Monthly Archives: June 2022

Let’s look at the facts when it comes to assault rifles and Second Amendment – Villages-News

Posted: June 18, 2022 at 1:41 am

To the Editor:

This whole discussion of assault rifles is filled with emotion, misleading information, outright false information and propaganda. Many democrats want to eliminate guns altogether. They tend to spin the Second Amendment to make it fit their desires. Lets look at the facts:1: The Second Amendment (if you read the Federalist papers) was enacted because our founding fathers wanted a check against the threat of a totalitarian government. It gave us the right to keep and bear arms. President Biden makes the ridiculous observation that we cant own a cannon. No one wants to own a cannon. We cant own a jet fighter either. However, we can own a gun to use for sport or for protection.We cant own a machine gun or a bazooka. Those are weapons of war. The democrats and gun control people want to try to classify most legally owned guns as weapons of war so they can have them confiscated. An assault weapon is a weapon that is fully automatic, like a machine gun. The AR15 is a semi-automatic firing gun and is not a weapon of war. It may look like a weapon of war but it isnt. However, President Biden and other democrats would have you believe it is a weapon of war.2: There are millions of guns in the United States. Most families own at least one gun for protection. There are many gun enthusiasts who own many guns they use for hunting and sport. They dont shoot people. Mentally ill and evil people use guns and bombs and knives to kill innocent people. This is not a gun issue, its a mental health issue.

Larry MoranVillage of Mallory Square

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Opinion: How the Second Amendment informed my special election primary vote – Juneau Empire

Posted: at 1:41 am

By Rich Moniak

Jeff Lowenfels was at the bottom of my short list in the special primary election to complete Congressman Don Youngs term. Then Alaska Public Media asked all 48 candidates if theyd support a ban on the manufacture and importation of semiautomatic assault weapons, as defined in the federal assault weapons ban that expired in 2004. And Lowenfels won my vote with his unfiltered honesty.

Absolutely he replied. Military style, semiautomatic weapons were not contemplated by the second amendment, but even if they were, Id be in favor of the bans.

Lowenfels isnt he only one who understood banning such weapons is necessary to turn back the ugly tide of mass murder in this country. Within the 50-word limit imposed by APM, Santa Claus offered the most comprehensive answer. But hes not competing for a full term. And its unlikely Congress will take any action on this issue between the special election and the start of the next session in January.

Now, its hard to write Santa Claus in a sentence about politics without explaining the two-term councilman and current mayor pro tem from the city of North Pole legally changed his name in 2005. YES IF AMENDED (emphasis original) began his reply to the question. He then pointed to loopholes in law and called for additional changes.

One problem with the original law is it banned 18 specific weapons and similar models that had two specific features. But gun manufacturers could evade the laws intent by making slight modifications to those. The law also allowed the resale of any banned weapon that had been manufactured before it went into effect.

Its no wonder that studies of the bans effectiveness found little to no measurable reduction of the crimes it targeted.

Adam Wool, a Democrat who currently represents Fairbanks in the state House of Representatives, believes we need to limit access to these types of weapons but the details matter. However, he wasnt suggesting those loopholes be closed because the ban that was previously in law was acceptable. The problem now is its different political landscape.

His response, as well as those from Chris Constant, Mary Peltola, and Al Gross, displayed one critical difference. There are too few candidates on the left with the courage to state an important factLike most rights, the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited. It does not include a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose.

Those words were written Justice Antonin Scalia in the majority opinion of the landmark District of Columbia v. Heller. It represented the first time in American history that the constitutional right of an individual to keep and bear arms was not connected to service in a militia. Scalia, the original originalist in interpreting the Constitution, went on to defend the historical tradition of prohibiting the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons.

Simply put, Congress has the constitutional power to ban the ones in question.

Constant qualified his support for doing so by stating We have to carefully navigate the Second Amendment.

Without mentioning assault weapons, Peltola said she supports the creation of a bipartisan congressional committee tasked with bringing common sense gun legislation that respects our 2nd amendment rights.

Gross didnt let the Second Amendment get in his way of supporting universal background checks. But he thinks that and a nationally standardized interview with local authorities constitute an appropriate level of scrutiny for anyone who wants to buy an AR-15.

