The amount of distress in the comments is such a surprise to me - I think it's important for me to jump into the comments to help frame this video. This video is about Autism. It's about helping people understand what aspects of Musk's behavior can be attributed to Autism and which aspects cannot. In this video, I was super clear when noting that Autism is not responsible for the salute. I was also super clear when I said I thought Autism was responsible for his unwillingness to appropriately apologize for the Salute, which he reports was not a Nazi salute. BTW, for people in the mental health community (regardless of political affiliation) this is not a shocking takeaway. My report that Autism can result in social awkwardness, but not intentional salutes should not be controversial. In the same way, my report that Autism can make it hard for people to clock the experiences of others and the impact of their comments/behaviors on others should not be controversial. If you were upset with this video, you are likely only taking issue with my belief that Musk wasn't trying to duplicate the Salute of an extremist Neo-Nazi group. And there, you may be right. I am only reflecting on his commentary that he was saluting from his heart and HIS statement that tying him to Nazis is ridiculous. But, unquestionably, I could have gotten that piece wrong. My goal was to help people understand what is and what is not due to Autism. (thus, my title) I am a psychologist who uses events in pop culture to explain psychological concepts. I am not a journalist or a political pundit trying to evaluate the true affiliations of public figures.
You’re bending over backward to make excuses for someone who’s arguably one of the richest people on the planet, a father to 12 children, and the only real competition NASA has ever faced. He’s brilliant and awkward, sure-but not to the extent that justifies the mental gymnastics you’re doing to defend him. And if he truly were that incapable, he has no business playing such a consequential role in decisions that affect people like us. Honestly, you’re known for bad takes you end up walking back a few days later…this feels like another one of those lol. I still love your channel, I know you mean well.
@@PopPsych I get what your saying and appreciate your observations. Musk is a controversial guy in general and people feel strongly one way or another. I wonder if it was some everyday person that nobody knew of it would get the same reaction. Thank you for your observations on this matter. 🫶
No. This is profoundly irresponsible, and ignorant. Context matters. Truth matters. You are not an autism specialist. And if you were casually wanting to open up a dialogue to “help” your audience notice neurodivergent behaviors THIS is not a necessary nor harmless clip of popular media to use as an example. Is concerning how defense and obtuse you’re being in this response. This is a dangerous and powerfully impactful example to use so callously. In fact life and death matters for billions of people around the world are impacted by the now wealthiest man in the world donated that we have record of $250 million to the presidential campaign that now has an official government office in the White House not fodder for your experiments with your own online commentary. Your privilege and concerning lack of care for real humans is disturbing of a licensed professional .
David you explained perfectly!! I also believe Musk's actions were awkward, nothing more. When I first saw his arm move, I perceived something tainted; yet, as I watched a few more times, I saw he was moving clumsy because he was really excited! I work with high risk youth, many have had Autism, they live with me while we stabilize them. I've had 3 youth make what appeared as the nazi salute after I was conversing with them. When I questioned them, they told me the pat on the heart and the arm up meant, love you, got you, understood. This gesture the youth saw many times from others in hollywood. Musk meant nothing by his salute he was excited and amped up. I often share with the youth I work with who have Autism, if Musk has Autism and can achieve his dreams, so can you. I am not for or against Musk, I am for kindness and truth and you David, spoke the truth!
He wrote an article endorsing a neo-Nazi party in Germany. This isn’t definitive proof that it was a neo-Nazi salute but he is supportive of that ideology.
He didn't just write an article in their support, he had their candidate on a Space, allowing her to spread her hate and misinformation. He's a f*cking Nazi. Let's not pretend otherwise.
sigh. that is NOT a neo nazi party. Germany's far left is pysoping you to think that. don't be stupid.I support afd and I am as far from being a nazi as you are. geez. In the U.S. afd is in the center politically, at best. those people are paranoid of nazism. you can be jailed for an affiliation with neo nazis. they would NEVER allow a political party of same. which is why, just like with trump, the leftists are saying this party is a neo nazi party, and you can tell they really know better.
If you do some research, you will find that in an interview by Elon Musk’s dad, Errol, he has said that his father was“in the Nazi, German, party in Canada and sympathized with the Germans”. He said he later moved to South Africa because his parents supported the Apartheid regime. Elon has been endorsing a neo-nazi party in Germany recently. So it very much looks like that salute was exactly what it looked like.
I thought the video was Musk's father talking about Mae Musk's (Elon's Mother) parents' affinity for the Nazi party and why they moved from Canada to South Africa - because they supported Apartide..
@ yes you are right and Errol’s parents were Dutch who as you probably know were the people who started apartheid in South Africa. The point is that he has family connections to racists.
He actually does financially support far right groups here, and abroad (including in Germany), that DO purport to support Hitler’s policies. I think this also plays in to the outrage from many people.
I think you´re right. If it wasn´t already known that he has those sympathies, it would be easier to view this as a mistake. People wouldn´t be this upset en masse. But now we have the context we have, and as long as he does not make a statement that makes it clear this was unintentional, I think it should be regarded as a fascist salute.
Could not find any data of him financially supporting far right groups in us, or aboard? Can you provide the source? The endorsing of AfD, and tweeting /about Tommy Robinson and possibly paying hes legal fees i was able to source.
I'm autistic. I'm a teacher and autism specialist. This person was raised in SA during aparthide. He is regularly seen in the company of neo nazis. He is closely tied to authoritarianism and dictators and believes that only certain people count and the rest exists to serve. If they can't then they have no value. Hes admitted that it's ok for the majority of people to suffer in the interests of the rich and powerful. None of that is autism and if you think it is you need a refresher course. Also just because he says he has it and is socially awkward doesn't actually mean that he meets the diagnostic criteria. Once again being rich often gives you tons of excuses not to take responsibility for what you do. In this case you'll never convince me he didn't know exactly what he was doing and was proud of it.
A viewer from Germany and a big fan of your channel here: I’m sorry, but it’s 100 per cent obvious what this was. I’m so sad for our world right now. How did we get so far? 😢
i respectfully disagree. while i 100% believe this has 0 connection to autism, musk has expressed similar views in the past. this reeks to me like testing the waters to see how far he can go.
Elon musk is not a child struggling to understand the world and his emotions. He is a grown man with multiple children and an experienced PR team. He knows exactly what he did. And so does everyone else who was in that room with him or watching in support. They cheered. There was no discussion of what this could have meant… they knew. He knew. And for you to immediately assume and assert things like “it wasn’t his intention” it would be nice to know where that opinion is derived from… did he say this? I’m afraid for my country, and I was really hoping you would comment on this, I am just completely blown away by your analysis…
My son is 21. He's also Autistic. When he makes social "errors" and is made aware, he apologizes. Musk must be aware by now of his social "error" and he has not apologized. Musk has shown me who he is and I believe him.
@@pwilki8631 Are you capable of experiencing empathy for others, especially those are are different from you and have different lived experiences? Are you an anti-social person? I'll give you the attention you crave.
Sorry,this is a man who grew up in apartheid South Africa.He was there for the debates that were happening around whether or not South Africa should be sanctioned and he was there during the upheaval of the end of apartheid.Even if it is on a intellectual base and not a emotional one, he knows what he did. His doubling down confirms to me that we saw who he is.
This reeks of “oooh I hope to be in the cool club one day!” David please don’t tell me you’re an Elon Musk fanboy???? How can that man show you, a psychologist, any HARDER who he is?!? This is wild, the level of excuse for this behavior is what is going to get us all in so much trouble in this country. I’m in shock with every new voice trying to claim this wasn’t a notsi salute or was a misunderstanding. Wild. 😅
Right?! How far gone are we? He was testing us, and I bet even he is amazed he got away with that. Is there really NO line anymore? People will look back on this moment in history and go WTAF?!
I honestly think you should’ve skipped making this video. You admitted not knowing much about this salute, and it’s obvious that you don’t know much about Musk. Therefore you don’t have enough information to make an informed opinion that could hurt people in the Autism spectrum. I have never seen this kind of stim or reaction. Autistic people aren’t incapable of apologizing. They understand direct communication. He can also be awkward AND racist. They are not mutually exclusive. In a time where people are wary of facism, this certainly does not help.
49 years old autistic. I have never given an Nazi salute. None of my three children (2 are young adults, one teen) have EVER mistaken excitement or enthusiasm for a Nazi salute. If anything, as autistics we have a great empathy for others, great knowledge of historical facts, and a sense of justice that prohibit us from completing such a horrendous and terrifying gesture.
Yeah the explanation in this video is actually crazy. I looked this up because I try to see multiple perspectives on every issue but it just seems like gaslighting at this point. Especially paired with Elons lack of acknowledgment of how it could have been interpreted by others.
While I appreciate David trying to be fair… as a fellow autistic person I find it incredibly insulting that we are leaving room for this to be an “autism thing”. Absolutely not. Full stop. I would never ever do this… even when I’m being joyful in an awkward to everyone else way.
