this post was submitted on 08 Nov 2025
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[–] rayquetzalcoatl@lemmy.world 158 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (6 children)

It feels so weird to call this controversial. Doesn't that usually mean something similar to "polarising"? Who are on the poles here? Nazis, and the rest of the world?

From the wiki entry, "...interpreted by many as a Nazi or fascist" salute. It's like, yeah I guess it was interpreted by many that way, in the same way many people interpret water to be wet.

Why are the writers of this wiki entry giving so much wiggle room for Nazis? What the fuck?

[–] fonix232@fedia.io 60 points 1 month ago (2 children)

It's "controversial" because Nazism has somehow became acceptable to a considerable chunk of the population, who publicly deny it, thus creating "controversy".

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 26 points 1 month ago

America never dealt with its racism problem.

[–] SCmSTR@lemmy.blahaj.zone 6 points 1 month ago
[–] AreaKode@lemmy.world 41 points 1 month ago

It's been so long since people killed Nazis. We forgot that Nazis exist. Same problem we're having with vaccines. We prefer to learn the hard way...

[–] Plum@lemmy.world 15 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

As far as I understand, yes.

'Murica.

[–] PunnyName@lemmy.world 10 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Because Wikipedia is "leftist propaganda", and they'll be sued for libel the moment they declare him a Nazi.

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[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 8 points 1 month ago

its because trump/maga do shit like this and constantly deny and pretend its a misunderstanding. Its like the guy with a schwastika in the red lines of the american flag he had in the background and the immediate response was it was the software doing it on video but the flag looked normal in person. Which was shown to be bs in like 5 seconds because the guy had hung up a flag given to him that walked around and offered them to all the offices in the building.

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[–] Formfiller@lemmy.world 101 points 1 month ago (2 children)
[–] Plum@lemmy.world 11 points 1 month ago
[–] Akasazh@feddit.nl 8 points 1 month ago

Great work!

[–] BossDj@piefed.social 66 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Please correct me, but as far as I know, Elon Musk has never explicitly denied that it was a Nazi salute. He never said the words "it was not" or anything similar. He has called accusers ridiculous, talked about a gesture being meaningless, and made Holocaust jokes.

[–] Tyrq@lemmy.dbzer0.com 27 points 1 month ago (2 children)

He said it was "my heart goes out to you", probably referring to nazis

[–] Bonesince1997@lemmy.world 13 points 1 month ago

He also thanked the ADL for saying it wasn't. Whatever that means.

[–] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago

After he did it. Yeah. As if.

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 month ago

And weeks later Steve Bannon made obvious salutes.

[–] PrincessLeiasCat@sh.itjust.works 50 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (5 children)

Lenz Jacobsen wrote in Die Zeit: "Someone who, on a political stage during a political speech in front of a partly far-right audience swings their right arm upwards diagonally multiple times, is giving the Nazi salute. There's no need for 'alleged' or 'similar' or 'disputed'."[72] Timo Feldhaus wrote in the Berliner Zeitung: "That Elon Musk carefully considered his energetically performed signal, is safe to assume. Even a man as oblivious to history as he is knows what he's doing in this situation."[73]

No confusion as to what it really was.

[–] ZMoney@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago

The media defers to billionaires because it's owned by them. That's an even less controversial statement.

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[–] RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world 47 points 1 month ago (1 children)

It’s absolutely a Nazi salute. I’m about 90% sure he did it the way he did just to stir the shit because he’s an attention seeking asshole wanting to be the main character. Only 10% remaining because he doesn’t think he’s a Nazi despite sharing a shitload of their fascist traits.

[–] JcbAzPx@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago (1 children)

He did it twice very emphatically with anger in his face. He did it as an act of defiance. The only way it makes sense is if he was using it as his public declaration that he was with the nazis.

