If Musk is so appalling, why do I quite like the tech giant?

One of the least controversial statements it would be possible to make in this world is that Elon Musk is a bit of a nightmare as a human being.

- JONATHAN MARGOLIS

In Britain, we have seen him address a rally in support of the so-called Tommy Robinson and pay his legal fees. He has poked his oar (selectively) into grooming gangs. In the US, we have seen him call for troops to be deployed against the drug-addicted tramps on the streets of San Francisco. This is demented. And across the world, we have seen the effects of his close association with Donald Trump, his giving apparent Nazi salutes, and transforming Twitter into a cesspit with a silly name.

But here is a controversial proposition: does it matter that he is appalling? And does he have acceptable reasons for being an abomination? To both points, I have an even more contentious position. In the highly unlikely event that I ever get to know him or even meet him, I think I would quite like Elon Musk. And I admire a huge amount of his life's work so far.

As for his achievements, while the Twitter-to-X transition has been a horror story, the rest of Musk's oeuvre has been far from peripheral rubbish.