Thank you. It angers me that we would blame this kind of behavior on autism. As mom of an autistic child I agree with every point you made. My child understood exactly what Elon was signaling.
You sound absolutely ridiculous! He's not so autistic that he can't run a business. You're making excuses for him because (1) you don't care, or (2) you totally agree with him. Stop trying to normalize hate. You are part of what's wrong with the US now. Stop making excuses!!! 🙄
If the Nazi salute was due to his “social awkwardness” he has spent his whole life being debriefed about his social behaviors. He meant what he did exactly how we perceived it.
I agree this is not in any way shape or form related to Autism. But as many have pointed out, there are far too many correlations tied to Elon, his family, and the Neo-Nazi parties for this to be any kind of mistake. Twice. Lets remember he then turned and did it AGAIN at the flag. The fact that it was MLK day and his family moved to SA to live in an aparthaid nation isn't lost on me either. Or that Elon has publicly endorsed Germanys AFD party, a known neo nazi party. Or his allowance of antisemitism and anti sematic behaviors on Twitter since he became CEO. If it walks like a duck.....and salutes like one........ you know?
I think you're right about him being awkward about movements, but that gesture was not awkward. it was clear, direct, heartfelt movement, almost like he had rehearsed it and now he finally got the chance to do it.
In what way? Odd that Nazis have had their spirits lifted by this "ridiculous" gesture. Why aren't Muskers addressing them, and pointing out their mistake, instead of just "the libs?" The fact is, if Elon didn't realize this would cause controversy, which is probably what he wanted all along, then he's a complete idiot.
Hello, German here. Hitler also did the salute from the chest. Not always, but there's footage of it, if you want to look for it. This was an informed choice, not autism. My mom is on the spectrum, never once did this salute.
you are determined to misinterpret, aren't you? No, it was not at all the hitler salute. and yes, i do know what i am talking about even though i am not a german. it was similar. that is all.
of course, your mom didn't do the salute. you guys are paranoid of nazism. ridiculous. if you have any type of morals, you wouldn't think of being a nazi, etc. it's like you're so fearful you will become fascist or something? i don't get it.
Really, if Elon was some kind of secret Nazi, why in the world would he want that secret to get out, get cancelled and have his businesses collapse? He just made a awkward hand wave like many politicians on the other side of the aisle have also done.
The readiness to explain away a clearly intentional physics act is startling. Sometimes a thing is just what it is. Context clues matter. His interviews, his moves with X, his own tweets…. His mission had been singular and he is enjoying “a win”. It’s dangerous to dismiss it. I will believe my lying eyes.
David, I am a big fan of your channel, but on this one, I vehemently disagree with you. Elon has been clear on his eugenics' opinions, comes from apartheid South Africa, and esteems the worst dictators in the world - to include Hitler. That was a nazi salute, and explaining it away is wrong. I have a child with ASD. Yes, he struggles with social interactions sometimes, including awkwardness, but he knows the difference between right and wrong. There is a difference in shying away in conversation or not quite understanding nuance or humor in a situation and throwing out a nazi salute. Don't join the MAGA apologetic train, please.
Oh please lol. A Nazi salute...you mean the same one done by ever president on earth h stage as the say hello to the crowd and at every concert?? Y'all can't be this stupid
Agree times one billion. So frustrated with how people continue to perform mental acrobatics to deny the ugly reality that Trump and his top MAGA allies, like Musk, are racist and have consistently employed White supremacist dog whistles as well as outright stating racist rhetoric plainly. The simplest explanation is often correct, but in this case it needs to take into account the overall pattern of Trump, Musk, and other MAGA followers' previous words and actions. "America First" wasn't chosen by accident. "Stand back and stand by" wasn't misworded. And Musk didn't mind giving a Nazi salute because he knew he could claim it was actually something different like the Roman salute (even though that makes even LESS sense, not to mention a regular salute in the US looks nothing like that) while simultaneously appealing to White supremacists at large.
If we have to make excuses and explanations for someone like this who actually does have ties to Neo Naz’s then he definitely should not be in the position he is in.
Whoa. Gaslighting from a licensed mental health professional. WE ALL SAW WHAT IT WAS; mental health is not a precursor to hate. And in case we missed it the first time he did it twice. For every other rational person seeing this video: the people who know what is going on and still support it or explain it away, or turn their head and ignore it, are as morally culpable as the people throwing a salute. On the first day of the new Administration, behind a podium with the Presidential Seal, the man who is almost a trillionaire and of some material influence to the New Administration threw the most widely recognized symbol of hate. Beginning and end.
@@lorilabelle9342 He's only showing one clip. there are many of him doing the salute in the 1930's from the heart to the 2:00 position. You just have to search for it in history footage on film.
Regardless what he meant by it, we know what it looked like. And the telling thing is that the crowd also knew what it looked like and cheered both times
David, David .... I'm so disappointed. Nobody thinks this was autism. He loves to push boundaries, and his extreme wealth gives him permission to do whatever he wants. He loves attention and will say and do the most despicable things to get it.
As an AuDHDer, I have never felt compelled to, nor have I seen another neurodivergent person feel compelled to sieg heil as a form of stimming. I also feel it’s incredibly stereotypical to suggest that for someone with ASD, lacking empathy is the norm. I understand it’s a stereotype for a reason, but most of the autistic people I know are incredibly empathetic. Do we sometimes do or say things that hurt people unintentionally? Absolutely. (Like, more often than we’d care to admit. The song “Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” is practically our anthem.) But when we’re *told* that we’ve hurt someone, we _feel_ emotional pain (sometimes, even shame) for causing that hurt. This stems from a deeply rooted sense of justice, and apologies are a given. Society doesn’t give us an “autism pass” for bad behavior, and Elon Musk shouldn’t be given one either, perhaps *especially* not because he’s rich and famous. Simply put, the rule is when you hurt someone, you say sorry. Also, he definitely wasn’t the first autistic person to host SNL. Both Jerry Seinfeld and Dan Aykroyd hosted before he did.
ASD or not - awkward or not, I believe that Musk knows exactly what he is doing. If he realizes the mistake, he will not apologize. He has a huge sense of entitlement funded by his money and power and his relationship as "friend of the president".
The AFD in Germany is NOT neo-Nazi right-wing, liberal woke will say they are, because they want to end immigration and put German people first. Does that make Giorgia Meloni of Italy, Donald Tusk of Poland, and others neo-Nazi.
I normally agree with your point of view but in this case I just can't. He turned around and he did it twice. When paired with his other actions and political leanings it appears intentional.
Please don’t excuse something that heinous. If it wasn’t intentional, he needs to make a statement. The fact that he has yet to apologize tells me it was beyond intentional. As someone of Jewish heritage, it makes me angry that someone got that high up in our government/social interaction with our government and has made millions of people feel unsafe.
Thanks for your insight. I did hear someone say, if you are defending this and think it's ok, do it at parent night at your kid's school; do it at work; if you happen to be on tv, do it on air. If he can't control himself, he needs to make sure that he stays out of the spotlight.
I don't know how you can analyze him in this way when there's a lot of data out there on what his true beliefs are (extreme right). Also Psychology In Seattle did an Elon musk deep dive which is informative
@@sandyjosarimi5317 I have 24 years experience on the job as the mother of a son with severe autism. During his life, I have seen and experienced autism in pretty much every form it presents. So, yes, I do know a little something about it.
Also there is a video of Elon in youtube in 2023 during tesla shareholder meeting where he sends his heart to the crown and it's totally different. So he knows exactly what he did here
His interaction with the far right group AfD in Germany, and at least one other known authoritarian, must be considered. Also, he is a gamer. Look up his favorite games. Domination is a theme. And one of his childhood heros is Wernher von Braun.
The only reason the AfD is relevant in Germany is because things like the New Year's Eve celebration in Cologne, Germany where hundreds of women were attacked and mass groped by migrant men.
I agree. My husband is an Aspie and can make awkward movements especially in highly stimulating environments. He isn’t aware of how he can be misinterpreted.
Thankfully he lives in the US and can say or gesture how he’d like no matter how reprehensible or vulgar you find it to be. For the record, I don’t think he made any kind of salute. I think he’s awkward, was excited, and truly was giving the crowd heartfelt thanks.
@@BuchananKHMD in our country (and a lot others in europe), it´s not vulgar or reprehensible, it´s illegal and it is a crime. but thankfully we in germany can drink in pubkic and no one finds in reprehensible or vulgar. :)
Having a child with Autism myself I am around many people that are neurodivergent. I personally believe that Elon knew what he was doing and I do not believe it was due to being on spectrum. I don't think he was raised with great parents that taught him right from wrong. His father married his own stepdaughter so I don't think this family is high morally. It's the same as saying a person that has Adhd is always high strung, so they are all the same. I personally find him to be a self centered ego manic.
Exactly. My son has autism too so just like you we're around a lot of neurodivergent people. There's this idea that just because someone has autism they are child-like and innocent which is not true, everyone has a personality and is capable of holding bad beliefs.
