Althouse: The use of children in politics.

December 9, 2024

The use of children in politics.

This kid has great instincts pic.twitter.com/FyYIADelrc
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 9, 2024

39 comments:

Dave Begley said...: Super cute kid.; 12/9/24, 6:01 AM
mezzrow said...: "I'll see your celebrity endorsement and raise you with a really cute kid. Your move."; 12/9/24, 6:03 AM
Fandor said...: I’m going to fold; 12/9/24, 6:10 AM
wendybar said...: Biden has Hunter!! Love how they make sure to put Hunters little girl (boy??) in the spotlight all the time to show what a great guy Hunter is.....except when it comes to his OTHER daughter, that they shun....publically.; 12/9/24, 6:21 AM
Ann Althouse said...: The kid is Musk's son and the prompting is from Musk.; 12/9/24, 6:29 AM
Dixcus said...: The inevitable response from Democrats will be that we shouldn't save America, and we shouldn't help Trump make America great again.

They'll literally say that out loud.; 12/9/24, 6:31 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Don't use a child as a puppet.

Your child is not as cute as you think he is, and to the extent that he is, within 10 years the effect will dissipate and you'll have an adolescent who has internalized whatever you visited upon him.; 12/9/24, 6:31 AM
rehajm said...: Ya, punt…; 12/9/24, 6:32 AM
rehajm said...: those kids grow up to be horrible human beings. They’re called Democrats…

…can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to endure the lefties at work discussing the details and intricacies of the moment their/their family member/their friends kid said something supportive of leftie narratives. That Senator from the midwest what was just ousted- his family and friends…insufferable…; 12/9/24, 6:37 AM
rhhardin said...: It's a puppet that's learning to take at least partial responsibility for whatever happens to him, aka growing up. That learning of taking some responsibility puts the world under his control.

Or you can be a victim all your life. Women learn that instead and project it on everyone.; 12/9/24, 6:52 AM
Dave Begley said...: Elon lost one child to the Left and the trans movement. He might want to spend more time with his kids. I cut him some slack on this.; 12/9/24, 7:01 AM
michaele said...: I don't think Elon is doing this child any favors to subject him to so much public attention. Trump was never a velcro parent...it seems that he left most of child rearing duties to the devoted moms...Ivana, Marla and Melania.; 12/9/24, 7:16 AM
mindnumbrobot said...: I'm with the professor on this one. Not a fan.; 12/9/24, 7:28 AM
Quayle said...: Forget it. The child will be living on Mars when he is grown, so your present earthbound norms and criticisms don't matter at all.; 12/9/24, 7:28 AM
tommyesq said...: Given that it is Musk's kid, he will likely internalize this message whether the ad is shown or not.; 12/9/24, 7:34 AM
rehajm said...: I’ll take the under and parlay it with the under that FSD becomes a permanent thing; 12/9/24, 7:47 AM
Space City Girl said...: The boy seems exasperated with his dad. Understandable after being trotted around at boring adult meetings all day.; 12/9/24, 8:07 AM
Yancey Ward said...: All of Musk's children are going to be doxxed and harassed by the Democrats because Musk has become Public Enemy #2 to the Democrats. Better they learn that ASAP.; 12/9/24, 8:10 AM
Marcus Bressler said...: Not cool. But what do I know?; 12/9/24, 8:10 AM
Limited blogger said...: It's ok when my side does it; 12/9/24, 8:13 AM
Caroline said...: This one seems to be Elon’s sidekick. He takes him everywhere. I guess I’m a little surprised…given that my kids have asked us not to post pix of their little ones on social media. I would think he’d want the kid out of the limelight. It’s a crazy world.; 12/9/24, 8:35 AM
Lazarus said...: So many kids. Elon is our generation's Johnny Appleseed -- or maybe our Augustus the Strong.; 12/9/24, 8:54 AM
Ann Althouse said...: "Elon lost one child to the Left and the trans movement. He might want to spend more time with his kids. I cut him some slack on this."

