By
Godfrey Benjamin
May 13th, 2024
Elon Musk believes it’s time to break up Amazon. In a series of tweets, he called the company a monopoly after it was revealed that his book about coronavirus doesn’t meet Amazon guidelines for sale.
In a democracy, everyone has the right to his opinion and choice which influences their actions at the polls. The freedom of expression has stirred people to take positions some of which are not necessarily a popular opinion. This is the case with Elon Musk, Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) and SpaceX CEO, who is currently on the news amidst row with Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN).
Elon Musk is a known critic of the government’s policies with respect to the coronavirus pandemic. He has on occasion expressed his views about the needless locking down of the economy and constantly advocates the reopening of the economy. This he did in a book that was scheduled to be published on Amazon.
Elon Musk’s Controversial Thoughts and Tweets
That Elon Musk is a genius can not be debated. He is the brain behind the launching of SpaceX, the first private company to send humans into space. Several ingenious creativities are attributed to his company Tesla. He is however known to be controversial with his tweets and comments on public matters. A recent tweet Elon Musk wiped about $14 billion off Tesla (TSLA) stocks in a development that stunned the electric car makers investors.
Tesla stock price is too high imo
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 1, 2020
One could argue that Elon Musk is always unapologetic about his tweets no matter the cost. He also cost his investors $20 million in fines back in 2018 when he declared he wanted to take Tesla private at $420 stock price in this tweet. The SEC sued him for this and he was made to pay a $20 million fine each for himself and Tesla.
Musk vs Amazon
Now Elon Musk addressed Amazon in his tweets. This post was clearly directed at Jeff Bezos, CEO at Amazon, and Alex Berenson, a former New York Times Reporter, after Berenson published a screenshot showing that his upcoming book about COVID-19 doesn’t meet Amazon guidelines for sale.
Time to break up Amazon. Monopolies are wrong!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 4, 2020
In reaction to the row, Amazon has confirmed that Elon Musk’s book was removed in error and it is being reinstated. Hopefully, this is enough to pacify the tech genius.
Being an assertive thought leader has its merits, speaking against some errors of established institutions can help such organizations work on their shortcomings. While Elon Musk won’t desist from his tweets, he should at least focus it on addressing institutional lapses than costing his investors.