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back to article Elon Musk and PayPal chum quit Zuckerberg's immigration gang

Elon Musk, the billionaire backing electric cars and cheap space travel, has quit the Fwd.us political pressure group fronted by Mark Zuckerberg after it began buying campaign commercials supporting Big Oil. The Behoodied One announced the Fwd.us group last month to push for comprehensive immigration reforms (especially for …

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  1. Turtle

    "Innovation"

    "'Our advertising decisions are being made by a very smart team of political operatives who know that passing major reform will require some different and innovative tactics,' said Fwd.us co-founder Jim Breyer, a venture capitalist at Accel Partners, in an emailed statement."

    Evidently they think that "innovation" is some sort of magic word, the use of which instantly excuses any kind of self-serving,illegal, or merely dishonest behavior. They are not the only ones who think so, either.

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    1. Anonymous Coward
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      Anonymous Coward

      Re: "Innovation"

      I suspect they'd call a rigged vote "innovative" too. And they've been happening since the Ancient Greeks.

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    2. skeptical i
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      Paris Hilton

      new euphemism [Re: "Innovation"]

      "What are the kneepads for?"

      "Deploying innovative tactics in our latest public relations campaign."

      Not a particularly "different" or "innovative" tactic -- ain't it the oldest profession? -- but perhaps that's part of the ruse.

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  2. MondoMan

    Really?

    Perhaps Musk and friend just realized there's no such thing as an "Alaska National Wildlife Preserve" and thus found the prospect of promoting drilling there a poor use of money. All the cool PACs know the action is in drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. :)

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  3. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
    Mushroom

    While I don't have opinions on Keystone XL, one should really stay away from anything even near Lindsey Graham and the group of national-socialist / crony-capitalist creeps of the Old Men Express. And this includes the democrat Dick Durbin and the insufferable McCain. Basically the list of people you want to accidentally drown while no-one is looking.

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  4. Stuart Grout

    A free market in politicians

    If you want to push an agenda in the most corrupt country in the world you have to expect to get your hands dirty.

    If you expect to influence American politicians/ elected Judges/ elected Police Chiefs etc you have to bribe them with suitable campaign contributions. This means either notes in brown envelopes or paying for something they want on their behalf.

    Of course if you did this in another country you would be convicted of corruption and end up behind bars.

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    1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge
      Reply Icon

      Re: A free market in politicians

      Surely in a free market economy you would just pay them for votes directly?

      They could have advertised pricing and a loyalty card

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    2. Anonymous Coward
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      Anonymous Coward

      Re: A free market in politicians

      You've got a heavily blinkered worldview if you think the US is "the most corrupt country in the world". Try visiting Ukraine or Nigeria, or the Ivory Coast - and those are just the places I've had first hand experience with, I'm sure they're not the most corrupt either.

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    3. Anonymous Coward
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      Anonymous Coward

      Re: A free market in politicians

      That is regulated economy. It is not true free market for politics and politicians. In a true free market you can see the price and pay it instead of guessing the right size of the brown envelope.

      Free market for politics were attempted too. Once. Mehmed Second the Conqueror tried that. He stopped the salaries to all government officials and mandated them to put a price list of their "services" on their doors. The ones that were not "useful" enough just had to go and find another job.

      The result was that the Ottoman kingdom stopped being an obscure squabbling regional power and became the Ottoman empire which conquered half of Europe and continued expanding until one of his descendants revoked that decree.

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  5. Don Jefe
    Meh

    Taking It From Both Ends

    Good on Musk for stepping out if this mess. Zuckerberg is a silly young boy with scads of cash who is bending over and taking it in both ends (simultaneously) from the politicians. He doesn't have much to offer the knobs in DC other than money, so they'll take his money & even pretend like they're listening until he gets too demanding then they'll leave him confused wondering why no one wants anything to do with him.

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  6. Naughtyhorse

    a very smart team of political operatives

    Who just made 2 major contributors walk out the door....

    so THATS where romney's staff went!

    (Am I the only one who sees it as ironic that the 'land of the free' is a place where everything has a price?)

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    1. TomS_
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      Stop

      Re: a very smart team of political operatives

      Theres no such thing as free. What you get for "free" will be paid for by someone else, in one way or another.

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      1. ian 22
        Reply Icon

        "There's no such thing as free"

        Nor markets. They quickly devolve into monopolies.

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    2. Great Bu
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      Re: a very smart team of political operatives

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdx_HYAJW2Y

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  7. Cliff

    If there was one sector I'd have thought could pay its way

    It's oil.

    Tactics like this don't change the system, just encourage it. IT types are generally intelligent and analytical, and believe in making systems efficient - soft bribery of power-hungry politicians really isn't the techie way, I suspect this will upset more as the headlines spread.

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  8. graeme leggett Silver badge

    have I understood correctly?

    Fwd.us is formed to encourage changes in US policy on immigration, and increase in attention spent on STEM education.

    Fwd.us pays for campaign commercials for two politicians which has nothing to do with the above mentioned purpose.

    From where I'm sitting, that looks so much like bribery, it beggars belief.

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    1. skeptical i
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      Coat

      some possible explanation [Re: have I understood correctly?]

      Keystone XL starts in Canada and crosses the U.S. border -- that's the immigration angle. If the pipeline is built by whoever is today's equivalent of the cheap imported "coolies" who built the railroads, that's a two-fer.

      Building a pipeline requires some math skills -- that's STEM, as is the political calculus (converting advert dollars to Congressional votes) involved.

      YMMV.

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      1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge
        Reply Icon

        Re: some possible explanation [have I understood correctly?]

        Surely - its just a connected series of internets for oil

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  9. Levente Szileszky
    Thumb Up

    Fwd.us is just another disgusting shill group...

    ...and I'm saying it as an immigrant - supporting drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Preserve is clearly way out of line, only a truly disgusting, cynical, spineless organization would do it, regardless of the return they're hoping for.

    So far Elon Musk showed 10x more spine than Sugarhill & his gang - and this is just another example of how much more character Musk has...

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  10. Tom 35

    different and innovative

    How is buying votes different or innovative.

    I also expect that the science bit is a cover for what they are really after, cheap exploitable labour.

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  11. Eduard Coli
    Devil

    Fwd is Bkwd in teh new norm

    Zuckerburg is just proving how much of an egregious bastard he really is. Ballmer is basically evil, having given away what passes for his soul when he kissed BillWG's * as part of his executive orientation. So its no surprise the dancing monkey man is involved. I'm sure the Indian and PRC governments are funding some of this as well. All of these *'s know that unemployment in the states cannot really tolerate all of the visas they want or even the 11 to 17 MM illegals they want amnesty for. They just don't care.

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