Those positions concede too much authority to the Second Amendment.

And to Republican candidates who argue a national ban on assault weapons, or any other reasonable restriction on gun sales and ownership, violates it.

Michael Gerson referred to such beliefs as somewhere on the far side of laughable ignorance.

A former senior policy adviser to President George W. Bush and the Heritage Foundation, Gerson isnt one of the 48 candidates. In the conservative commentary he writes for Washington Post, hes free to speak his conscience.

Thats a challenge for candidates seeking public office. But voters who want sensible gun restrictions should think twice before supporting a candidate who is afraid to declare that the Second Amendments rights are not absolute.

Rich Moniak is a Juneau resident and retired civil engineer with more than 25 years of experience working in the public sector. Columns, My Turns and Letters to the Editor represent the view of the author, not the view of the Juneau Empire. Have something to say? Heres how to submit a My Turn or letter.

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Opinion: How the Second Amendment informed my special election primary vote - Juneau Empire

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First and Second Amendments focus of March for Our Lives in Hermosa Beach – Easy Reader

Posted: at 1:41 am

by Kevin Cody

Lance Dominguez, of Torrance, spent two weeks working with Hermosa Beach, and Manhattan Beach city hall, police, and fire officials to get a permit for Saturdays March for Our Lives. The march drew an estimated 200 gun legislation supporters, who met at noon at the Manhattan Beach Pier, and marched to the Hermosa Beach pier for a rally on Pier Plaza. The permit required he pay for security.

I find it ironic, Dominguez told the marchers, that it is more difficult to organize a peaceful march than for an 18-year-old to walk into a store, and walk out with an AR-15, and 100 rounds of ammunition. If exercising my First Amendment right to assembly can be regulated to protect public safety, shouldnt the same be true of those exercising their Second Amendment right to bear arms? he asked.

Seaside is the Christmas lights neighborhood. You may have even bought hot chocolate from Rebeccas son David, Dominguez said.

Boldrick introduced herself over the loudspeakers as a former Torrance School District teacher. Her son David, and daughter Lauren attended Seaside Elementary, Calle Mayor Middle School, and South High School before the family moved to Parkland, Florida in 2016.

The Torrance School District began active shooter drills after the mass shooting in 2012 at Sandy Hook Elementary School (in Newtown, Connecticut). But I never dreamed my childrens school would have an active shooter, Boldrick said.

On Feb. 14, 2018, Boldricks son and daughter were in class at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, when former student Nikolas Cruz, 19, opened fire on students and teachers with an AR-15 assault rifle, killing 17 people and injuring 17 others.

David and Laurens childhood ended that day. My daughter lost four of her best friends, Boldrick said.

The following month, her son David Hogg, co-organized the inaugural March for Life on Washington D.C. Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential People in 2018.

The March for Our Lives (South Bay) gets underway at the Manhattan Beach Pier June 11. Photo by Garth Meyer

Saturdays March for Life was one of hundreds nationwide, held in response to the May 24 killing of 19 students, and two teachers, and the wounding of 17 others at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas by an AR-15, wielded by 18-year-old Uvalde High School student Salvador Ramos.

Following Boldricks recorded address, former Torrance school counselor Christine Macinnis told the marchers, Over 90 percent of mass shootings are by young white men. But it is easier to get a gun than a therapist We cant keep saying this is a mental health issue without providing mental health.

Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, who was reelected last Tuesday to a fifth term representing the 66 Assembly District, said California has the strongest gun laws in California. Its 111 gun laws include background check requirements; and a red flag ban on high risk people having guns..

In January, Muratsuchi co-authored a bill that would prohibit manufacturing, andr assembling unserialized firearms, commonly known as ghost guns.

Im proud to say every time the National Rifle Association releases a scorecard, I get an F, Muratsuchi said.

The rally was briefly interrupted when a man, who declined to identify himself, approached the speaker stage and shouted, What about the pharmaceutical industry? They kill more people than guns. (Prescription drugs are the third leading cause of death, after heart disease, and cancer in the United States and Europe, according to the website PubMed.com).

