The Slatest for Nov. 30: Yes, Elon Musk Might Actually Want to Kill Twitter

Slate Staff
·2 min read
15
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Elon Musk is once again raising eyebrows for his puzzling business decisions. This time, it’s for his comments at the New York Times’ DealBook Summit on Wednesday, in which he told advertisers to go eff themselves. Well then!

Ever since Elon Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion, people have been asking: Why did he buy it if he was just trying to run it into the ground? But as Alex Kirshner points out, maybe there are plenty of good reasons for Elon Musk to buy it SO THAT he could run it into the ground. Kirshner ponders the upsides of killing Twitter, from its owner’s point of view.

Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israeli citizens included horrific sexual violence—and that violence was caught on camera many, many times. And yet, solidarity and support for the women who suffered it have been strangely lacking. Dahlia Lithwick tackles the problem with several women who are experts in how we respond to rape.

In the foreground, a blurry person on horseback with others walking under and in front of them, as smoke rises from trees amid fighting in the background.
Photo-Illustration by Slate. Photo by Mahmud Hams/AFP/Getty Images

The conditions in Gaza have made firsthand accounts of the situation increasingly difficult to get. But when Atef Abu Saif found himself stuck in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza following the Oct. 7 attack, he started keeping a daily diary of what he saw around him. Saif and his family have since escaped Gaza—and Slate is publishing excerpts of that diary, which provide a shocking account of the war.

Of course the Democrats have delighted in the epic saga that is the George Santos story. But why did they participate in the effort to oust him in the first place? Alexander Sammon asks the obvious question.

Spotify Wrapped show's someone's Sound Town as Burlington, Vermont. The town of Burlington is in the background.
Photo illustration by Slate. Images by Spotify and Sean Pavone/Getty Images Plus.

Confused why your Spotify Wrapped Sound Town is Burlington, Vermont? So are the people of Burlington. Heather Schwedel spoke with some locals in the town’s music scene to see what the hype is about.

The Golden Bachelor has put plenty of stock in the idea that it is never too late for love—but Ann McDaniel has been perfectly happy with her single life. She offers anyone whose feelings have been stirred up by this show a bracing, honest look at how she’s built a satisfying life without a partner (including Camp Ann).

Plus: Slate EIC Hillary Frey explains why the cool contestant shouldn’t win.

Just as Netflix did in turning the hit show Squid Game into … a hit reality show.

That’s it for us today. See you tomorrow!