Elon Musk, the billionaire founder and owner of SpaceX and X, has argued that there is a straightforward solution to the issue of protestors tearing down the American flag and replacing it with the Palestinian flag, or at least attempting to do so, in various locations across the country. He believes that individuals who desecrate the American flag in order to replace it with the flag of another nation should be issued a one-way ticket to that country.
On Thursday, May 2, Mr. Musk shared his thoughts on the notion of a deportation campaign in the context of the campus protests and subsequently posted a poll to inquire about the opinions of his followers.
He stated in the May 2 post, “Proposed law: If an individual desecrates the American flag and erects a different flag in its place, they should be granted a complimentary (but obligatory) one-way trip to the country of the flag.” The proposed law was supported by nearly three-quarters of the respondents, who cast approximately 1.5 million ballots in the poll.
In an addendum to the original poll and tweet, Mr. Musk stated that the deportees could eventually be permitted to return, provided that they have spent an adequate amount of time in the other country and have gained a sufficient understanding of its culture. He stated, “I am not denying that they are permitted to return; however, they must first gain an understanding of the country before returning.”
In response, a commenter pointed out that members of Congress waived Ukrainian flags after passing the most recent $100 billion foreign aid measure. The commenter in question stated, “Indeed, we should investigate the same concept for any politician who is waving the flag of a foreign country in our Congress.” Elon responded, “That was peculiar.” Please also display the American flag.
Another commenter, Tennessee Republican Robby Starbuck, proposed an additional program to complement Elon’s. He stated, “We should also have a communism exchange program, where we allow American communists to travel to any communist country of their choosing and allow one refugee from communism to take their place.”
And yet another commenter expressed their concurrence with this statement: “I wholeheartedly concur.” Americans are entitled and pampered. I would prefer to witness them endure hardship in the nation they advocate for and return to the United States with a newfound appreciation for the values we uphold. Liberation.
Conversely, a significant number of commenters criticized Elon’s concept as anti-free expression. For instance, one individual penned, “Isn’t your entire endeavor free speech?” Why are you advocating for a law that is anti-free speech? lmfao.
The general dissatisfaction with demonstrators demolishing the American flag was further exacerbated by an incident at UNC, where protesters attempted to demolish the flag but were impeded by Pi Kappa Phi members. Guillermo Estrada, a Pi Kappa Phi brother and UNC student, elucidated the incident by stating, “My fraternity brother and others rushed over to support it so that it would not contact the ground.” People began to hurl water bottles, pebbles, and sticks at us, and they called us profane names. We stood for an hour in defense of the flag that so many individuals fight to preserve.
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