Featured Image Credit: GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/Contributor / CHIP SOMODEVILLA/Contributor / Getty
As well as being the richest man in the world by a wide margin, Elon Musk is one of the world's most divisive figures. While some have praised him as a brilliant businessman, others have called him out for his views, and others have even referred to him as a 'national enemy'.
Musk has his finger in many pies, and as well as being the CEO of X, Tesla, and SpaceX, he's found himself firmly at the side of President Donald Trump. Even though that might not include a desk at the White House, he's already landed a lucrative position as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency.
After accompanying President Trump on the campaign trail, he's been in the spotlight a lot recently and notably caused a stir when he performed a controversial gesture at the inauguration.
While Musk has accused the mainstream media of trying to paint him as Hitler, there's been an immense backlash online. Among the most vocal are Tesla owners, with some vowing not to buy another vehicle and others calling for the electric car manufacturer to fire its owner.
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Musk's own father, Errol, has recently spoken out and has a message for his son's critics.
Earlier in January Errol Musk spoke to LBC and said: "People don't have to listen to what he says. I mean, he's just a person.
"The fact that he has money or something, he's a billionaire or something to that effect. The hundreds of thousands of people are treating the same things. Or just don't listen to him then."
While Errol Musk didn't address some of the controversial things his son might've posted, he concluded: "That's all I'd say, don't worry about it. It's time to get lost."
The pair have something of a tumultuous relationship, and when they met shortly after SpaceX’s Starship rocket launch in 2023, it was for the first time in seven years.
Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2017, Elon referred to his father as a 'terrible human being' and added: "My dad will have a carefully thought-out plan of evil. He will plan evil."
"My dad was not physically violent with me. He was only physically violent when I was very young." Errol countered these claims by email and said he only 'smacked' Elon once.
They seem on slightly better terms these days, with Errol even suggesting his son could look to buy Liverpool football club.
As for Errol's musings on just ignoring Musk, the comments section was full of some hilarious replies.
One joked: "Elon's dad telling everyone to treat Elon like he does. Haha. Just ignore him 😂."
Another added, "If this guy showed Elon some love or attention, none of us would be having to deal with him rn 💀."
Someone else concluded, "Musk is a national security issue for many nations all at once. He's a danger with too much money, influence, and power. That's not something people should ignore."
Errol isn't the only family member who's spoken about the tech billionaire, and in the aftermath of claims that Musk performed a 'Nazi salute', Elon's estranged daughter seemed to fire some sniping remarks toward him.