Marcher Justin House, of Hermosa Beach, guided the anti protester away from the stage. He and Hermosa Beach Police Josh Droz, kept the man engaged in conversation until the rally ended, approximately 30 minutes later.

Lunch at the Strand House was underway. Spikeball on the beach too, on an overcast June day.

On the sidewalk, a young Black woman held a piece of cardboard aloft as she walked toward a crowd gathered on the Manhattan Beach Pier.

I Want to Live, it read.

Other signs and blue shirts converged and a voice from a megaphone began.

No more silence, end gun violence!

The crowd grew.

A bearded man with a long skateboard stood at the edges holding a yellow flag: Dont Tread on Me.

The march went up the Strand walkway.

No more silence! End gun violence! continued the chants. Kids should have fun, not run from a gun!

More signs amidst the marchers made other statements: We call B.S., vote them out; 21st weapons, 18th century laws; The best way to stop a bad guy with a gun is to keep the gun out of his hands; A well-regulated militia didnt kill our kids.

Marchers were greeted at the Hermosa Beach Pier by a group of red-shirted 10-year old girls soliciting lemonade sales for their club soccer team.

The March for our Lives event cost $7,000, for permits, security and supplies, organizer Dominguez said, paid for by a grant from the national office of March for Our Lives.

A Torrance resident and single father of three young children, Dominguez had never before been involved in planning an event like this.

I had absolutely no clue what I was getting myself into, but Im glad we pulled it off, he said. Because of the people who are afraid to speak up, my voice has to be louder.

He noted plans to re-form a South Bay chapter of March for Our Lives in local high schools.

Speaker Nina Tarnay, a Manhattan Beach mother of three, announced to the crowd Colorforchange.org, a project she co-founded which allows people to download and color postcards to send to political representatives. ER

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US Reps. Rodney Davis and Mary Miller compete for re-election in Illinois’ 15th Congressional District Ballotpedia News – Ballotpedia News

Posted: at 1:41 am

U.S. Reps. Rodney Davis and Mary Miller are running in the Republican primary for Illinois 15th Congressional District on June 28, 2022. This race is one of six incumbent-vs.-incumbent primaries occurring in 2022 as a result of congressional redistricting after the 2020 census.

Davis has represented Illinois 13th Congressional District since 2013. Miller has represented the 15th Congressional District since 2021. According to data from Daily Kos, 28% of the new 15th Districts population came from the old 13th District (represented by Davis), and 31% came from the old 15th District (represented by Miller). Illinois lost one congressional district following the 2020 census.

The Herald & Reviews Brenden Moore wrote, The race has been among the most contentious incumbent-versus-incumbent primaries in the country. Davis and Miller have traded barbs over who is the true conservative candidate in the race. According to OpenSecrets, the primary currently comes in second in total satellite spending out of all 2022 U.S. House races, with over $7.5 million spent as of June 15.

Davis said, I stick with my core values and principles. I have always been pro-life and will continue to stick by those values and principles. Ive always stood up for the Second Amendment. I will continue to do that. But what separates me from my opponent is I have a record of actually governing. When people put Republicans in charge, at any level of government, they actually expect them to do the job. Davis criticized Miller for voting against the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, saying, All Mary Miller has to show for her time in Congress is quoting Hitler and voting with Democrats like [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] and the far left squad to defund our military and block a pay raise for our troops. Thats shameful. Its clear that Mary Miller is all talk, no action.

The Illinois Farm Bureau, Illinois Fraternal Order of Police State Lodge, and Illinois AFL-CIO endorsed Davis, along with U.S. Reps. Mike Bost (R-Ill.) and Darin LaHood (R-Ill.).

Miller said, Im the only Republican member of Congress from Illinois whos fighting every aspect of the Biden agenda and putting America first. Im fighting for real election security so that voters decide elections, not the ballot counters. And Im proud to be the only Republican from Illinois to vote against the Biden-Pelosi gun confiscation bill which would have allowed firearms to be seized by the federal government. Miller criticized Davis for a bill he cosponsored in 2019 that would have provided grants for states to enact extreme risk protection order laws, or red flag laws. Miller said, I am the only candidate with an A rating from the NRA and Gun Owners of America because I support our Second Amendment! Everyone is tired of Red Flag Rodney Davis, who stabbed conservatives in the back by supporting federal gun confiscation.

