kids, by writing a big story about Musk's stupid tweet?

I don't particularly despise the media for its pro-lefty bias, but for its deep affinity to create controversy, to stir the pot, to foment unrest, simply to sell advertisements. Despicable.

Henry said...

I wonder how that submarine does in mud?

Etienne said...

When you're rich and famous ...they let you do it...

rcocean said...

"May be the same for boy-rescuers, or any child-related adult activity."

The whole pedophile thing seems overblown - with people finding them under every rock.

I think its had a negative effect on men who might have volunteered to be scout leaders or whatever, and then thought, why put myself in that position?

rcocean said...

"Most perverts are heterosexual men"

Not when it comes to boys.

MikeR said...

"Why give Musk (who had nothing to do with it, but tried hard to insert himself into the coverage anyway) publicity" I don't understand why people do this. He tried hard to find a way to rescue the boys. It sounds like he pulled part of his resources and engineers working around the clock. He came up with a pretty good idea that absolutely might have been needed and done the trick. Publicity stunt!
Sad.

rhhardin said...

What's the modern commentary on Phaedrus these days.

rhhardin said...

Remember that child sexual abuse started in the 70s, as part of ratings gold. Before that it was a personal moral failing, not a public problem. It would only serve as an insult.

In other words, in the 70s a hysterical mob was made part of the picture, playing the part of eyeballs sold to advertisers.

As a byproduct that raises the damages in the accusation accordingly, if you sue.

rhhardin said...

"Most perverts are heterosexual men"

Most men are heterosexual men.

walter said...

traditionalguy said...Musk is showing off. He can spot pedos a mile off. And it is still a crime to steal and rape kids. And the prison inmates still take vigilante justice on them. No wonder the gun control nuts are desperate to disarm Americans.
--
Great Scot!
Someone spike your tea?

Fernandinande said...

Fact: Most perverts are heterosexual men.

No I'm not.

Why do you think that the Trumptards were unfazed by the numerous documented accusations of sexual impropriety against Trump?

Because chasing beauteous wimmin-folk is perverted.

Incest among Rednecks and Trailer Trash is well documented.

"You mess with me and you mess with the whole trailer park" is a form of incest.

mockturtle said...

rcocean contends: The whole pedophile thing seems overblown - with people finding them under every rock.

I'm not so sure. There seems to be a YUGE market for child porn.

Yancey Ward said...

The shark with a laser on its head is still in development at Tesla.

n.n said...

There seems to be a YUGE market for child porn.

There are around 7 billion people. Trans-social orientations are not uncommon. Still, YUGE in absolute or proportional terms? Is it a progressive condition?

Yancey Ward said...

I think it is obvious that Musk is manic depressive. I think the recent tweets are probably portents for Tesla's future. I follow Tesla pretty relentlessly, and the news isn't really all that good- the Model 3 was supposed to be a low-cost version available to the masses, but to get one with the normal features you might find on any Honda or Ford, you are forced to buy a Model 3 for over $50,000 or take a truly bare-bones version- in other words, this is a niche product just like the two previous Teslas were. I think the company is going bankrupt, I just don't know when exactly, but the pressure is getting to Musk.

n.n said...

Sue and discovery? Musk has called.

I'm Full of Soup said...

Musk is a super genius but even he can't make the financial case for electric cars without continued substantial govt subsidies.

Re this latest outrage du jour, I think we need to bring back those epic cartoon battles between celebrities [remember those?] but this time let's use real people and each celebrity can designate a real person as their stand-in. The losing celebrity must donate $100,000 to building the Wall or something like that.

wwww said...
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Michael K said...

I knew crazy trumpit had to be the origin of this pervert thread.

mockturtle said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
mockturtle said...

n.n., I'm not saying I think there is a larger proportion of pedophiles today but I do believe that their perversion is fueled by internet-accessible child pornography. There is certainly more awareness and willingness to believe victims than there used to be. IIRC, Freud thought that his female patients' reports of their fathers coming into their rooms at night and fondling them was based on sexual fantasy. In actuality, these events happened.

n.n said...

That's not right. Unsworth placed his bet. Musk raises. WaPo raises. Who will call?

mockturtle said...

And, no, my father did not ever come into my room and fondle me. Nor did he ever do anything of the sort. But it happened to my mother as a child by an adult male relative who was staying with them.

Earnest Prole said...

