Politics

As I watched my family members trade arguments on the character of Elon Musk, whether robber baron or clever businessman, it occurred to me that my previous worldview of billionaire outlooks had been incorrect. I had formerly mentally assigned these respective viewpoints along political leanings. I thought the robber baron viewpoint, that of billionaires as cruel, manipulative omens of late stage capitalism, as the viewpoint of a leftist, and the more compassionate, awe-filled business-oriented viewpoint as an idea right-wing in origin. And to be sure, I think these views are more typically correlated with these respective political leanings. ...

Anyone familiar with film or television is probably aware of the phrase breaking the fourth wall. It refers to any point where the veil cast between the audience and the events of the film is disrupted, the actors indicating to us that this is all an act they are no longer playing along with. I like to apply this phrase to other scenarios. Humans instinctually create systems, rules, stories, et cetera. To have the capacity to follow these systems as if they were laws of the natural universe is what elevates us from all else. But when an actor participating in a system makes the deliberate action to break its rules, to leap across the barriers and act like they are no longer bound — in a sense the fourth wall of that system has been shattered. ...