As a parent of a neurodivergent child, I saw an awkward gesture to show love. My husband and daughter once broke a brand new cell phone trying to share a hug. They are both stiff and awkward. We laughed about it for years.
@ Or you do what OP suggested, and look into his past and present affiliations with the far right...in case you want to learn something useful. And yes, he did it twice. How is that making it better? Doing the exact same "unintentional and awkward gesture" twice? Not likely. It is only to further emphazise its intentionality. I´m not gonna bicker with you though, just...look into him okay? And take off those rosy coloured glasses first.
@canadianalien370 @ckomtro3 stop dick-riding for a sec and look where he invests his money, or look at his posting history. It's plainly out there. I'm a little further along the spectrum than usual, n I've never "accidentally" sieg heiled. Not purposely for that matter, either. Bro got too comfortable n slipped up.
As a fellow therapist, I recommend that discussing the validity of his Hitler salute and attempting to connect it to autism is not advisable. People feel very strongly and passionately about this issue, particularly in light of the recent administration's extreme MAGA stance. If you choose to engage in this debate, that’s your decision, but be prepared for a strong and passionate backlash. Good luck.
What I heard him say starting at 0:50 was a clarifying statement regarding a perceived misstep. He made a point to address this potential distorted thinking right up front.
@ You're in all the replies of comments pointing out that it was indeed the Nazi salute. Maybe you should reconsider your own biases and politics. I've ssen the footage of the salute being done like that back in the 90s, when I was taught about it in school. No media psy-op. Just video from the actual time. And you know, that being confirmed by my family, who lived through that time.
Adding: Being awkward doesn't make you do hand motions that are CLEARLY doing a certain motion that became popular by that horrific painter in Germany. He did that with his whole body (and heart)!
He might not have “planned” to do this gesture, but autism (I am on the spectrum myself) did not cause nor does it excuse his doing it. He is not a stupid man, he may be socially awkward, but if this gesture had not been part of his mindset he would never have done it. I myself would never in a million years do it, and I have been socially awkward my whole 60 some years of life. I have a brother who is also on the spectrum and even though he and I are on opposite side of the political spectrum I can’t imagine him doing this either. I can’t say Musk intended to give this particular salute, but he knew what he was doing.
Wow this was sad to watch. There are plenty of videos of him actually doing “my heart goes out to you gesture”, in a none n**i salute. He knew what he was doing! And for people to come up with 1 million reasons on why this is not what it is and that he didn’t “mean to” is sad. I know plenty of people who have autism and they ain’t never did this. I’m not bashing you at all. I appreciate your videos a lot but kind of disappointed.
When you showed the Neonazi salute, that is exactly the one that he did and he did it twice. Whether he has Autism or not is irrelevant. I almost bought the Autism excuse until you showed the neonazi salute. He is not a stupid guy. He knows what he is doing. Just like Trump, he knows how to push boundaries and see how far he can go before being called out.
I´m happy he showed the neo-nazi salute then! I hope you are also aware that he has a history of affiliation with far right movements and ideology? He is a man we need to be really, really vigilant of.
I can’t even, I’ve been avoiding finding out what he did until I watched Speech Prof. and I was just like, what else do you expect from these people. David I’m sorry I disagree I think he did this on purpose.
I'm not biased against him at all and I I believe it was done on purpose as well. When people show you who they are, believe them. I support Trump and I believe he was appointed for this time by God. During the campaign my spirit felt a direct danger when Kenneth Copeland was chosen to pray. That man is full of demons. We must have discernment, or we will be deceived. 🙏
@@kericaswell6084 Hmmm… you are the company that you keep around you. Doesn’t that say a lot about Trump and who he surrounds himself? God may be involved, but not because Trump is a good man. Trump has and will inevitably show us how corrupt this world is, by how corrupt he is.
Elon Musk has never been diagnosed as autistic by a doctor. Aspbergers was a nightmare label from day one considering who came up with it, and his failings, in particular. It has since been merged with other conditions into autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and is no longer a diagnosis in the WHO's ICD-11 or the APA's DSM-5-TR. Almost everyone infinitely connected with Autism knows it. Elon Musk is not smart. He's just a fortunate and lucky jackhole who bought a great car company. But he meant the gesture to be exactly what it looked like. He was raised in APARTHEID South Africa, ffs. David, you're a touch naive when it comes to these narcissists. You are way too liberal with the benefit of the doubt.
I saw what I saw. I saw the snap of it. I saw the sneer that accompanied it. I know what I saw. My history degree says we’re gonna keep excusing and explaining what we see until it’s too late.
This take is just too much. You seem to be making apologies for this action. There is no reason to be accepting of this. I really enjoyed your videos but I can no longer in good conscience continue to support your channel. I am a BSN so I understand the psychological behaviors of the autistic spectrum. But this is totally unacceptable.
I’m trying to understand how you would know without a doubt Elon Musk’s intentions without being him or being told by him. In my opinion It’s speculation and it’s your opinion. I believe when we make absolutes out of speculation we can get into assuming our feelings are truth. Feelings can lie to us. Good, bad or indifferent feelings are feelings but they’re not always truth.
This warm take ain't it and as an autie's mom, I'm offended. My 25 year old is on the spectrum and social ques are a struggle. But he's certainly not an insensitive jerk who refuses be teachable. Elon is an arrogant insensitive jerk who's also a bigot. Shame on you for making broad excuses for him because of autism. And I'm almost certain that he's this way because people in his life made excuses for him instead of working with him to do better.
@@kimberlyevers7031please Why are you take the propaganda from them? It has nothing at all to do with spectra! Nothing at all. If it should happen all the time in Germany and Europe but no! You only see people who are linked to N…i groups. Don’t be fooled and whitewashing it. Do you want that gesture around us? It will continue he make it ok to show his n…
Elon Musk is an actual genius who overcame a rough, violent childhood and went on to create several extremely impactful companies, all in different industries. People think this guy just needed proper autistic-minded mommying and then he’d fall into line when being disparaged by a media that hates him? He’s created what he’s created bc of who/what he is. When you get to the fringes (of IQ, of ambition, etc) you’re not going to find perfectly normal, well behaved personalities who are inclined to obedience to social norms.
To all of you denying it - I dare you to take a trip to Austria or Germany and replicate it in an official Building of your choice. I double dare ya! And it has nothing! to do with Aspergers. And he did it twice.
I am in the UK the weight of that salute or anything close is very clear. If I did anything close I would be making sure my views were clear and that I do not align with those groups. But then people might believe me as I have always show my disgust for anything like right wing views. Now Elon, not so much. He has support the AFD in Germany, have a read about them and their youth group and some of their members views on where that salute comes from. He supports Tommy Robinson an utter racist criminal who is not in prison because he spoke up, its because he told his racist gangs an innocent teenage boy who was the wrong colour and religion, was a terrorist. It could have got that child killed. Elon shows us his views and who he supports. Fact check it, look for yourself and people need to stop denying reality.
Your son is probably glued to your same propaganda. AOC did the same thing recently, it was funny how she cried about Elon doing it too and then everyone showed footage of her doing it.
Oh wow, I did not finish watching the end of his video. Yeah david I’m gonna have to disagree with you. I work in ABA therapy. That’s literally what we do is to teach some form of awareness and to take responsibility for it and honestly, I see more growth when we support that than making excuses and saying oh that’s too much for a person on the spectrum. We work through those behaviors and we learn how to appropriately deal with others. Because even though the world is strange to them, they still live in it and there are other people in that too.
I don't think he made excuses. I think Musk probably didn't get the guidance that you provide to your clients. I don't know how far you got in the video, but it might be worth seeing it through to the end.
yes. intentional emotionally. it was NOT a nazi salute. you dim dems really are the worst. course you think trump is a nazi as well. there is no reasoning with you peeps. stop being psyoped by the media. i noticed an article that said "trumps inauguration was the least watched in the last 20 years." Ha. you bet. no one was watching tv. but, the videos on x? million of views and like 3 billion impressions, etc. He had way more watching his inauguration in all media forms than the last 20 years combined. see how the media manipulates you?
i think this is an irresponsible statement and observation of a person who is in a very controversial position in the government. How many times will we be asked to look the other way because of his supposed autistic behavior. This is not a helpful response given the horrible situation all of the US is in. I’m completely surprised and disappointed that this video is out. If I was David I would remove this video immediately. It’s low key a reason to cancel this channel. So sad to promote such a greedy figure so innocently, shameful really 😔
While I totally agree with you about the content of this video, I cannot agree with your wanting David to take it down or for the channel to be cancelled. We need to be wary of censorship. I think it is a bad judgement he makes, completely taken out of the context of EM´s known far-right sentiments. Further it is apologetic even if we were to play with the thought of David not knowing about them. But what David voices here are ideas that go around, and when published like this they can be discussed and countered, like we all are doing here. If the video is taken down, so is this entire little ocean of exchanges that is its comment section. The discussion will be as if it never existed. (And so far from what I´ve seen, this here is an unusually decent and equivocal comment section)
it was purposeful. he was driven by emotion...not by nazis. lol come, now. this is so stupid. didn't even look like the nazi salute, at all. it did look similar.
