Elon Musk's Youth; South Africa and Nazism; Trump Organization and Viet Nam
From Here's What I Say by Sue Moresi by Sue Moresi
July 25, 2025 · 18 min · Season 1 · Episode 6
About this episode
The episode discusses Elon Musk's upbringing in a racist South Africa, the historical context of Nazism in the region, and the Trump Organization's development of a resort in Vietnam.
Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and 2 others grew up in very racist, Apartheid-ish South Africa. These 4 founded PayPal. They are sometimes referred to as the PayPal Mafia. In the 1930s and continuing, South Africa (and Southwest Africa) had a LARGE pro-Hitler population. Elon's grandfather was the head of a pro-Nazi party in Canada in the 1930s, and went to prison once Canada declared war on Germany. He (the grandfather) was very much considered a Nazi sympathizer by the Canadian gov't. The grandfather (Joshua) moved his family, including Elon's mother, to South Africa around 1950. As for Elon's situation with his father and at school was, at least at times, brutal. E.g., his father berated him for not being tough enough when Elon ended up in the hospital having been, basically, jumped at school. Elon has a great grasp of math and the workings of computers and has for a long time. Most of this information comes from the book Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson and Democracynow.org., specifically articles by Chris McGreal. Also, the Trump organization has broken ground for a very expensive, snazzy (5-star) resort near Hanoi. Building permitting seems to have been expedited. Environmental…
People in this episode
Host: Sue Moresi
Topics covered
- Elon Musk
- Apartheid
- Nazism
- Trump Organization
- Vietnam
- PayPal Mafia
Keywords
- Elon Musk
- Apartheid
- Nazism
- Trump Organization
- Vietnam
- PayPal Mafia
- Peter Thiel
- Joshua Musk
- Hanoi
- tariffs
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Trump Organization, Democracynow.org
Books & works: Elon Musk
Places: South Africa, Canada, Vietnam
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