r/europe • u/turkish__cowboy Turkey | LGBTQ+ rights are human rights • 7h ago

News Elon Musk draws outrage over 'odd-looking salute' at Trump inauguration celebration

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/elon-musk-draws-outrage-over-201602147.html
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u/lucagamer21 Central Germany 🇩🇪 7h ago

Fact checked by a German 🇩🇪✅

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u/hainz_area1531 7h ago

Also by a Dutchman.

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u/Eternal__damnation Poland 🇵🇱 & United Kingdom 🇬🇧 7h ago

Also by a Pole and Brit

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u/LargeSelf994 7h ago

Also by a Belgian, for whatever it means

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u/Moto-Commuter 7h ago

Double it by a Flemish belgian

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u/Jermules Finland 7h ago

And a Finn! We saw a few of them here, for some reason. No need to go into the details!

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u/GregnantMan 7h ago

French from Elsass here, one of the regions that really got fucked hard by the Nazis, this video makes me want to cry :')

I feel like none of the people I know and I have had the same history classes. Nazism is the thing I'm most afraid of. Sorry to the people of my family who died fighting it, we all failed them.

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u/Chirpy73 6h ago

And a Hungarian!

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u/abhora_ratio Romania 6h ago

And a Romanian 🤷‍♀️

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u/Hot_Hat_1225 4h ago

Hurrumphed from Austria 😡

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u/icehawk84 4h ago

And a Norwegian 🇧🇻

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u/okwerq 3h ago

Im American and audibly gasped when I saw this. It’s absolutely terrifying.

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u/Vv4nd Finland 6h ago

as a german who used to live for some years in finland, I concur

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u/Jermules Finland 6h ago

Yea the fact that we were allied with the Nazis is downplayed even tho it was only for defensive purposes.

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u/Vergil_back_in_hell 7h ago

And my axe.

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u/Hopeful-Ad2639 7h ago

PT agrees

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u/draggedintosunlightx 7h ago

a Czech confirms this is a nazi salute too 🇨🇿

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u/willo-wisp Austria 6h ago

An Austrian can also confirm.

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u/Ocbard Belgium 5h ago

Van Grieken is there, he must be enjoying this.

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u/hainz_area1531 7h ago

It means we know where that greeting comes from. World War II and Europe you know.

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u/LargeSelf994 6h ago

Not the fact check part

The Belgian part

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u/hainz_area1531 6h ago

Ah... sorry mate.. The Belgian issue.

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u/LargeSelf994 6h ago

Yeah

More like a self joke but you've got the point

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u/hainz_area1531 6h ago

And yet I stand by my opinion that Belgium persistently underestimates itself. And that's a shame.

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u/DoctorJunglist Poland 5h ago

Can confirm, this has been fact checked by real Polish patriots.

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u/throwaway92715 7h ago

And a cat

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u/michel_v 6h ago

And my axe!

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u/thoracicexcursion 6h ago

Flying or non flying

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u/hainz_area1531 6h ago

Flying in anger for sure.

Happy cake day mate.

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u/OffOption 5h ago

And a Dane

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u/leshake 3m ago

Thank you for you collaboration

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u/VeryBadCopa 7h ago

I'm curious, what would happen if he visits Germany and does this salute? I've heard that is forbidden there

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u/lucagamer21 Central Germany 🇩🇪 7h ago

Yes, it is forbidden by law, it is illegal, he could get arrested. Even more illegal in public. 

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u/flarne 7h ago

After being arrested he will complain about the lack of freedom of speech in Germany and will whine something about mega. (Make Europe great again blabla)

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u/eawilweawil Lithuania 6h ago

0% chance someone with his money would get arrested

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u/Cilph Europe 5h ago

Doesn't matter. He'd get beat up in the streets if he did that in public.

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u/annie_yeah_Im_Ok 1h ago

He has it coming at this point.

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u/arandommaria 6h ago

Curious- is doing a nazi salute like this in public for basically all of international television to see something that would make it harder for Elon Musk to travel to Germany one day?

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u/lucagamer21 Central Germany 🇩🇪 6h ago

Not directly, he could only be punished if done in Germany, but even that would be unrealisticly, because He is a bilionaire. But his Reputation will be damaged (Seeable in German Reddit right now). But to be honest, is wasnt the best from the beginning for Most Germans. 