God helped you American because He gave you the correct way: Trump is that. If you do not recognize him you are poor people. I'm Italian and we are dominated by a fake right party towards the communism. So: be glad of what you have now.
This video is insanely apologetic. No, it´s not too much to ask from someone "obsessed with truth", that he corrects a supposedly false impression that the genreal public (including extatically happy neo-nazis) have of him.
Ya no shit he obviously has slight autism, he can be awkward. I'm all for it if you want to be worried about his AI NWO stuff, but still the dudes just a little autistic with it, as any "genius" should be, if he is as such.
I am so offended as an autistic individual about blaming it on autism. He knew what he was doing. Especially given his rightwing politics and supporting the far right in Germany.
When Kamala Harris and Tim Walz put their hands over their hearts to their crowds in gratitude, they dropped their hands afterward, not throw it up like Adolf Hitler. That is what a gratitude gesture looks like.
dude. there are literally pics of aoc having her hand outstretched exactly like elon...maybe not as vehement, but it's there. obama, same, scores of others. you refuse to not believe that elon is NOT a fascist. but, if you think about it, that make no sense whatsoever. he does business with germany. he doesn't like all the muslim culture there. it's not a fit for europe. cultures clash. just today a migrant stabbed a baby from a daycare in a park along with a care giver. they both died. tragic. germany and gbritain need to stop allowing these peeps to come in...that is not fascism. that is called protecting their nations and their people. for whatever reason, the muslims seem to do better in our country....like, they assimilate better or something...less crazy fundamentalism. not true in europe. it is not working.
“No, she doesn’t! It’s not true! If you watch the film, it becomes clear there’s absolutely no connection. The difference is stark-it’s like comparing night and day. However, if you’re pro-Trump, much of that perception seems to stem from their propaganda machine, pushing narratives and normalizing misinformation.”
He said "my heart goes out to you" and then grabbed his chest and gestured that he was sending it out to the crowd. Show elon the same grace you would ask people to show your autistic son. Get a grip.
Thanks for your explanation. It is helpful, but if he wants to be such a leader in America then he needs to be willing to listen to those around him to tell him to do the right thing and that is to apologize and explain himself.
@ there could’ve been many gestures he could have made to show that his heart is with you. We don’t need to make excuses for him. He just needs to apologize for offending anybody.
He's the richest man in the world and that's unlikely to change. Do you honestly think he'll ever apologize!? He doesn't give a single f what ANYONE thinks about him! He doesn't want or need our forgiveness or understanding. He's got world leaders in his pocket, and he's only about power and control.
His father came out and talked about his Grand Parents and their ties to Nazi party when they moved from Canada to South Africa due to Aparti and the connections to the Nazi beliefs.
I have a son with Aspergers. He’s 37 and pretty high functioning and extremely smart, as Aspies usually are. He came into the kitchen where I was working and said “mom, you aren’t going to like what Elon Musk just did. He gave a Nazi salute.”. I stood there with my mouth open😮. I mused, why would he do that? My son said, “he’s autistic and he got caught up in the excitement and emotion.” It doesn’t always bode well for me to respond.
I agree with your son Musk arms were flying left right and center he simply could not contain his happiness he was using his whole body and a lot of arm movements to convey to everyone that he is stoke and super excited of the new era that has been ushered in with Trump's regaining the white house
It’s not just the salute, it’s everything behind the salute. I can’t make more excuses for Elon, it’s time to admit he’s on more than social cues, this has to be pills or something because he’s all over the place and burning bridges. Saying racist stuff, sexist stuff…it’s just all bad. His mother also is kinda off the rocker, it’s very possible he meant this salute as intended for likes, attention and applause
Also another issue I have is we give him all the credit for backing teams that are brilliant and we give him their brilliance by his ability to build on it. We give him all the credit despite his being on the spectrum, all the grace. However when he does bad we give him no blame? This man is a billionaire and runs businesses and has like 80 kids, we can’t make excuses for him on the spectrum here but not there. No Dave, no.
If you say you don't think he adheres to neo Nazi groups, then you haven't been paying attention to what he says and does, and most recently especially during 2024. Also, do we take his word for it, that he has Asperger syndrome? Has anyone seen an official diagnosis?
The amount of distress in the comments is such a surprise to me - I think it's important for me to jump into the comments to help frame this video. This video is about Autism. It's about helping people understand what aspects of Musk's behavior can be attributed to Autism and which aspects cannot.
In this video, I was super clear when noting that Autism is not responsible for the salute. I was also super clear when I said I thought Autism was responsible for his unwillingness to appropriately apologize for the Salute, which he reports was not a Nazi salute. BTW, for people in the mental health community (regardless of political affiliation) this is not a shocking takeaway.
My report that Autism can result in social awkwardness, but not intentional salutes should not be controversial. In the same way, my report that Autism can make it hard for people to clock the experiences of others and the impact of their comments/behaviors on others should not be controversial.
If you were upset with this video, you are likely only taking issue with my belief that Musk wasn't trying to duplicate the Salute of an extremist Neo-Nazi group. And there, you may be right. I am only reflecting on his commentary that he was saluting from his heart and HIS statement that tying him to Nazis is ridiculous. But, unquestionably, I could have gotten that piece wrong. My goal was to help people understand what is and what is not due to Autism. (thus, my title) I am a psychologist who uses events in pop culture to explain psychological concepts. I am not a journalist or a political pundit trying to evaluate the true affiliations of public figures.
You’re bending over backward to make excuses for someone who’s arguably one of the richest people on the planet, a father to 12 children, and the only real competition NASA has ever faced. He’s brilliant and awkward, sure-but not to the extent that justifies the mental gymnastics you’re doing to defend him. And if he truly were that incapable, he has no business playing such a consequential role in decisions that affect people like us. Honestly, you’re known for bad takes you end up walking back a few days later…this feels like another one of those lol. I still love your channel, I know you mean well.
@@PopPsych I get what your saying and appreciate your observations. Musk is a controversial guy in general and people feel strongly one way or another. I wonder if it was some everyday person that nobody knew of it would get the same reaction. Thank you for your observations on this matter. 🫶
No. This is profoundly irresponsible, and ignorant. Context matters. Truth matters. You are not an autism specialist. And if you were casually wanting to open up a dialogue to “help” your audience notice neurodivergent behaviors THIS is not a necessary nor harmless clip of popular media to use as an example. Is concerning how defense and obtuse you’re being in this response. This is a dangerous and powerfully impactful example to use so callously. In fact life and death matters for billions of people around the world are impacted by the now wealthiest man in the world donated that we have record of $250 million to the presidential campaign that now has an official government office in the White House not fodder for your experiments with your own online commentary. Your privilege and concerning lack of care for real humans is disturbing of a licensed professional .
@@Neshe426of course it wouldn’t! This is absurd! He shouldn’t have used this example then. Is disturbing.
David you explained perfectly!! I also believe Musk's actions were awkward, nothing more. When I first saw his arm move, I perceived something tainted; yet, as I watched a few more times, I saw he was moving clumsy because he was really excited! I work with high risk youth, many have had Autism, they live with me while we stabilize them. I've had 3 youth make what appeared as the nazi salute after I was conversing with them. When I questioned them, they told me the pat on the heart and the arm up meant, love you, got you, understood. This gesture the youth saw many times from others in hollywood. Musk meant nothing by his salute he was excited and amped up. I often share with the youth I work with who have Autism, if Musk has Autism and can achieve his dreams, so can you. I am not for or against Musk, I am for kindness and truth and you David, spoke the truth!
I think he knew exactly what he was doing.
If he didn't, then he's a bigger idiot than I thought.
Yep. He did it twice, just to make sure. It's the brazenness that's most scary.
He wrote an article endorsing a neo-Nazi party in Germany. This isn’t definitive proof that it was a neo-Nazi salute but he is supportive of that ideology.
If you're talking about the AFD, they've made it very clear how pro-Israel they are.
He didn't just write an article in their support, he had their candidate on a Space, allowing her to spread her hate and misinformation. He's a f*cking Nazi. Let's not pretend otherwise.
sigh. that is NOT a neo nazi party. Germany's far left is pysoping you to think that. don't be stupid.I support afd and I am as far from being a nazi as you are. geez. In the U.S. afd is in the center politically, at best. those people are paranoid of nazism. you can be jailed for an affiliation with neo nazis. they would NEVER allow a political party of same. which is why, just like with trump, the leftists are saying this party is a neo nazi party, and you can tell they really know better.
Exactly.
and he's giving them money too
If you do some research, you will find that in an interview by Elon Musk’s dad, Errol, he has said that his father was“in the Nazi, German, party in Canada and sympathized with the Germans”. He said he later moved to South Africa because his parents supported the Apartheid regime. Elon has been endorsing a neo-nazi party in Germany recently. So it very much looks like that salute was exactly what it looked like.
I thought the video was Musk's father talking about Mae Musk's (Elon's Mother) parents' affinity for the Nazi party and why they moved from Canada to South Africa - because they supported Apartide..