Former President Donald Trump (R) endorsed Miller on January 1, 2022. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Club for Growth, the Conservative Political Action Coalition, and the House Freedom Fund also endorsed Miller.

Major independent observers rate the general election as solid or safe Republican.

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US Reps. Rodney Davis and Mary Miller compete for re-election in Illinois' 15th Congressional District Ballotpedia News - Ballotpedia News

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Elon Musk is addressing Twitter employees: Live updates from the meeting

Posted: at 1:40 am

Thu, Jun 16 20221:10 PM EDT

The all-hands meeting concluded around 1 p.m. Eastern Time.

According to a source, the majority of the reactions on Twitter's Slack messaging board were negative in nature.

Employees expressed that many of their worries about layoffs, remote work, a reduced focus on content moderation and inclusion and diversity measures were confirmed.

Employees also sent memes about how to brand themselves as exceptional, according to the source, an apparent reference to Musk's note that exceptional employees could likely continue to work remotely and would not have to fear layoffs.

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 20221:02 PM EDT

Success at Twitter would look like a significant increase in daily active users, potentially topping 1 billion, Musk said, according to a source.

Twitter said in its Q1 2022 earnings that it had 229 million monthly daily active users.

Musk's definition of success would also include whether Twitter is helping further civilization and consciousness, he said.

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 20221:00 PM EDT

Musk briefly diverted the conversation into a discussion about aliens and human consciousness.

He said he hasn't seen actual evidence of aliens, according to a source.

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:58 PM EDT

Musk doesn't care about being CEO at Twitter, he said, according to a source.

He said he cares about driving the product in a particular direction, but isn't too hung up on titles.

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:46 PM EDT

When it comes to legal but potentially harmful speech, Musk told Twitter employees, that people should be allowed to say what they want.

But that's different from Twitter promoting that speech, Musk said, according to the source.

Users have the right to filter out content they don't want to see, he added. Musk said the standard is much more than not offending people, it's that they are entertained and informed.

Musk reiterated a sentiment he made online earlier that if 10% of the far left and far right are upset, Twitter is doing the right thing.

Addressing the topic of inclusion and diversity, Musk said the most inclusive thing to do would be to get all humans on Twitter.

He said he believes in strict meritocracy.

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:38 PM EDT

Musk said layoffs at Twitter will depend on its financial situation.

"It depends. The company does need to get healthy," Musk said, according to the source. "Right now the costs exceed the revenue"

Musk said there has to be some rationalization of headcount or else Twitter won't be able to grow.

"Anyone who is a signification contributor has nothing to worry about," he said.

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:35 PM EDT

Musk, who recently told his employees at Tesla to come back to work in their offices 40 hours a week or resign, seemed to draw a distinction between working remotely at the car company and at Twitter.

"Tesla makes cars, and you can't make cars remotely," Musk said, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Musk did not detail what his policy on remote would look like for Twitter employees and said if someone is exceptional at their job, remote work is fine, according to the source.

But, Musk said his "bias is strongly towards working in person."

Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:30 PM EDT

"If someone is getting useful things done, that's great. If they're not thenI'm like why are they at the company."

-- Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:30 PM EDT

Elononfreespeech (paraphrased): People should be allowed to say anything they want, but that doesn't mean Twitter should promote it.

-- Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:30 PM EDT

Elon when asked why Twitter: "I love Twitter", "I learn a lot from what I learn on Twitter." It's a "great way to get a message out", "some people use their hair to express themselves, I use Twitter"

-- Lauren Feiner

Thu, Jun 16 202212:29 PM EDT

Employees submitted questions s they are most interested in - no promise they will answer but highest ranked in categories of workplace policies (i.e. remote work), free speech, Elon's suggested product improvements and relationship with employees -- Lauren Feiner

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Elon Musk told employees at the Twitter all-hands meeting that workers …

Posted: at 1:40 am

Elon Musk attends the 2022 Costume Institute Benefit celebrating In America: An Anthology of Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 02, 2022 in New York City.Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

Elon Musk has taken a strong stance on office work, requiring it from his Tesla employees.