Diddling boys or giving money to Republicans: Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.

n.n said...

their perversion is fueled by internet-accessible child pornography

That is likely. Still, the concern for society, for the individual, is not consumption, but rather production. Then there is a question of progressive perversion. The issue of voyeurism and privacy should be probably be addressed separately. Are the consumers also producers? This is a general question that applies to all trans-social orientations, that is not limited to pornography.

Fernandinande said...

My rocket-powered WaterX sub is far too refined for use in a place like Thailand, and besides the tickets cost $200,000 each so those kids would have to pony up, um, 12 times a whole bunch of money, so it's just as well that some rational people were there.

readering said...

One never must sue for libel. Sticks and stones . . . .

gilbar said...

Yancy said: "buy a Model 3 for over $50,000 or take a truly bare-bones version-"

Of, course; the thing of it is: There IS NOT bare-bones version! Your Only option is to spend over $50,000 . Total number of $30,000 Teslas built to date:
ZERO

How long before Musk's over optimistic promises become Kennith Lay's felonies?

Mr. Groovington said...

I watched a video of Unsworth being interviewed. He looks and sounds pervy.

Yancey Ward said...

Gilbar,

That was my point- no one wants the bare-bones version. Tesla would be happy to sell you one. If you can't spend $50,000+, you won't be buying a Model 3. That limits the potential market to those people who are capable of buying Mercedes and Corvettes. The problem for Tesla is that they have spent capital to produce for the masses, not a niche market.

DanTheMan said...

Maybe Musk can start importing Delorean "monkies"?

buwaya said...

If you take "Q" seriously the problem of pedophilia is central to the conspiracy theory.
That is, the world is afflicted by a perverted elite.

Jim at said...

The dude should stick to launching classic cars into orbit.

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

I wish Musk would call me a pedo. I'd be rich!

rhhardin said...

Big bang and all the UPS's in the house beeping briefly. It means some neighbor has had their transformer fuse blow out. That means a few days without power for them because a single house gets no attention.

Usual cause: brief wind bends a newly grown tree branch into the wire between transformer and fuse. So it will happen every wind until the power company cuts down the tree instead of just replacing the fuse.

(every house has its own transformer to drop the rural 19kv line down to 120v.)

n.n said...

The game should be settled through due process, not a trial by press and public lynching. Each man should show their hand and let a jury or judge assess the fitness of their claims.

narayanan said...

rhhardin said...
What would push Musk to say that, which seems out of the blue.
Boys to befriend might be a motive he suspects.

and PTSD 'counseling, mentoring' etc.

wild chicken said...

Trump won the erection

The hell he did.

readering said...

Tesla shares down 3.3%.

Scott Patton said...

Blame it on the Ambien.

285exp said...

Yancey,

Tesla hasn't built any of the $35k Model 3's, so you can't buy one if you wanted to. They are only building the $45-50k cars because it doesn't really cost them much more to build them and they desperately need the revenue. Try going on to the Tesla Model 3 configurator and ordering a base model, you can't. It's likely to be the end of the year before they build any base Model 3s, so almost no one will get to get one that's eligible for the federal tax credit. Tesla hit the 200,000 car milestone last month, so at the end of the next quarter the $7500 federal tax credit will be cut in half, and in a couple more quarters it will be gone.

becauseIdbefired said...

Trumpit says:

Because many of the Trumptards are perverts as well. Incest among Rednecks and Trailer Trash is well documented. Most of those perverts voted for Trump. Trump won the erection on account of the "pervert vote." We are now being ruled by the modern-day leader of Sodom and Gomorrah, Donald "Long Gold Dong" Trump.

That's more specific than Obama's bitter clingers and Hillary's deplorables. Or even Hitler's "untermensch."

Trumpit, are you afraid of having you mind poisoned?

Howard said...

I'm not ready to give Unsworth's daughter a pass for taking a shovel to his neck

mockturtle said...

Trumpit is a dangerously sick individual. The less said to him the better.

Nicholas said...
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Gahrie said...

Not too many people have gotten rich betting against Elon Musk so far....and quite a few have gotten rich betting on him.

n.n said...

Not too many people have gotten rich betting against Elon Musk so far

He may be bluffing, but one of the antagonists: Unsworth and now the press, makes the call. Something similar happened to Meuller when he raised the pot.

jg said...

They're trying to PapaJohn him since they discovered his awful horrible $40k donation to Republicans. See https://www.quora.com/Whats-the-full-story-behind-Elon-Musks-involvement-with-the-Thai-cave-rescue-effort

Also, the 'pedo guy' expat chose to live in a hotspot for child sex and has something approaching pedoface. Which jurisdiction for his (probably ironclad) libel claim?