@ yes you are right and Errol’s parents were Dutch who as you probably know were the people who started apartheid in South Africa. The point is that he has family connections to racists.
the internet is doing the equivalent of bullying a kid with downs and pretending like he doesn't have downs.
Yes, exactly
Um. Or there is evidence of ties to white supremacy @@LeviticusMoriarty
He actually does financially support far right groups here, and abroad (including in Germany), that DO purport to support Hitler’s policies. I think this also plays in to the outrage from many people.
I think you´re right. If it wasn´t already known that he has those sympathies, it would be easier to view this as a mistake. People wouldn´t be this upset en masse. But now we have the context we have, and as long as he does not make a statement that makes it clear this was unintentional, I think it should be regarded as a fascist salute.
@ I absolutely agree! 👍🏼
Could not find any data of him financially supporting far right groups in us, or aboard? Can you provide the source?
The endorsing of AfD, and tweeting /about Tommy Robinson and possibly paying hes legal fees i was able to source.
The same AfD that has a lesbian leader married to a Sri lanken women?... yeah that's not Nazism ffs 😂.. grow up
I'm autistic.
I'm a teacher and autism specialist. This person was raised in SA during aparthide. He is regularly seen in the company of neo nazis. He is closely tied to authoritarianism and dictators and believes that only certain people count and the rest exists to serve. If they can't then they have no value. Hes admitted that it's ok for the majority of people to suffer in the interests of the rich and powerful. None of that is autism and if you think it is you need a refresher course.
Also just because he says he has it and is socially awkward doesn't actually mean that he meets the diagnostic criteria. Once again being rich often gives you tons of excuses not to take responsibility for what you do. In this case you'll never convince me he didn't know exactly what he was doing and was proud of it.
A viewer from Germany and a big fan of your channel here: I’m sorry, but it’s 100 per cent obvious what this was. I’m so sad for our world right now. How did we get so far? 😢
It also looked like a move he had done MANY times before. It was the least awkward thing he did on that stage. If it salutes like a duck...
i respectfully disagree. while i 100% believe this has 0 connection to autism, musk has expressed similar views in the past. this reeks to me like testing the waters to see how far he can go.
Agree completely
THAT IS EXACTLY what this is and DAVID should have just denied to review if he was going to make things up for this nonsense.
You’re delusional dude, give it a rest
@@MegaCokamo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ just saw a nazi salute with my own eyes dog, idk what you want me to say
Elon musk is not a child struggling to understand the world and his emotions. He is a grown man with multiple children and an experienced PR team.
He knows exactly what he did. And so does everyone else who was in that room with him or watching in support. They cheered. There was no discussion of what this could have meant… they knew. He knew. And for you to immediately assume and assert things like “it wasn’t his intention” it would be nice to know where that opinion is derived from… did he say this?
I’m afraid for my country, and I was really hoping you would comment on this, I am just completely blown away by your analysis…
My son is 21. He's also Autistic. When he makes social "errors" and is made aware, he apologizes.
Musk must be aware by now of his social "error" and he has not apologized.
Musk has shown me who he is and I believe him.
This 1000%
Boo hoo.
@@pwilki8631 Are you capable of experiencing empathy for others, especially those are are different from you and have different lived experiences? Are you an anti-social person? I'll give you the attention you crave.
@@alexandermacneil4430 no, you're just wrong and are failing to see reality because of your partisan beliefs.
Yes, he has shown us. He is the son of apartheidists and a neo Nazi. I agree.
Sorry,this is a man who grew up in apartheid South Africa.He was there for the debates that were happening around whether or not South Africa should be sanctioned and he was there during the upheaval of the end of apartheid.Even if it is on a intellectual base and not a emotional one, he knows what he did. His doubling down confirms to me that we saw who he is.
This reeks of “oooh I hope to be in the cool club one day!” David please don’t tell me you’re an Elon Musk fanboy???? How can that man show you, a psychologist, any HARDER who he is?!? This is wild, the level of excuse for this behavior is what is going to get us all in so much trouble in this country. I’m in shock with every new voice trying to claim this wasn’t a notsi salute or was a misunderstanding. Wild. 😅
Right?! How far gone are we? He was testing us, and I bet even he is amazed he got away with that. Is there really NO line anymore? People will look back on this moment in history and go WTAF?!
I honestly think you should’ve skipped making this video. You admitted not knowing much about this salute, and it’s obvious that you don’t know much about Musk. Therefore you don’t have enough information to make an informed opinion that could hurt people in the Autism spectrum. I have never seen this kind of stim or reaction. Autistic people aren’t incapable of apologizing. They understand direct communication. He can also be awkward AND racist. They are not mutually exclusive. In a time where people are wary of facism, this certainly does not help.
Thank you, I wrote something similar. This read is dangerous. And dissapointing.
49 years old autistic. I have never given an Nazi salute. None of my three children (2 are young adults, one teen) have EVER mistaken excitement or enthusiasm for a Nazi salute. If anything, as autistics we have a great empathy for others, great knowledge of historical facts, and a sense of justice that prohibit us from completing such a horrendous and terrifying gesture.
Yeah the explanation in this video is actually crazy. I looked this up because I try to see multiple perspectives on every issue but it just seems like gaslighting at this point. Especially paired with Elons lack of acknowledgment of how it could have been interpreted by others.
While I appreciate David trying to be fair… as a fellow autistic person I find it incredibly insulting that we are leaving room for this to be an “autism thing”. Absolutely not. Full stop. I would never ever do this… even when I’m being joyful in an awkward to everyone else way.
26y autist, and same here. Not sure why he's d**k riding
Thank you. It angers me that we would blame this kind of behavior on autism. As mom of an autistic child I agree with every point you made. My child understood exactly what Elon was signaling.
You sound absolutely ridiculous! He's not so autistic that he can't run a business. You're making excuses for him because (1) you don't care, or (2) you totally agree with him. Stop trying to normalize hate. You are part of what's wrong with the US now. Stop making excuses!!! 🙄
This is a disappointing take. Kind of insensitive. He’s a very smart man. He knows what the gesture would be compared to.
Agree. What a disturbing take.
Even if, somehow 🙄, he didn't do this intentionally, he still has a PR team! The fact there has been absolutely no response screams volumes.
Exactly
He was testing us. We flunked the test. I never thought I would see this day in America...
If the Nazi salute was due to his “social awkwardness” he has spent his whole life being debriefed about his social behaviors. He meant what he did exactly how we perceived it.
He has a long history with people who use that salute. No mistake.
Not true. Try using your brain instead of repeating what others say.
@sandyjosarimi5317 I think you're projecting. Look it up.
I agree this is not in any way shape or form related to Autism.
But as many have pointed out, there are far too many correlations tied to Elon, his family, and the Neo-Nazi parties for this to be any kind of mistake.
Twice. Lets remember he then turned and did it AGAIN at the flag.
The fact that it was MLK day and his family moved to SA to live in an aparthaid nation isn't lost on me either.
Or that Elon has publicly endorsed Germanys AFD party, a known neo nazi party.
Or his allowance of antisemitism and anti sematic behaviors on Twitter since he became CEO.
If it walks like a duck.....and salutes like one........ you know?
Well said
This is likely the first time that I 100% disagree with you. He did it, he meant it, enough said!
I think you're right about him being awkward about movements, but that gesture was not awkward. it was clear, direct, heartfelt movement, almost like he had rehearsed it and now he finally got the chance to do it.
It was absolutely awkward. I question you if you didn't think that was awkward and intense.
This is utterly ridiculous.
In what way? Odd that Nazis have had their spirits lifted by this "ridiculous" gesture. Why aren't Muskers addressing them, and pointing out their mistake, instead of just "the libs?" The fact is, if Elon didn't realize this would cause controversy, which is probably what he wanted all along, then he's a complete idiot.
Hello, German here. Hitler also did the salute from the chest. Not always, but there's footage of it, if you want to look for it. This was an informed choice, not autism. My mom is on the spectrum, never once did this salute.
you are determined to misinterpret, aren't you? No, it was not at all the hitler salute. and yes, i do know what i am talking about even though i am not a german. it was similar. that is all.
of course, your mom didn't do the salute. you guys are paranoid of nazism. ridiculous. if you have any type of morals, you wouldn't think of being a nazi, etc. it's like you're so fearful you will become fascist or something? i don't get it.
you guys are really quite braindead...
Yes, I looked it up & saw several times where Hitler came across the chest first. It looked exactly the same.
I mean…is it really a salute or could it just be a gesture?
When someone shows you who they are,believe them!
Really, if Elon was some kind of secret Nazi, why in the world would he want that secret to get out, get cancelled and have his businesses collapse? He just made a awkward hand wave like many politicians on the other side of the aisle have also done.
The readiness to explain away a clearly intentional physics act is startling. Sometimes a thing is just what it is. Context clues matter. His interviews, his moves with X, his own tweets…. His mission had been singular and he is enjoying “a win”. It’s dangerous to dismiss it. I will believe my lying eyes.