Musk might soon own Twitter and had a town hallwith employees Thursday.

Pushing back on the company's current hybrid structure, he said people should be in the office.

Elon Musk prefers employees in the office, for the most part, he told Twitter employees.

At a town hall with Twitter workers on Thursday, Elon Musk who submitted a bid to buy the social media company for $44 billion but has publicly wavered over the issue of spambots answered questions about how he would run the business, from layoffs to product management.

One major thing: He really prefers in-person work, Insider reported

"You want to aspire to do things in person," he said at the meeting, per a recording an attendee shared with Insider.

Leslie Berland, who serves as Twitter's head of people and CMO, said at the town hall 1,500 "tweeps" (aka Twitter employees) are completely remote. The rest, about 6,000, are hybrid, by and large.

Musk said he thinks only high-power employees should be able to skip the office, generally speaking.

"If somebody is exceptional at their job, then it's possible for them to be effective, even working remotely," he said.

Muskadded that he asked his Tesla leaders to provide a list of people who are "excellent contributors," and then they figure out if remote work would work or not.

Still, in the case of approving someone to work from home, Musk would want them to come in to get to know coworkers. "If you're walking down the street and pass your colleague and you don't recognize them, that would not be good," he added.

"The bias definitely needs to be strongly toward working in person," he said later, in response to a follow-up question from Berland.

Musk acknowledged Twitter is not making the same product as Tesla, his electric vehicle company. But he's been pretty firm with employees there.

Musk reportedly told Tesla executives in late May to come into the office or quit. He later said on Twitter that, "They should pretend to work somewhere else." The Washington Post said it verifiedthe email with a Tesla employee.

Story continues

Insider obtained an email Musk sent to Tesla employees about working in person

"Everyone at Tesla is required to spend a minimum of 40 hours in the office per week," the email said. "If you don't show up, we will assume you have resigned."

Twitter offered a permanent work-from-home option in 2020, and the potential change under a new owner seemed to alarm employees.

A source who was at the meeting told Insider that the company Slack began to "go off" about Musk's stated stance on working from home. Twitter and Elon Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Tesla shareholder sues Elon Musk, board over ‘toxic workplace culture’

Posted: at 1:40 am

A Tesla investor has accused CEO Elon Musk and the board of directors of damaging shareholders by ignoring a toxic workplace culture at the company, according to a complaint filed in a Texas federal court on Thursday.

The lawsuit filed by shareholder and New Jersey resident Solomon Chau alleges that Tesla executives have breached their fiduciary duty to investors by failing to address allegations of harassment and racial discrimination at its facilities.

Tesla has created a toxic workplace culture grounded in racist and sexist abuse and discrimination against its own employees, Chaus complaint claims, adding that it has caused financial harm and irreparable damage to the companys reputation.

The shareholders lawsuit emerged during an ongoing legal battle involving Tesla and the state of California. State officials in Californias Department of Fair Employment and Housingsued Tesla in February, accusing the company of overseeing a racially segregated workplace at its plant in Fremont.

Chaus complaint also asserts that Tesla has faced numerous lawsuits from current and former Tesla employees that revealed a disturbing litany of sexual harassment and racist abuse employees must contend with at the company.

The complaint slams the board as well as Musk individually, asserting that the billionaire either knew, was reckless, or was grossly negligent in disregarding the illegal activity of such substantial magnitude and duration.

Meanwhile, Teslas board has blocked efforts by shareholders to implement proposals aimed at enhancing oversight of the electric car makers internal practices, according to the court documents.

Chau claims that Teslas failure to address the problem has caused the company to lose high quality employees and opened up the firm to various penalties and fines.

Tesla representatives did not immediately return a request for comment. Musk dissolved the companys PR team in 2020.

The Post has also reached out to Chaus legal team for comment.

As The Post reported at the time, the Californias DFEH complaint includes allegations that that Tesla employees, including managers, used racial slurs including the N-word, monkey toes, porch monkey and hood rat.

Meanwhile, Tesla has denied the claims included in the complaint, slamming the legal action in a February blog post as misguided.

Tesla strongly opposes all forms of discrimination and harassment and has a dedicated Employee Relations team that responds to and investigates all complaints, Tesla said in the post.