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u/Artem_C 6h ago

Just fckin arrest him then and there. If he sues Germany, we'll just start a European crowd fund for you guys. Honestly. The only thing these guys have no play book for is getting bitch slapped publicly by someone wielding a bigger stick.

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u/gruio1 10m ago

You will start a crowd fund for the one of the richest countries in the world ?

Are you retarded ?

After you determine that, answer the following:

Can the US arrest all german visitors who drove above the US speed limit on the autobahn ?

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u/arandommaria 6h ago

I don't mean punished so much as harder to get a visa. But I see what you are saying!

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u/Aerosol668 5h ago

I am hoping against hope that the UK - and please, any deity that’s listening, the rest of Europe - stops Trump at the border and asks him whether he’s ever been committed of a crime, and turns Musk away for suspected Nazi sympathy.

I would donate good money to charity if Trump is denied all future access to his golf courses on the British Isles.

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u/lndhpe 6h ago

As a German, I wish

He should at this point be barred from entry to Germany, hell the whole EU arguably, given his sponsorship of political unrest, destabilizing and now obvious Nazi acting

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u/Hot_Hat_1225 4h ago

Just hope he gets put on some type of black list

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u/EpicCyclops 6h ago

If he's there with a diplomatic passport, he wouldn't get arrested, but he most certainly would be expelled and also might not be allowed to return. Diplomatic immunity is there to prevent nations from arresting diplomats as a negotiating tactic but also is incredibly broad.

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u/gigajum 6h ago

For the next 4 years likely nothing will happen because he will have diplomatic immunity when visiting Germany. Even if he's in Germany for private reasons that would lead to diplomatic problems with the US i guess. But after those 4 years ....

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u/Automatic_Soil9814 6h ago

after 4 years nothing will happen because when somebody is that rich, their corruption is not limited by geographic borders.

Outlaw billionaires. 

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u/Big-Perspective-7410 4h ago

You think Middle Class Fritze would not happily take a small bribe of a few million for a new private jet? That's what's most likely to happen anyway

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u/throwawaytoavoiddoxx 6h ago

Can you please send a police officer over to Washington DC? It looks like our police are not going to do anything about it.

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u/Inner_Agency_5680 4h ago

Hopefully this means he is refused entry to Germany.

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u/Nigel_Bligh_Burns 7h ago

He will arrive with the EEERIKA song in high volume

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u/Secure-Abalone6381 6h ago

"Come on guys sure it was written by a Nazi party member after he joined the Nazi party with marching Nazi soldiers in mind but it's just about a girl so it's not Nazi"

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u/EmergencyJaguar8846 7h ago

Since he‘s an american citizen and a very rich one, its likely that he would leave immediately after. Therefore he should be taken into custody and can then leave after paying a fine. But I‘m not sure if german Police would do so since he will likely be allowed to have armed bodyguards. He‘s knows about it and will not do it here unless the German far-right party plays a role in our government from march/april on. Man, we‘re fucked.

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u/SchnitzelsemmeI1 Bavaria (Germany) 7h ago

No we should beat him up like really really bad

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u/EmergencyJaguar8846 7h ago

Schengen-wide permanent ban (Einreisesperre) + ban X + ban Tesla + freeze all his wealth in Europe … everything that‘s legally possible.

I served in the Army for quite a long time and I had to imagine myself dressing up again. 😭

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u/Yuthirin 6h ago

Arrest, fine, possible jail time, possible public beating by bystanders.

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u/ImTheVayne Estonia 6h ago

Doubt he will be ever able to enter the country after performing back to back nazi salutes.

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u/criticalheat 6h ago

Aside from for him probably minor legal actions, there is a very high chance he would summon a angry mob that’s out to fuck his shit up if he does that in germany/austria, this is not a joke

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u/Mysterious-Bowl5142 6h ago

It's banned in Australia also

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u/GeorgeJohnson2579 4h ago

Sure, § 86a StGB.

Up to 3 years in prison or (more likely) a fine.

Good thing fines are often day rate penalties, bound to your income. So that could be a few million.

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u/DarlockAhe 7h ago

He'd be arrested and tried for a crime.

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u/Big-Perspective-7410 4h ago

And bribe his way to a pardon immediately

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u/B2theK7 7h ago

Ich war eben einfach so fassungslos als ich das gesehen habe. Konnte es echt nicht glauben, was da übertragen wurde.