Sometimes things are exactly what they appear to be. We shall see. IMO
I think we are seeing.
@cynthiaroberts4775 I agree!
Exactly. It looks like a man expressing his heartfelt joy.
@@suelewallen3246 Interesting. Joy of exactly what though? I'll see by his actions what he really means. JS
You seriously, SERIOUSLY can't be doing this. Not a professional. Jesus Christ.
15x support. A licensed mental health professional just put out a video to gaslight you.
David, I am a big fan of your channel, but on this one, I vehemently disagree with you. Elon has been clear on his eugenics' opinions, comes from apartheid South Africa, and esteems the worst dictators in the world - to include Hitler. That was a nazi salute, and explaining it away is wrong. I have a child with ASD. Yes, he struggles with social interactions sometimes, including awkwardness, but he knows the difference between right and wrong. There is a difference in shying away in conversation or not quite understanding nuance or humor in a situation and throwing out a nazi salute. Don't join the MAGA apologetic train, please.
Oh please lol. A Nazi salute...you mean the same one done by ever president on earth h stage as the say hello to the crowd and at every concert?? Y'all can't be this stupid
💯
I agree completely
I agree with you 100%.
Agree times one billion. So frustrated with how people continue to perform mental acrobatics to deny the ugly reality that Trump and his top MAGA allies, like Musk, are racist and have consistently employed White supremacist dog whistles as well as outright stating racist rhetoric plainly. The simplest explanation is often correct, but in this case it needs to take into account the overall pattern of Trump, Musk, and other MAGA followers' previous words and actions. "America First" wasn't chosen by accident. "Stand back and stand by" wasn't misworded. And Musk didn't mind giving a Nazi salute because he knew he could claim it was actually something different like the Roman salute (even though that makes even LESS sense, not to mention a regular salute in the US looks nothing like that) while simultaneously appealing to White supremacists at large.
If we have to make excuses and explanations for someone like this who actually does have ties to Neo Naz’s then he definitely should not be in the position he is in.
Whoa. Gaslighting from a licensed mental health professional. WE ALL SAW WHAT IT WAS; mental health is not a precursor to hate. And in case we missed it the first time he did it twice.
For every other rational person seeing this video: the people who know what is going on and still support it or explain it away, or turn their head and ignore it, are as morally culpable as the people throwing a salute. On the first day of the new Administration, behind a podium with the Presidential Seal, the man who is almost a trillionaire and of some material influence to the New Administration threw the most widely recognized symbol of hate. Beginning and end.
So well said @stephaniesoondar9798!
Did you miss when he showed the video and it wasn't?
@@lorilabelle9342 He's only showing one clip. there are many of him doing the salute in the 1930's from the heart to the 2:00 position. You just have to search for it in history footage on film.
While I, too, find good in everyone and see people’s potential; I think this guy is problematic to put it politely… That gesture was not an accident.
Regardless what he meant by it, we know what it looked like. And the telling thing is that the crowd also knew what it looked like and cheered both times
David, David .... I'm so disappointed. Nobody thinks this was autism. He loves to push boundaries, and his extreme wealth gives him permission to do whatever he wants. He loves attention and will say and do the most despicable things to get it.
You would be absolutely shocked how many people will think it is, it paints a bad picture if people keep using these excuses.
No. I have to disagree. He literally has a history and I do not think this was a mistake.
As an AuDHDer, I have never felt compelled to, nor have I seen another neurodivergent person feel compelled to sieg heil as a form of stimming. I also feel it’s incredibly stereotypical to suggest that for someone with ASD, lacking empathy is the norm. I understand it’s a stereotype for a reason, but most of the autistic people I know are incredibly empathetic.
Do we sometimes do or say things that hurt people unintentionally? Absolutely. (Like, more often than we’d care to admit. The song “Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” is practically our anthem.) But when we’re *told* that we’ve hurt someone, we _feel_ emotional pain (sometimes, even shame) for causing that hurt. This stems from a deeply rooted sense of justice, and apologies are a given.
Society doesn’t give us an “autism pass” for bad behavior, and Elon Musk shouldn’t be given one either, perhaps *especially* not because he’s rich and famous. Simply put, the rule is when you hurt someone, you say sorry.
Also, he definitely wasn’t the first autistic person to host SNL. Both Jerry Seinfeld and Dan Aykroyd hosted before he did.
dude. he was literally not doing the hitler thing. there is subtle differences. just stop. the media is pysoping you as usual.
@@kimberlyevers7031 "There are none so blind as those who will. not. See ." 🙈
Preach!!!
i agree with you. thank you for sharing your perspective. made much more sense than david 🙄
you are brainwashed
ASD or not - awkward or not, I believe that Musk knows exactly what he is doing. If he realizes the mistake, he will not apologize. He has a huge sense of entitlement funded by his money and power and his relationship as "friend of the president".
Context is key. This is a man who endorsed neo nazi groups in Germany. Just do a little digging in his recent and past rhetoric.
Exactly. Thank you.
you sound like a fascist democrat
The AFD in Germany is NOT neo-Nazi right-wing, liberal woke will say they are, because they want to end immigration and put German people first. Does that make Giorgia Meloni of Italy, Donald Tusk of Poland, and others neo-Nazi.
I normally agree with your point of view but in this case I just can't. He turned around and he did it twice. When paired with his other actions and political leanings it appears intentional.
Please don’t excuse something that heinous.
If it wasn’t intentional, he needs to make a statement.
The fact that he has yet to apologize tells me it was beyond intentional.
As someone of Jewish heritage, it makes me angry that someone got that high up in our government/social interaction with our government and has made millions of people feel unsafe.
Thanks for your insight. I did hear someone say, if you are defending this and think it's ok, do it at parent night at your kid's school; do it at work; if you happen to be on tv, do it on air. If he can't control himself, he needs to make sure that he stays out of the spotlight.
I don't know how you can analyze him in this way when there's a lot of data out there on what his true beliefs are (extreme right). Also Psychology In Seattle did an Elon musk deep dive which is informative
He knows exactly what he is doing. It has nothing to do with any form of autism.
Exactly!
Thank you
Ok so you're the authority.
@@sandyjosarimi5317 I have 24 years experience on the job as the mother of a son with severe autism. During his life, I have seen and experienced autism in pretty much every form it presents. So, yes, I do know a little something about it.
Elon backed Germany's far right political group. Claiming they are the only ones that can save Germany. Of course this is the salute.
Deport Musk.
Agreed
Also there is a video of Elon in youtube in 2023 during tesla shareholder meeting where he sends his heart to the crown and it's totally different. So he knows exactly what he did here
yeah you are sick in your head
This. Him and his buddies have been using the far right and this was for them.
100% look at who he supports and boosts on x
This statement is no logical sense
Yes it has elon literally supports a Naziiiiii party of Germany don't believe us? Look it up yourself fool @@helpme1487
His interaction with the far right group AfD in Germany, and at least one other known authoritarian, must be considered.
Also, he is a gamer. Look up his favorite games. Domination is a theme. And one of his childhood heros is Wernher von Braun.
The only reason the AfD is relevant in Germany is because things like the New Year's Eve celebration in Cologne, Germany where hundreds of women were attacked and mass groped by migrant men.
I think he’s very smart and knows what he did and isn’t sorry! So no apology!
He knew exactly what he was doing
If he were in Germany he would have gotten arrested.
Would he? Isn't there parts of Eastern Germany with growing white supremacist groups?
As it should be.
I agree. My husband is an Aspie and can make awkward movements especially in highly stimulating environments. He isn’t aware of how he can be misinterpreted.
Thankfully he lives in the US and can say or gesture how he’d like no matter how reprehensible or vulgar you find it to be. For the record, I don’t think he made any kind of salute. I think he’s awkward, was excited, and truly was giving the crowd heartfelt thanks.
@@BuchananKHMD in our country (and a lot others in europe), it´s not vulgar or reprehensible, it´s illegal and it is a crime. but thankfully we in germany can drink in pubkic and no one finds in reprehensible or vulgar. :)
Having a child with Autism myself I am around many people that are neurodivergent. I personally believe that Elon knew what he was doing and I do not believe it was due to being on spectrum. I don't think he was raised with great parents that taught him right from wrong. His father married his own stepdaughter so I don't think this family is high morally. It's the same as saying a person that has Adhd is always high strung, so they are all the same. I personally find him to be a self centered ego manic.
you are being biased and not rational because you emotionally hate him. he is clearly not into nazism. lol i can't
Exactly. My son has autism too so just like you we're around a lot of neurodivergent people. There's this idea that just because someone has autism they are child-like and innocent which is not true, everyone has a personality and is capable of holding bad beliefs.
As a parent of a neurodivergent child, I saw an awkward gesture to show love. My husband and daughter once broke a brand new cell phone trying to share a hug. They are both stiff and awkward. We laughed about it for years.
Maybe you should look at Musk's social history. It doesn't take a doctorate to understand that he presented a fascist salute. It's in 4k dude.