Tesla is also facing a union push at its Fremont manufacturing plant. In March, Musk challenged United Auto Workers to hold a vote, arguing the companys employees are better off without labor representatives.

Our real challenge is Bay Area has negative unemployment, so if we dont treat and compensate our (awesome) people well, they have many other offers and will just leave! Musk said at the time.

In a separate action, Musk was slapped with a $258 billion lawsuit from an individual who alleged that he and his companies are engaged in a crypto pyramid scheme by way of dogecoin cryptocurrency.

The plaintiff, Keith Johnson, is seeking $86 billion in damages, plus tripled damages of $172 billion for losses incurred from trading dogecoin since 2019. He wants to represent a class of people who have lost money investing in dogecoin.

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Tesla shareholder sues Elon Musk, board over 'toxic workplace culture'

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SpaceX employees reportedly wrote a letter criticizing Elon Musk …

Posted: at 1:40 am

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon MuskREUTERS/Steve Nesius

SpaceX employees reportedly wrote a letter to leadership calling for Elon Musk to be held accountable.

The workers said Musk's recent behavior is a "source of distraction and embarrassment," The Verge reports.

The letter cited Musk's tweets and a recent sexual misconduct allegation that Insider first reported.

SpaceX employees reportedly penned an open letter to SpaceX condemning Elon Musk's recent behavior online as well as an allegation of sexual harassment against the CEO, according to a report from The Verge.

"Elon's behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks," the letter said, per The Verge, which obtained a copy of the document.

Musk and a spokesperson for SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment from Insider.

SpaceX workers can either sign the document publicly or anonymously and it will eventually be sent to SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell, The Verge reported.

The letter was shared with over 2,600 employees on Wednesday in an internal chat, the publication said. The news outlet noted that at this time it is unclear how many employees have signed the letter. Though, the letter said "Employees across the spectra of gender, ethnicity, seniority, and technical roles have collaborated" on it.

The letter said that Musk's behavior has violated the company's "No Asshole" and "Zero Tolerance" policies, which addresses behavior that is deemed inappropriate.

Musk has long been known for his antics on Twitter. In recent months, the SpaceX CEO has done everything from publicly decry the Democratic party to announce on Twitter that the party would launch a "dirty tricks campaign" against him.

The latter tweet came just hours after the richest man in the world was notified that Insider was planning to publish a report that SpaceX paid a former flight attendant $250,000 after she accused Musk of sexually harassing her. Musk told Insider at the time that there was "a lot more to the story," but later joked about the allegations on Twitter.

Story continues

"If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment, this is unlikely to be the first time in my entire 30-year career that it comes to light," he told Insider at the time.

When the allegations were first reported, Shotwell expressed support for her boss in a companywide email in which she said she believed the CEO would "never conduct or condone this alleged inappropriate behavior."

In the letter, the SpaceX employees suggest three ways Musk's behavior could be addressed: the company could "condemn Elon's harmful Twitter behavior," "hold all leadership equally accountable," and more clearly define and enforce SpaceX's "No Asshole" and "Zero Tolerance" policies, The Verge reported.

Read the full letter on The Verge's website.

Do you work at SpaceX? Reach out to the reporter from a non-work email at gkay@insider.com

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SpaceX employees decry Elon Musk’s recent behavior | Space

Posted: at 1:40 am

A group of anonymous SpaceX employees say that founder and CEO Elon Musk's recent behavior reflects badly on the company.

An open letter to company executives was posted in an internal SpaceX Microsoft Teams channel with more than 2,600 employees, the Verge reported (opens in new tab) on Thursday (June 16). The letter asks the founder of SpaceX and Tesla to change his ways.

"Elon's behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks," the letter states.

Much of that behavior unfolds on Twitter, which Musk is trying to buy. The billionaire is very active on the platform, sometimes using it to make crude jokes (opens in new tab) or insult people (opens in new tab). In 2018, for example, he implied that a man involved in rescuing Thai boys from a flooded cave is a pedophile (opens in new tab).

"As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX every tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company," the letter adds. "It is critical to make clear to our teams and to our potential talent pool that his messaging does not reflect our work, our mission or our values."

