Update: Twitter CEO Elon Musk asked users to decide whether or not he should step down. The 12-hour poll just ended and he “lost” by 15-points with over 17 millions votes cast. Does this mean he’s going to step down?
Yes, it almost certainly means he will. While there is a chance that he can claim the vote was driven by bots, he has thus far abided by all previous “community decisions.” But perhaps more importantly, I believe he wanted to step down. He’ll still control the company as owner, so while the new CEO will handle day-to-day affairs, he will be able to do pretty much everything he can do now without the added responsibility of steering the ship.
As I noted yesterday in the original article, if he “loses” the vote and steps down, I believe he did so intentionally. He has always pretended to be whimsical while secretly operating based on a very precise plan. Is this one of those cases? We may soon see. Then again, we may never know (as I noted below).
As the saying goes, be careful what you wish, as you might get it
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2022
Original Article: Twitter polls are absolutely worthless. They’re unscientific, easy to manipulate, and almost always express the bias of either the person posting the poll or the group who finds the poll and hammers it with narrative-busting bot votes.
Elon Musk’s polls have proven to have teeth since he has allegedly made major company decisions based on the results. He reinstated Donald Trump and other accounts after polls, for example. But his latest poll is by far the most important. The future of the company will be determined by it.
He asked a yes or no question: “Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.”
Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2022
As of the writing of this post, the “Yes” vote has a large lead.
Will he really step down if the poll goes that way? Yes. Can he manipulate the poll to get the results he wants? Of course. Could this be a way to justify his continued leadership so he can claim majority rule if the poll says so? Possibly. Was he already planning on stepping down and is using the poll as a way to facilitate that? Again, possibly.
As I’ve long said, Elon Musk doesn’t really make decisions based on reactions to what he posts on Twitter. He pretends to, but in at least one major case he had already made his decision before pretending to whimsically make the call based on Twitter responses. That example was the big one when he asked what should be done about Twitter after they banned the Babylon Bee. A few days after the overwhelming response that he should buy the site, he purchased over 9% and became the largest shareholder.
On the surface, it would appear that he was just a man with more money than he needed making carefree decisions based on reactions from millions of people he didn’t know. In reality, he had notified the SEC of his plans two weeks before the Tweet asking people if he should buy Twitter. It made for a great show, but it was all a smokescreen.
Is this the same thing? Is he planning on stepping down either way? If so, he will either accept the vote if it calls for him to step down or he will manipulate it so that it appears he was called to step down. Perhaps that has been the plan all along. With Elon Musk, we may never know.
At Last, a Company With Integrity in the Gold IRA Industry
For several years, I’ve been vetting out precious metals companies in search of the best. I believe in gold and silver but it’s hard to find integrity in the Gold IRA industry. The vast majority operate with shady tactics and gigantic spreads that take advantage of Americans who simply want to protect their life’s savings.
I’ve found a handful that I like and I’ve worked with some of them. By no means would I “unrecommend” them because, again, I vetted them out and found them to be above the fold. Unfortunately, it isn’t hard to be better than the rest when the rest are so darn awful.
After years of searching, I finally found a company that truly operates with integrity. Augusta Precious Metals has three important attributes that set them far above the competition:
- Non-Commissioned Sales Team: I cannot stress how important and unique this is. With just about every other company in the Gold IRA industry, the sales teams make commission from every account they open. This means they steer their clients toward the gold and silver products with the highest commission. With Augusta Precious Metals, the team is solely focused on putting the best gold and silver for their clients into their IRA. They get paid to serve the best interests of the Gold IRA client, NOT their own commission pay.
- Incredibly Low Fees: Most Americans would be shocked if they knew the spread other Gold IRA companies charge. Augusta charges just 5% versus up to 45% elsewhere.
- No Pressure, No Gimmicks: There’s an understanding among most in the Gold IRA industry that fear and pressure is the way to go. Augusta Precious Metals takes a sober approach when working with clients because they hold integrity in the highest possible regard. This is why they don’t offer gimmicks like “free” or “bonus” silver. It’s also why they do not apply pressure tactics to get quick sales. Their educational and transparent approach to doing business is exceedingly rare in the Gold IRA industry.