Try watching the whole 20 seconds, you’ll see him do it again and he clearly says, my heart goes out to you.
Grow up🙄
you are sooo brainwashed or just a liar😊
@ Or you do what OP suggested, and look into his past and present affiliations with the far right...in case you want to learn something useful.
And yes, he did it twice. How is that making it better? Doing the exact same "unintentional and awkward gesture" twice? Not likely. It is only to further emphazise its intentionality. I´m not gonna bicker with you though, just...look into him okay? And take off those rosy coloured glasses first.
@canadianalien370 @ckomtro3 stop dick-riding for a sec and look where he invests his money, or look at his posting history. It's plainly out there. I'm a little further along the spectrum than usual, n I've never "accidentally" sieg heiled. Not purposely for that matter, either. Bro got too comfortable n slipped up.
As a fellow therapist, I recommend that discussing the validity of his Hitler salute and attempting to connect it to autism is not advisable. People feel very strongly and passionately about this issue, particularly in light of the recent administration's extreme MAGA stance. If you choose to engage in this debate, that’s your decision, but be prepared for a strong and passionate backlash. Good luck.
What I heard him say starting at 0:50 was a clarifying statement regarding a perceived misstep. He made a point to address this potential distorted thinking right up front.
HELLLO!! 💯
Boom..mic drop.
Clearly a shite “psychologist” from Trump University.
I know what i saw. And we know who he is.
well said 🙌🏽
Totally support this comment. I am up a wall that a licensed mental health professional would try this gaslight garbage.
Hooooo boy I think you are wrong on this one.
He is a narcissist. A very clever, intelligent, wealthy, connected, powerful narcissist.
I saw what I saw with my own two eyes.
yes. you saw it. but, as usual, you misinterpreted it according to your biases. you are so psyoped by the media it's unreal.
@ You're in all the replies of comments pointing out that it was indeed the Nazi salute. Maybe you should reconsider your own biases and politics. I've ssen the footage of the salute being done like that back in the 90s, when I was taught about it in school. No media psy-op. Just video from the actual time. And you know, that being confirmed by my family, who lived through that time.
Totally support this. I am stunned a licensed medical professional is publishing a real gaslight.
🤷🏻♀️
Adding: Being awkward doesn't make you do hand motions that are CLEARLY doing a certain motion that became popular by that horrific painter in Germany. He did that with his whole body (and heart)!
don't be dumb. just stop it.
It’s super clear! You can’t misunderstand. But if you vote for Trump you will watch a lot of normalization and gaslighting.
He might not have “planned” to do this gesture, but autism (I am on the spectrum myself) did not cause nor does it excuse his doing it. He is not a stupid man, he may be socially awkward, but if this gesture had not been part of his mindset he would never have done it. I myself would never in a million years do it, and I have been socially awkward my whole 60 some years of life. I have a brother who is also on the spectrum and even though he and I are on opposite side of the political spectrum I can’t imagine him doing this either. I can’t say Musk intended to give this particular salute, but he knew what he was doing.
Trust me he knew exactly what he was doing TWICE!
Wow this was sad to watch. There are plenty of videos of him actually doing “my heart goes out to you gesture”, in a none n**i salute. He knew what he was doing! And for people to come up with 1 million reasons on why this is not what it is and that he didn’t “mean to” is sad. I know plenty of people who have autism and they ain’t never did this. I’m not bashing you at all. I appreciate your videos a lot but kind of disappointed.
thank you for saying it so perfectly!
Yep. Disappointed for sure.
When you showed the Neonazi salute, that is exactly the one that he did and he did it twice. Whether he has Autism or not is irrelevant. I almost bought the Autism excuse until you showed the neonazi salute. He is not a stupid guy. He knows what he is doing. Just like Trump, he knows how to push boundaries and see how far he can go before being called out.
Or not be called out
@@joyprice209 True!
I´m happy he showed the neo-nazi salute then! I hope you are also aware that he has a history of affiliation with far right movements and ideology? He is a man we need to be really, really vigilant of.
I can’t even, I’ve been avoiding finding out what he did until I watched Speech Prof. and I was just like, what else do you expect from these people. David I’m sorry I disagree I think he did this on purpose.
because you are biased against him.
I'm not biased against him at all and I I believe it was done on purpose as well. When people show you who they are, believe them. I support Trump and I believe he was appointed for this time by God. During the campaign my spirit felt a direct danger when Kenneth Copeland was chosen to pray. That man is full of demons. We must have discernment, or we will be deceived. 🙏
@@kericaswell6084 Hmmm… you are the company that you keep around you. Doesn’t that say a lot about Trump and who he surrounds himself? God may be involved, but not because Trump is a good man. Trump has and will inevitably show us how corrupt this world is, by how corrupt he is.
And he did the salute so vigorously weird
Elon Musk has never been diagnosed as autistic by a doctor. Aspbergers was a nightmare label from day one considering who came up with it, and his failings, in particular. It has since been merged with other conditions into autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and is no longer a diagnosis in the WHO's ICD-11 or the APA's DSM-5-TR. Almost everyone infinitely connected with Autism knows it.
Elon Musk is not smart. He's just a fortunate and lucky jackhole who bought a great car company.
But he meant the gesture to be exactly what it looked like.
He was raised in APARTHEID South Africa, ffs.
David, you're a touch naive when it comes to these narcissists. You are way too liberal with the benefit of the doubt.
I saw what I saw. I saw the snap of it. I saw the sneer that accompanied it. I know what I saw. My history degree says we’re gonna keep excusing and explaining what we see until it’s too late.
I bet you say there are bad people on both sides. This makes me sad because I really enjoyed your content..
This take is just too much. You seem to be making apologies for this action. There is no reason to be accepting of this. I really enjoyed your videos but I can no longer in good conscience continue to support your channel. I am a BSN so I understand the psychological behaviors of the autistic spectrum. But this is totally unacceptable.
This was intentional. And the gaslighting - yes I am using that word - of it is maddening.
Right?1 Gaslighting from a licensed mental health professional.
@stephaniesoondar9798 he's giving his opinion 🙄
I’m trying to understand how you would know without a doubt Elon Musk’s intentions without being him or being told by him. In my opinion It’s speculation and it’s your opinion. I believe when we make absolutes out of speculation we can get into assuming our feelings are truth. Feelings can lie to us. Good, bad or indifferent feelings are feelings but they’re not always truth.
@@sandigoguen4616 Nooooo! We should trust our feelings!!!
@ I should have clarified trust gut feelings versus not trusting emotional feelings based on illogical thinking.
This warm take ain't it and as an autie's mom, I'm offended. My 25 year old is on the spectrum and social ques are a struggle. But he's certainly not an insensitive jerk who refuses be teachable. Elon is an arrogant insensitive jerk who's also a bigot. Shame on you for making broad excuses for him because of autism. And I'm almost certain that he's this way because people in his life made excuses for him instead of working with him to do better.
nope. wrong take. again you are biased against him politically. i don't see that at all.
@@kimberlyevers7031please Why are you take the propaganda from them? It has nothing at all to do with spectra! Nothing at all. If it should happen all the time in Germany and Europe but no! You only see people who are linked to N…i groups. Don’t be fooled and whitewashing it. Do you want that gesture around us? It will continue he make it ok to show his n…
No we are against racism! @@kimberlyevers7031
@@kimberlyevers7031a different take on this isn't wrong. Or being politically biased. Having said that, I disagree with him politically.
Elon Musk is an actual genius who overcame a rough, violent childhood and went on to create several extremely impactful companies, all in different industries. People think this guy just needed proper autistic-minded mommying and then he’d fall into line when being disparaged by a media that hates him? He’s created what he’s created bc of who/what he is. When you get to the fringes (of IQ, of ambition, etc) you’re not going to find perfectly normal, well behaved personalities who are inclined to obedience to social norms.
My son says "I have Asperger's and I know what a Natzi salute is and not to do it."
This is not a NAZI greeting. Stop to say that!
@@AnnaMaria-cm9okStop saying it's not. It absolutely is.
To all of you denying it - I dare you to take a trip to Austria or Germany and replicate it in an official Building of your choice. I double dare ya! And it has nothing! to do with Aspergers. And he did it twice.
I am in the UK the weight of that salute or anything close is very clear. If I did anything close I would be making sure my views were clear and that I do not align with those groups. But then people might believe me as I have always show my disgust for anything like right wing views. Now Elon, not so much. He has support the AFD in Germany, have a read about them and their youth group and some of their members views on where that salute comes from. He supports Tommy Robinson an utter racist criminal who is not in prison because he spoke up, its because he told his racist gangs an innocent teenage boy who was the wrong colour and religion, was a terrorist. It could have got that child killed. Elon shows us his views and who he supports. Fact check it, look for yourself and people need to stop denying reality.
Your son is probably glued to your same propaganda. AOC did the same thing recently, it was funny how she cried about Elon doing it too and then everyone showed footage of her doing it.
It’s a fascist gesture period!