Elon Musk: Revolutionary private space entrepreneur

It is unclear who wrote the letter, although the document itself claims employees "across the spectra of gender, ethnicity, seniority and technical roles have collaborated on" its authorship, The Verge said. The employees who posted the letter did not respond to requests for comment from that website.

The document suggests three different "action items" to remedy what is happening. These items include SpaceX leadership denouncing "Elon's harmful Twitter behavior," condemning other senior company leaders for similar conduct, and defining "what exactly is intended by SpaceXs 'no-asshole' and 'zero tolerance' policies and enforce them consistently."

Musk, Time Magazine's 2021 person of the year, has also denied an allegation of sexual misconduct concerning his activities with a flight attendant in 2016, a story that was broken by Business Insider (opens in new tab).

And multiple former SpaceX employees recently alleged that the company as a whole doesn't do enough to punish or discourage sexual harassment in the workplace, The Verge reported in another story (opens in new tab).

After Business Insider's sexual harassment story about Musk came out, SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell sent a company-wide email (opens in new tab)to employees defending Musk, according to The Verge's story today.

"Personally, I believe the allegations to be false; not because I work for Elon, but because I have worked closely with him for 20 years and never seen nor heard anything resembling these allegations," Shotwell wrote. "Anyone who knows Elon like I do knows he would never conduct or condone this alleged inappropriate behavior."

SpaceX is engaged in numerous government, military and commercial projects. For example, NASA picked SpaceX's huge Starship vehicle to land astronauts on the moon a few years from now. The agency also awarded SpaceX contracts to fly cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station. And the company supplies Starlink satellite-internet service to customers around the world.

Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter@howellspace (opens in new tab). Follow us on Twitter@Spacedotcom (opens in new tab)and onFacebook (opens in new tab).

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SpaceX Employees Complain About Elon Musk in Open Letter, Get Fired

Posted: at 1:40 am

SpaceX employees recently wrote an open letter criticizing company CEO Elon Musks public behavior, but the letter didnt result in the changes they were hoping for many were promptly fired after its publication.

Futurism reportsthat SpaceX employees recently wrote an open letter that was circulated internally criticizing company CEO Elon Musks public behavior. The employees reportedly accused Musk of failing to fulfill the companys No Asshole, and zero-tolerance sexual harassment policies.

The letter was addressed to SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell and signed by an unknown number of employees. Over 100 comments were included in the letter and many employees reportedly agreed with the points made in the letter.

(Pool/Getty)

The letter states:Elons behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks. As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX every Tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company.

It continues to state:It is critical to make clear to our teams and to our potential talent pool that his messaging does not reflect our work, our mission, or our values.

The letter makes a number of demands, including asking SpaceX to hold all leadership equally accountable for publicly worrying behavior and clearly define what exactly is intended by SpaceXs no-asshole and zero tolerance policies and enforce them consistently.

The letter seems to be prompted by recent allegations that Musk paid a flight attendant $250,000 after she refused his sexual advances during a private jet flight. In December, another letter from a former SpaceX engineer named Ashley Kosak was made public in which she claimed that shecouldnt stop getting sexually harrassed at the company.

TheNew York Timesnotes that a number of employees were promptly fired for taking part in the letter, surprising given Musks alleged dedication to free speech and diverse opinions.

SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell confirmed to theNYTthat the company investigated and terminated a number of employees involved with the letter. Shotwell stated:

The letter, solicitations and general process made employees feel uncomfortable, intimidated and bullied, and/or angry because the letter pressured them to sign onto something that did not reflect their views. We have too much critical work to accomplish and no need for this kind of overreaching activism.

In an email to staff, Shotwell stated:Blanketing thousands of people across the company with repeated unsolicited emails and asking them to sign letters and fill out unsponsored surveys during the work day is not acceptable. She added: Please stay focused on the SpaceX mission, and use your time to do your best work. This is how we will get to Mars.

Read more at Futurism here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter@LucasNolanor contact via secure email at the addresslucasnolan@protonmail.com

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SpaceX Employees Complain About Elon Musk in Open Letter, Get Fired

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