Hubris is the great sin of the tragic hero, the flaw that brings about their downfall. [Britannica]
Origin of the word hubris: From the ancient Greek word hybris, which initially meant wanton violence, insolence, or outrage.
Over 2,400 years ago, several playwrights, including Sophocles, wrote Greek tragedies about the catastrophic outcome resulting from excessive pride, arrogance, or overconfidence. History shows that his lessons have not been learned over the last twenty-four centuries. Instead, the history of hubris continues to repeat itself in an endless, tragic loop.
Among the many tragic heroes of the twenty-first century is the world’s richest man.
While many of his hero worshipers may not yet perceive his fatal flaws, it is becoming increasingly apparent to those who look past his tweets and dramatic stage appearances. This post will be an interesting litmus test for the reader’s perspective on Trump and Musk. Many Americans (77 million voted for Trump in 2024) accept the strange and odious behaviors of Trump and Musk because they believe they are on the “right track”. Some of their supporters have misgivings, while the rest quietly celebrate them because they see the world through the same lens of one or both men.
Musk was a very clever and lucky guy when he was young. He joined one of the leading Silicon Valley Bro Clubs, which included Peter Thiel. He cleared over $100 million after he was ousted from his CEO role at PayPal in 2000. In 2002, he reinvested some of his PayPal money in his start-up, SpaceX, and in 2004, he invested more in an existing Silicon Valley company named Tesla, founded by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning.
Musk’s companies were fabulously successful from 2002 to around 2015. SpaceX, based in Hawthorne, California, became the master of low-orbit rocket deliveries with its Falcon rocket, and Tesla, a Silicon Valley-based Company, was a pioneer in electric vehicles. By 2015, most of us were in awe of this young man from South Africa.
[In the background, around 2015, we begin to hear the music of a Greek tragedy.]
The wealth generated by his successful California companies and the adoring press reports inflated his ego to gigantic proportions. He began to come out of the closet about many of his bizarre beliefs and goals. For example, he believed (perhaps correctly) that the world is headed for ruin and that humankind should transport its “consciousness” to Mars. He thought this was an imperative; else, we might lose our consciousness…I guess.
Musk began a campaign against LGBTQ+ laws passed in California. Interestingly, one of his 15 or 20 children (we are never sure how many there are) declared herself to be transgender. He became so focused on transgender issues that he stated he would move the SpaceX headquarters from California (which passed some transgender rights laws) to his company-owned town known as Starbase, Texas. Starbase is where all his next-generation rockets are sent to explode. After nine or ten attempts, all of his expensive next-generation models, Starship, have either exploded on the launch pad or shortly after takeoff. Despite Starbase being the headquarters of SpaceX, most of the labor and expenses remain in California.
SpaceX has undoubtedly attracted some top talent since 2002, particularly since NASA decided to outsource the manufacture of space vehicles. SpaceX’s Falcon rocket is the current workhorse of America’s low-orbit program. America needs SpaceX to prosper. However, if Musk’s erratic arrogance continues, then, as they say, we may hear, “Houston, we have a problem.”
[In the background, we hear more Greek tragedy music]
In October 2015, Musk promised to have “full self-driving” cars by 2018. It is 2025, and Musk has not only failed to deliver on his promise, but he is being continually sued by the estates of dead people who trusted his simpler “assisted driving mode.”
There is no better example of Musk’s hubris than his frenetic fixation on full self-driving mode. While Tesla was a pioneer in the new electric vehicle technology, the flaws in its self-driving strategy are so numerous and well-known that there is no need to recount them here.
It is a simple fact that Tesla’s competition, particularly in the self-driving taxi model, is far ahead of Tesla. Musk’s claim that existing Teslas could be used as taxis demonstrates either the desperation or hubris in his thinking. First of all, how many people rich enough to purchase a Tesla would want to “rent out” their vehicle? Second, companies like Waymo are light-years ahead of Tesla in the driverless taxi industry model. Some taxi/Uber-type drivers might think about buying a Tesla for its driverless feature, but they are more likely to go with another company with more proven technology.
As with SpaceX, I am sure many hardcore engineers are working at Tesla. Tesla deserves a leader that can reverse the company’s direction.
[In the background, we hear Greek funeral music.]
Finally, Musk’s tenure as the CEO of DOGE and his flaming divorce from his White House bro demonstrate hubris on steroids. He destroyed and ruined many government programs with his bureaucratic chainsaw. Undoubtedly, there is waste and inefficiency at every level of American government; however, only someone with more vanity than brains would try to reform government with a chainsaw.