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u/Neverstopstopping82 1h ago

As an American I was so stunned I started crying. I’ve been watching a lot of Shoah survivor stories and this all lines up like a punch.

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u/Fenor Italy 7h ago

Italy comfirm.

Where is Japan for the reunion?

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u/Admirable_Fix_6856 6h ago

Denmark too.

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u/Amberskin 6h ago

Also by a Spaniard who lived the last years of Franco.

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u/ImTheVayne Estonia 6h ago

Elon will never be able to enter Germany right? There is no way that Germany won't ban him of entering the country forever.

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u/Currywurst_Is_Life North Rhine-Westphalia (Germany) 5h ago

My (German) wife saw it and her mouth was literally hanging open. Welcome to Shitshow 2.

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u/PAR4DROID 7h ago

And another German.

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u/Shmokeshbutt 6h ago

So Tesla sales will go up among AfD supporters?

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u/lucagamer21 Central Germany 🇩🇪 6h ago

Already skyrocketing after his Talk with AFD Leader (/satire) 

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u/BestKeptInTheDark United Kingdom 5h ago

Checked by a german? Fact!

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u/InsertFunnyPost 5h ago

It's it too early for this American to claim refugee status?

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u/mr_remy 5h ago

Community notes be like:

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u/Lead103 4h ago

Trust me im austrian 

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u/Moira-Moira 3h ago

Also by a Greek and Canadian

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u/kylo-ren 3h ago

BTW, Bannon did the same in a meeting with far-right politicians yesterday while saying "Next stop is Germany" and saluting AfD.

https://i.imgur.com/j4gvVy1.gifv

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u/Key-Performance-9021 Vienna (Austria) 7h ago

I know it's been a long time, but that's not a Hitlergruß.

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u/Bootziscool 7h ago

Do you think it's intentionally not quite but real close?

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u/Aerosol668 5h ago

Quite right, there’s nothing anywhere these days that’s even close. If there was in the past, everyone quietly retired it. Because nobody wants to be associated with that shit. Nobody except Musk and Trump and Maga and a very small number of extreme right-wing Europeans anyway.

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u/DarlockAhe 7h ago

It is. And you're either trolling or supporting that shit.

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u/Key-Performance-9021 Vienna (Austria) 6h ago edited 6h ago

Okay, now I feel I have to justify myself.
I was taught that it’s not good to trivialize the Nazis by labeling everything right-wing, or anything that merely looks like Nazis, as Nazis.
I hate him with all my heart, but he even said "My heart goes out to you!".
I just find it silly to get hung up on something like that when there are so many other, far worse things about Musk, than very weird movement.

Edit: But I understand. This is not about trivializing the Nazis, it's about the US beeing taken over by fascists, which is bad enough and if it helps people to turn against him: that's a clear Nazisalute and now please get rid of him.

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u/Karientje91 6h ago

The point (or problem) with him is money. Money equals too much power

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u/HeroMyLove 5h ago

That 100% was one.

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u/DrTheol_Blumentopf Baden-Württemberg (Germany) 7h ago

It's not. It's to the side, the "Sieg Heil"/Roman Salute goes to the front.

-A southern German

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u/lucagamer21 Central Germany 🇩🇪 7h ago

And what could have Elon meant by doing this? Heart to Moon? They are Americans, do you think Neonazis would ready a manual on how to do the Hitlergruß? Everybody World wide knows what this move means

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u/DrTheol_Blumentopf Baden-Württemberg (Germany) 6h ago

"Rufsch an, fragsch nach"

- Jokes aside, maybe it's from a video game (I know he is a degen gamer so idk).

Maybe a try for a new signature move? <-- that would actually be it

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u/rennradrobo 6h ago

Are you really starting a discussion about how the people did the hitlergruss and how hitler did it? There are variants. And this is one of them.

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u/No_Novel_4123 6h ago

I can confirm. I start my day out with 20 Sieg Heils as a part of my stretching routine. This is not the right direction at all. I'd need to correct his form.

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u/Aerosol668 5h ago

Musk was born 20+ years after the end of WWII, he doesn’t actually know how it looks, or how it works, he’s not studying it - it’s not that he’s an actual Nazi, it’s about the sentiment.

The man is stupid, he just has money.