Is Elon Musk the right man for DOGE?
Sunday 15 December 2024
If efficiency is implemented in Washington like it has been on X, we should expect a Federal Government infiltrated by crooks and scammers. This was my recent experience. It began when a woman named Christy Beck, “Social Media Assistant to Elon Musk,” kicked off a process that attempted to rob me of $50,000.
His engineering skills are beyond this world. Through hard work and determination, Elon Musk has succeeded in bringing science fiction to the real world while addressing some of mankind’s biggest challenges. X, however, is not about sending people to Mars but more about wreaking havoc on the common Untermensch that remain on Earth. Musk calls it free speech, but his passive attitude has been a welcoming card to bad actors. And there are many on X, parading about right under the nose of its owner and genius, Elon Musk.
After acquiring Twitter in October 2022, Elon reduced the workforce by approximately 80%, cutting the number of full-time employees from 7,500 to about 1,500. Significant layoffs occurred across departments, including trust and safety.
Those cuts were needed, just like Washington cuts are needed. However, in the process of downsizing Twitter, Elon abandoned the rigors of truth in exchange for a better profit margin.
Today X is not shy about its disregard for rigor in defense of truth and honesty. The infamous blue mark that most see as a sign of a user’s authenticity is now a mockery of what it once meant. Instead of validating users, X’s Premium subscription fee now does the opposite—assuring subscribers that they “will not undergo review.”
Having already encountered a number of Elon Musk impersonators, I thought I was on the right track when I received a reply from Christy Beck, “SOCIAL MEDIA ASSISTANT TO ELON MUSK.” With an account on X, a blue checkmark, and 11k posts, I assumed Christy to be the real deal. She wasn’t, but rather the keeper of a rathole defended by a man who gets teary-eyed when talking about the importance of truth and honesty but shows no willingness to uphold these principles on X.
Beck provided me Elon’s address on Telegram: @RealElonMusk_X. She promised nothing but suggested I give it a try. I wrote Elon and applauded the creation of DOGE. I also informed Elon of my background and research in this area and shared a white paper I had written for DOGE. Two days later, I received a reply from Elon and a short note of appreciation for the DOGE white paper. Wow, I thought, is this actually happening. Wanting to stay on his radar, a few days later, I sent Elon an article I had drafted on DOGE. I thought he might see my move as pushy, but I considered that a plus.
Within a few hours, I received a very positive reply from Elon. To this, I asked if I could help the DOGE team. Elon replied yes, and I shared my email and cell phone. I didn’t understand the context, but Elon wrote that I would be hearing from his Wealth Manager. He didn’t provide a name, but I searched and quickly found Jared Birchall.
Late the next day, I received a text message from a person claiming to be Jared Birchall. It looked like things were coming together. Jared explained that he would be assisting me in the onboarding process. I hadn’t asked about money and wasn’t expecting anything other than an opportunity to get involved and volunteer my time.
It was Saturday when things turned odd. Jared had texted me and asked if I was familiar with Top Capital Choice (TCC), a crypto trading platform. He wanted me to open an account on TCC and deposit $5,000. He explained that Elon asks this of all team members. It seemed strange, but I rationalized it as Elon’s version of the Franklin Effect—where getting a person to do something for you makes them like you.
The TCC website was new to me, but I could see it was designed for crypto trading. Despite the risk, I saw it as an opportunity to ride the DOGE coin wave and other assets hyped by Elon. My $5,000 wire was pending and would go out Monday morning.
Sensing my vulnerability, scam-team Elon went off script a few hours later. Not Jared, but the world’s richest man wanted me to join his VIP team, but for a fee of $100,000! The generous Elon would cover half of it. My heart sank when I read this message because I couldn’t imagine any billionaire wasting time on pennies. This was not the Franklin Effect but a scam.
I informed Elon that I would need to have a video call with him. I didn’t expect one, but a short while later, I received a voice message from Elon—short and to the point—it sounded every bit like the real Elon Musk. The fake Elon said he was too busy for a video call but encouraged me to move forward with Jared. Despite being anxious to get my money, the fake Jared was also too busy to meet online.
I summarized the history of events and sent them to a trusted friend, along with a copy of the Musk voice message. Within an hour, he exposed Christy as a fraud and the voice message from Elon to be AI-generated. I logged into my bank account and canceled the pending transfer.
Today’s X is the “deluded world” that Elon warned of.
We can give Elon the permissions he needs to launch rockets to the Moon and Mars, and for the Full Self-Driving Tesla, but we should keep him far from anything that requires the rigors of truth and honesty. Better to leave this to Vivek.
Fred Eberlein