Tesla CEO Elon Musk's recent comments about homelessness in the USA have sparked intense controversy.
On December 10, Musk declared on his X platform, "In most cases, the term 'homeless' is a lie. It is often a propaganda term referring to violent drug users with severe mental illness."
This remark was a response to a post by Jeremy Kauffman, who painted a grim picture of housing projects in San Francisco. Kauffman listed incidents of dirt, violence, drug overdoses, and evictions, indicating that simply providing a roof over the heads of the homeless does not address the root of the problem. Musk agreed with this.
This is not a new topic for Musk. In an interview in October this year, Musk emphasized his viewpoint, believing that homelessness is a more serious and complex issue than typically presented.
Musk stated in the interview, "Homelessness is a misnomer. It means some people are a little behind on their mortgage, and if you give them a job, they will get back on their feet. What you actually see are violent drug zombies, with eyes devoid of life, needles everywhere, and human feces all over the streets."
Musk did not stop there. He believes that investing more funds into homelessness projects will only worsen the situation. In his view, a sinister economic motive is at play. He wrote on X, "Non-governmental organizations 'rescuing the homeless' are often rewarded based on how many homeless people are on the streets, giving them a strong economic incentive to maximize the number of homeless, without ever truly solving the problem!"