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[–] FelixCress@lemmy.world 44 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] frunch@lemmy.world 24 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Some people still insist on playing dumb about it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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[–] Jyek@sh.itjust.works 36 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

My favorite this was watching all the people claim "It was a Roman salute! It means he is giving his heart to the people!" Motherfucker the Roman salute is the Nazi salute. They are the same thing. The Romans used it, then the Italian Fascist party used it and Hitler adopted it in Germany and called it the Sieg Heil.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_salute

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_salute

[–] pjwestin@lemmy.world 23 points 1 month ago (2 children)

The Romans didn't even use it. It's from a French painting of Rome that became popular after the revolution. It existed for barely a hundred years, and was hardly used by anyone, until it was adopted by fascists and Nazis.

[–] YiddishMcSquidish@lemmy.today 9 points 1 month ago

Really could use Occam's razor with this bullshit. If you gotta make so many assumptions, then you're likely not on the correct path.

Elon musk is a Nazi who did a Nazi gesture. Simple as.

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[–] Doomsider@lemmy.world 35 points 1 month ago

The Trillion Dollar Nazi. Sounds like a good title for a book.

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 32 points 1 month ago

The salute is just one piece of the story. Musk is actively supporting right wing fascist and white supremacy groups in UK and Germany with funding. His activity on social media is just as bad.

Even if he didn't obviously do Fascist salutes while high on ketamine, he has a deeper troubling history.

[–] Ougie@lemmy.world 31 points 1 month ago

What's the controversy? The man's entire body of work is authoritarian to the core. Are we debating whether this was a nazi salute or an awkward attempt at a nazi salute? Who cares about the gesture, look where he invested his money, what he says on a daily basis. Is there anyone who doesn't recognize the fascism? If you don't recognize it, I got news for you...

[–] headset@lemmy.world 25 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Elon Musk's NAZI salute. There is no controversy

[–] 87Six@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 month ago

The salute done by the Nazi? The nazi Elon Musk? By Elon Musk the Nazzzzi? Nah he was just saluting his Nazi friends, he's not a Nazi himself

[–] duckCityComplex@lemmy.world 21 points 1 month ago (4 children)

In my opinion, Musk does not consider himself a Nazi, despite his involvement in far right causes and patent racism.

I think he just can't stand the idea of a world where other people can tell him what he can and can't do. This was him going out there to show the world, "I can do whatever I want" with the most extreme example he could come up with. The "lol you call everyone a Nazi" trolling afterwards was icing on the cake for him.

I say this not to excuse or condone this in any way. It clearly was 100% intended as a Nazi salute.

He's a pathetic creep whose mental development stopped in adolescence. See also: Stephen Miller.

[–] Revan343@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 month ago

The distinction between ideological Nazis vs capitalists who are going with it for money is a pointless one; do you know what we call people who supported Hitler for business reasons?

We call them Nazis.

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[–] iAvicenna@lemmy.world 19 points 1 month ago (1 children)

That is why I love wikipedia, this will be there forever (or atleast in the hard drives of people who backed it up). Not the sort of stuff you can find it in government backed projects. Happy to be an annual donator.

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[–] roserose56@lemmy.zip 18 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

More USA drama! Noice. It's clear what he did, there is no controversy.
You fool yourself.

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[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 17 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Imagine STILL thinking this is a "controversy".

Propaganda has poisoned people's minds and I'm afraid it's permanent.

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[–] jaselle@lemmy.ca 16 points 1 month ago

I have no strong opinion on whether this was or was not intended to be a nazi salute. The bigger issue in my opinion is how Musk reacted to people asking him to confirm that it was not intended to be a nazi salute. Deflection, jokes, ridicule, and tacit approval. All served to bolster the white supremacists watching -- and this, for sure, was intended.

[–] IncogCyberSpaceUser@piefed.social 15 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Someone said to me once, "he's just a awkward guy!" Give me a fucking break.

[–] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 9 points 1 month ago

There's lots of awkward nazis, it's not uncommon.

[–] irelephant@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 1 month ago

Oops! I slipped and fell and accidentally did a Nazi salute. And then refused to clarify I didn't do one

[–] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago (3 children)

Does it mention how high he was? Not that that’s an excuse, he was planning to do it anyway, but that fascist garbage fire is hiiiiiiigh

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[–] melsaskca@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 month ago

I'm never buying a Teslar.

[–] sefra1@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 month ago

Oh yes, the Terran Empire salute.

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