Going from one extreme to another is not the solution. Spend more time with your child, but do it in private. Your child is not a prop.; 12/9/24, 9:03 AM
Dude1394 said...: Elon already was pretty damn famous, but hanging out in Washington takes it to next level. I’d leave the kiddo out of that mess. He does have him in design reviews at Tesla and his other companies.; 12/9/24, 9:08 AM
Megthered said...: He calls him his "mini me". The children seems happy and completely comfortable around his father and other adults. Maybe Elon feels more secure with little X around him, like a security blanket.; 12/9/24, 9:19 AM
RCOCEAN II said...: You can use them as props when they very young, say under 5, because they won't remember any of it.; 12/9/24, 9:22 AM
RCOCEAN II said...: its amazing how little I remember from say 6 years old and before. I assume that's about average. My parents could've taken me to a Nixon rally in 1970, and I wouldn't remember it.; 12/9/24, 9:23 AM
effinayright said...: When my kid was 4 we trained him to say "Nice Bouquet" after sipping on a tiny bit of wine. We had him say it when friends visited. Cute---but he spoiled the moment by chewing on the wine glass like Yul Brenner did in "The Brothers Karamazov".

We got the shards out of his mouth, so no harm. But that was the end of that stunt.; 12/9/24, 9:25 AM
The Vault Dweller said...: Your child is not as cute as you think he is,

All children start out cute, though that usually wanes by the time they are 6, 7, or 8.; 12/9/24, 10:04 AM
The Vault Dweller said...: While I agree parents shouldn't use their children to trumpet the parents' politics, the closer the political message is to a platitude, the less I worry about involving the children. I think it is entirely proper to teach one's children patriotism and love of country. We should save America, sounds like instilling these base values in a child.; 12/9/24, 10:10 AM
Chris-2-4 said...: Hmm... I don't know. Obviously Elon has become "political", but it's not like he's a candidate using his own kid for votes. There's a level of separation there between this and what politicians have long been doing to court votes. Also, I don't get the objection that even if the kid is cute now, he won't always be. He's cute now... the post is now (ish).; 12/9/24, 10:16 AM
William said...: I get the impression that Elon is a busy man and doesn't have a lot of time to spend changing diapers and reading bed time stories. Also, he apparently has a thing for complicated women who might be problematic as mothers. My advice to him would be to hire a really good nanny for each of his kids. Give them a lucrative contract and sign them up for the entirety of the child's young years. That's the secret to successful parenting.......I saw a documentary on Ingrid Bergman. She was an absentee mother, but all her kids turned out all right. She had a nanny who stayed with the children throughout their formative years and gave them love and stability. Something like that happened with Winston Churchill and his nanny too. The nanny/child relationship is very important for the children of stars and billionaires.....Perhaps Musk can develop some kind of crash program to develop a robot with all the ideal features of an attentive parent. That might not be practicable for his older kids, but he's got sufficient money to hire the best carbon based life forms to nurture his children.; 12/9/24, 10:34 AM
NKP said...: Au contraire! My kids were every bit as cute as I thought they were. They are now in late-50s and have surpassed every hope and expectation imaginable. Treat 'em like full participants in life, right out of the womb.

I trust our hostess is sincere in her thought on this matter and I accept her opinion in general but not in specifics regarding Elon's son. It COULD BE truamatic for the kid but clearly is not. Would be far more hurtful to insist a shy kid sing a song at a big fanily gathering.

It's worthwhile to refrain from comment about anyone's family. There are degrees of this. You might laugh along with me if I point out a weird habit of your brother even though you resent me for mentioning it. If I suggest your girlfriend/wife is slutty, I might get punched in the nose but there's a chance our fiendship could survive. The one thing I can NEVER say is that one of your children is a loser (implying you are guilty of making him a loser).; 12/9/24, 1:04 PM
Readering said...: He was being carried around for meetings in DC. If I had been at such a meeting, I'd be thinking WTF? If a woman did that there would be hell to pay.; 12/9/24, 1:18 PM
Narayanan said...: and in his own security cordon?; 12/9/24, 2:20 PM
Narayanan said...: nanny = white terminology
mammy = south terminology?; 12/9/24, 2:22 PM
Mark said...: Now that the child is a prop, they are subject to public commentary.; 12/9/24, 6:06 PM
Narayanan said...: why not "out of the mouth of babes" etc.; 12/9/24, 7:16 PM
Mason G said...: Pretty sure Musk wouldn't give a shit what you thought. Or me, either. Get over yourself.; 12/9/24, 7:35 PM