A Reckoning for MeToo

Using sexual allegations as a political tool has killed the movement’s credibility and rendered truth irrelevant.

Is Elon Musk a sexual predator? Did he, as allegations unveiled by Business Insider suggest, flash his erect penis at a SpaceX flight attendant, asking her for sexual favors in exchange for buying her a horse? Insider’s source, a friend of the accuser, claims that he did. But Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, has forcefully denied all allegations, dismissing them as a political attack intended to foil his acquisition of Twitter.

Certainly, Musk has his enemies. Not everyone was happy about the billionaire’s $44 billion bid for Twitter and his pledge to uphold the principles of free speech, which he called “the bedrock of a functioning democracy.” Amnesty International warned of “violent and abusive speech against users, particularly those most disproportionately impacted, including women, non-binary persons and others.”

Whether the accusations are true, partially true, or “utterly untrue” (as Musk claims) is hard to say. Insider reported that SpaceX paid a flight attendant $250,000 in severance after she complained of Musk’s alleged misconduct. Initially, Musk told Insider that there was “a lot more to the story.” However, he soon decided the piece was just a “hit job” and that no good could come of providing further details.