It’s a lack of negative reinforcement. Normal people face negative reinforcement every single day: if you screw up you lose something. Relationships, jobs, money, etc.
After a certain amount of wealth the negative reinforcement starts to disappear. You don’t need to give a shit about what “little people” think when you can always find an audience that agrees with you. When people will put up with your shit because you’re the one footing the bill. When expensive mistakes are pennies to you.
Exactly. Look at what happened with the OceanGate II Scandal. Stockton Rush, founder of the company was killed when he thought he could bend reality to his will. But the laws of physics can’t be bribed or bullied. They can be bent, but not broken. He was told by the manufacturer of the carbon fiber tube that was his submarine that it would not be suitable for use in a high pressure environment. He even fired his own safety guy because he never wanted to be told “no”.
The only difference between Musk and Rush is that Musk doesn’t board his own rockets if he thinks they’re going to kill him. Rush knew his little toy sub wasn’t safe. Not only that, but he convinced other rich idiots that it was and conned them into getting on board with him.
If he were some normal dork people would shun him or just tell him to shut the fuck up until the penny dropped and he moderated what he said. But since he is mega rich we get to enjoy his personality in all its terrible glory because there is nobody who can or would dare stand up to him.
