I have been following with interest the developments on the Elon Musk vs Twitter management and shareholders saga. I am glad that so far it is proving that market-based solutions always outperform government intrusions.
First, a couple of disclaimers. I am not a big fan of Elon Musk. I sometimes appreciate what he does and what he says, but I also have some concerns about him. In addition, I don't regard Twitter as a useful medium for the exchange of ideas. Rather, the opposite. For that reason, I have not used it in the past and I doubt I will use it in the future.
With that out of the way, I like very much the idea that if you don't like how a business operates, and you can afford to buy it, you just do it. I believe that this is the main reason that explains why the world is now better than anytime in the past.
Twitter has never been a good business. Maybe because most people are like me and don't have a use for it, or because its current business model is not sound. But it provides whoever controls it with much influence, probably undeserved. This has always made it very vulnerable, and Musk is just the first that has detected this vulnerability and had the means to correct the problem.
Contrary to what the conservative side has been saying in the past, and what the progressive side is saying now that Musk is going to take control. Twitter is, and has always been, a privately owned firm. And a private organization may conduct its business as it sees fit.
If the owners or managers of Twitter wanted to censor certain views from their platform, they had the right to do so. If that decision turned out not to be a good business practice, they had to bear with its consequences, namely that it was susceptible to be acquired by someone with a different view.
If Elon Musk is right and a no-censorship approach makes more sense from a business point of view, Twitter will enhance its profitability and will make it much more difficult for its current shareholders and management to use the cash they make with the sale of their shares to rebuild a new Twitter that continues censoring some views and promoting others.
If not, then their point will be vindicated, and Elon Musk will have provided them with the resources to build a better Twitter, while the original fades into oblivion. What a nice revenge! Using the money provided by your competitor to crush him.
That is the beauty of the capitalist way.
All the talk about Twitter being a public forum for the fair exchange of ideas is just bullshit. Twitter is a business, not a charity endeavor. If Twitter provides a valuable service, it will find a way to charge for its service. If it doesn't, because the public does not appreciate it. It will fail and will be replaced by a service that better serves its customers.
I believe that the current consternation felt by many left leaning hypocrites is that they have suddenly realized that the public did not really appreciate their precious little toy that allowed them to propagate their petty ideas. They thought they represented the People, but they have discovered that they only represent themselves. I feel sorry for them. It must hurt.
I am also sure that this power move by Elon Musk will have momentous repercussions. The progressive front had the sensation that they were invincible and had already conquered the Internet and public debate. This is the first sign that they might have called victory too soon. I am sure that the Twitter takeover will produce a serious realignment inside and outside of the cyberspace as other players experience the effects of their vulnerable positions.