Pim Elshoff * The Entrepreneurial Employee

The fact that calculators and computer keyboard numeric keypads have 789 across the top, while phone number keys have 123 at the top, is one of the greatest user interface design failures of all time.

These guys don't understand each other. Elon Musk is too guileless. He says exactly what he thinks is true with little regard for how others will react. He alienates allies by airing disputes in public instead of settling them behind closed doors. Because he is a sperg engineer who leads companies of sperg engineers, and to do this, you must be 100% truthful and transparent. Donald Trump is too guileful. He says exactly what will advance his plans with little regard for telling people what he actually thinks. He alienates allies by expecting their unconditional support without sharing any aspect of his strategic plans with them. Because he is a New York real estate developer, who thrives on winning negotiations and gaining advantage from unshared knowledge, and to do this, you must be 100% calculating and opaque. Here's what happened. Musk worked super hard, and took great personal risks, to get a head start on balancing the federal budget. He correctly believes that federal spending is an existential risk to the nation. Trump regards those savings as a political asset. And, since he lacks leverage in congress, he took them and traded them for other things he wanted, apparently dealing with border control, the courts, etc... problems which he correctly believes are an existential threat to the nation. He may have concrete plans for balancing the federal budget in the future, but, frustratingly, he won't tell his own team what they are. Trump could have squared this in advance with Musk, in private, but he appears to either have assumed his loyalty (treating an ally like a subordinate), or been unable to persuade him. Likewise, Musk could have raised his complaints in private, but either he was too upset to try, or was not able to reach an agreement when he did. Trump doesn't understand how to deal with spergs. You have to tell them the truth, not expect them to read subtext. They refuse to read subtext. They want to be spoken to honestly. Musk doesn't understand how to deal with Machiavellians. They think of language as a power tool, and think of those who insist on truth as naive. Both men are used to being in charge, and are used to dealing with subordinates, who must cater to their preferred style of communicating. They are both therefore uniquely unsuited to having both the patience and the capability to speak the other's language. The truth is that both the federal budget and the federal bureaucracy are existential threats to America. Maximum priority. Trump's concerns about the "art of the possible" are probably valid, but Musk's sense of urgency should not be dismissed lightly. It is churlish to leverage the superior strengths and talents of people on the autism spectrum while making zero allowances for their unique needs. That said, spergs can be frustratingly dogmatic, even when they aren't the richest and most successful man in the world. A few other things to notice: The democrats have said nothing. That's because there are no democrats. They have no independent intellectuals, only paid schills. A response will not be forthcoming until the wholly organic grassroots PR committees have met, and the wholly grassroots talking heads have been cut a wholly organic grassroots check. There's also a strong case to be made for Team Nothing Ever Happens. Remember that Musk will sometimes shut up when he calms down, and Trump has no problem calling someone the Antichrist one day and working with him the next.