Oh wow, I did not finish watching the end of his video. Yeah david I’m gonna have to disagree with you. I work in ABA therapy. That’s literally what we do is to teach some form of awareness and to take responsibility for it and honestly, I see more growth when we support that than making excuses and saying oh that’s too much for a person on the spectrum. We work through those behaviors and we learn how to appropriately deal with others. Because even though the world is strange to them, they still live in it and there are other people in that too.
I don't think he made excuses. I think Musk probably didn't get the guidance that you provide to your clients. I don't know how far you got in the video, but it might be worth seeing it through to the end.
@@j.johnson7296exactly. We don’t know if Elon ever got ABA therapy and learned that insight.
Maybe you should finish watching...
❤your perspective
Die man geniet van de aandacht en power die hij steeds meer krijgt.
Elon was definitely intentional with that salute …
yes. intentional emotionally. it was NOT a nazi salute. you dim dems really are the worst. course you think trump is a nazi as well. there is no reasoning with you peeps. stop being psyoped by the media. i noticed an article that said "trumps inauguration was the least watched in the last 20 years." Ha. you bet. no one was watching tv. but, the videos on x? million of views and like 3 billion impressions, etc. He had way more watching his inauguration in all media forms than the last 20 years combined. see how the media manipulates you?
i think this is an irresponsible statement and observation of a person who is in a very controversial position in the government. How many times will we be asked to look the other way because of his supposed autistic behavior. This is not a helpful response given the horrible situation all of the US is in. I’m completely surprised and disappointed that this video is out. If I was David I would remove this video immediately. It’s low key a reason to cancel this channel. So sad to promote such a greedy figure so innocently, shameful really 😔
While I totally agree with you about the content of this video, I cannot agree with your wanting David to take it down or for the channel to be cancelled. We need to be wary of censorship.
I think it is a bad judgement he makes, completely taken out of the context of EM´s known far-right sentiments. Further it is apologetic even if we were to play with the thought of David not knowing about them. But what David voices here are ideas that go around, and when published like this they can be discussed and countered, like we all are doing here. If the video is taken down, so is this entire little ocean of exchanges that is its comment section. The discussion will be as if it never existed. (And so far from what I´ve seen, this here is an unusually decent and equivocal comment section)
Why are you trying to normalize this?!
I do think he did it. I also think he was high, earlier in the day you could see his eyes rolling around. It was absolutely bizarre.
Eye rolling is a type of autism stim, I don't know if that for sure is what it was for him, but it's a common stim
I have so many friends that are autistic and they know what a Nazi salute is. We know exactly what that is. Don’t make excuses for it.
I had avoided watching the inauguration, but that gesture seemed pretty purposeful. 😬
it was purposeful. he was driven by emotion...not by nazis. lol come, now. this is so stupid. didn't even look like the nazi salute, at all. it did look similar.
@@kimberlyevers7031go find something else to do besides trolling every comment that doesn't agree with UR political view
you are a nut
“didn’t look like it at all” “did look similar” - which one is it.
Is the gesture a Nazi salute? No. Way different. If I raise my hand to ask a question is that also a Nazi salute?
Awww ima miss watching this channel. Because he did that shyt on purpose.
Nope. He very much knows what he is doing and you need to read about his back ground
God help us
You’ll be fine, Amy.
@@dove861 no doubt
@dove861 no doubt
@@dove861no doubt
God helped you American because He gave you the correct way: Trump is that. If you do not recognize him you are poor people. I'm Italian and we are dominated by a fake right party towards the communism. So: be glad of what you have now.
This video is insanely apologetic. No, it´s not too much to ask from someone "obsessed with truth", that he corrects a supposedly false impression that the genreal public (including extatically happy neo-nazis) have of him.
He's so awkward and weird. Everything about him screams, "I'm the smallest man in the room." He so badly wants to be cool. His whole vibe is strange.
Ya no shit he obviously has slight autism, he can be awkward. I'm all for it if you want to be worried about his AI NWO stuff, but still the dudes just a little autistic with it, as any "genius" should be, if he is as such.
Musk thinks he is first person with ASD to host SNL? Dan Aykroyd has ASD.
I am so offended as an autistic individual about blaming it on autism. He knew what he was doing. Especially given his rightwing politics and supporting the far right in Germany.
When Kamala Harris and Tim Walz put their hands over their hearts to their crowds in gratitude, they dropped their hands afterward, not throw it up like Adolf Hitler. That is what a gratitude gesture looks like.
dude. there are literally pics of aoc having her hand outstretched exactly like elon...maybe not as vehement, but it's there. obama, same, scores of others. you refuse to not believe that elon is NOT a fascist. but, if you think about it, that make no sense whatsoever. he does business with germany. he doesn't like all the muslim culture there. it's not a fit for europe. cultures clash. just today a migrant stabbed a baby from a daycare in a park along with a care giver. they both died. tragic. germany and gbritain need to stop allowing these peeps to come in...that is not fascism. that is called protecting their nations and their people. for whatever reason, the muslims seem to do better in our country....like, they assimilate better or something...less crazy fundamentalism. not true in europe. it is not working.
@@kimberlyevers7031 Link the video footage and not a screenshot then. Show us the evidence in video form.
“No, she doesn’t! It’s not true! If you watch the film, it becomes clear there’s absolutely no connection. The difference is stark-it’s like comparing night and day. However, if you’re pro-Trump, much of that perception seems to stem from their propaganda machine, pushing narratives and normalizing misinformation.”
@@alexandermacneil4430oh lord 🙄 give it up
@ Yeah, asking for video evidence is so wooooke! Only idiots ask for such, not stable geniuses like you!
He is totally behind that movement. Go look him up
My son is 29 years old with autism. Doesn’t do the Natzi salute.
Musk is a Natzi.
Thank you!
He said "my heart goes out to you" and then grabbed his chest and gestured that he was sending it out to the crowd. Show elon the same grace you would ask people to show your autistic son. Get a grip.
Throwing around that word to everyone you don't like is an insult to the millions of people who were k-lled by actual Nazis. Stop it.
@@lizkthe did a Nazi salute. And you’re defending it.
@@Caelinsmommahe was throwing his heart to the crowd
Bullshit. He knows what he did.
Thanks for your explanation. It is helpful, but if he wants to be such a leader in America then he needs to be willing to listen to those around him to tell him to do the right thing and that is to apologize and explain himself.
He said right when he made the sign...my heart is with you...not 3 seconds lapsed...
@ there could’ve been many gestures he could have made to show that his heart is with you. We don’t need to make excuses for him. He just needs to apologize for offending anybody.
He's the richest man in the world and that's unlikely to change. Do you honestly think he'll ever apologize!? He doesn't give a single f what ANYONE thinks about him! He doesn't want or need our forgiveness or understanding. He's got world leaders in his pocket, and he's only about power and control.
His father came out and talked about his Grand Parents and their ties to Nazi party when they moved from Canada to South Africa due to Aparti and the connections to the Nazi beliefs.
I have a son with Aspergers. He’s 37 and pretty high functioning and extremely smart, as Aspies usually are. He came into the kitchen where I was working and said “mom, you aren’t going to like what Elon Musk just did. He gave a Nazi salute.”. I stood there with my mouth open😮. I mused, why would he do that? My son said, “he’s autistic and he got caught up in the excitement and emotion.”
It doesn’t always bode well for me to respond.
I agree with your son Musk arms were flying left right and center he simply could not contain his happiness he was using his whole body and a lot of arm movements to convey to everyone that he is stoke and super excited of the new era that has been ushered in with Trump's regaining the white house
It’s not just the salute, it’s everything behind the salute. I can’t make more excuses for Elon, it’s time to admit he’s on more than social cues, this has to be pills or something because he’s all over the place and burning bridges. Saying racist stuff, sexist stuff…it’s just all bad. His mother also is kinda off the rocker, it’s very possible he meant this salute as intended for likes, attention and applause
Also another issue I have is we give him all the credit for backing teams that are brilliant and we give him their brilliance by his ability to build on it. We give him all the credit despite his being on the spectrum, all the grace. However when he does bad we give him no blame? This man is a billionaire and runs businesses and has like 80 kids, we can’t make excuses for him on the spectrum here but not there. No Dave, no.
Do not agree at all., that was full Nazi
If you say you don't think he adheres to neo Nazi groups, then you haven't been paying attention to what he says and does, and most recently especially during 2024.
Also, do we take his word for it, that he has Asperger syndrome? Has anyone seen an official diagnosis?
He did it, no excuses. He does not get a pass just because he has autism. He is affiliated with the "there are good people on both sides" 😡
It has been proven time and time again, by both sides, that Trump never said this!!
But why did he turn around and do it a second time?
Because he really wanted to be clear about it.
Give me a break. Horrible take.
Not autism! Arrogance! He’s so powerful he doesn’t care or try to hide his true nature
@@lauriekittle9459 both
The consequences should be the same REGARDLESS OF INTENTION
why? it was not a nazi salute at all. it did look similar.
@@kimberlyevers7031 oh, punkin...
He was very intentional and knew exactly what he was doing.