Rock legend Dee Snider, known for the song “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” recently criticized Elon Musk for reinstating conservative commentator Alex Jones’ account on X, formerly known as Twitter, threatening to leave the social media platform.
Snider said that Jones’ reinstatement on X was not because of free speech. The famed rock singer’s comments come months after he said that online speech with a negative psychological effect on individuals was unacceptable.
“So [Musk] has let [Jones] back on the platform & sat in on a forum with AJ & a group of other false prophets?” Snider wrote. “This isn’t free speech. These are awful people knowingly spreading falsehoods with malevolent intent. It may be time to leave X & sell my Tesla. Standby.”
So @elonmusk has let @AlexJonesReborn back on the platform & sat in on a forum with AJ & a group of other false prophets?
This isn't free speech. These are awful people knowingly spreading falsehoods with malevolent intent.
It may be time to leave X & sell my Tesla. Standby.
— Dee Snider🇺🇸🎤 (@deesnider) December 12, 2023
Jones’ X account was restored after Musk posted a poll that received more than 2 million votes regarding whether the conservative commentator should be brought back on the platform.
The survey asked, “Reinstate Alex Jones on this platform? Vox Populi, Vox Dei.”
“Vox populi vox Dei” is a Latin phrase that means “the voice of the people is the voice of God.”
Since 70% of respondents voted in the affirmative, Jones was reinstated on X shortly after.
In recent years, Snider has engaged in political discourse and has criticized Musk various times. In October 2023, the prominent rock singer said that the SpaceX CEO doesn’t understand free speech.
“There’s this idea, and Elon Musk is a champion of it, that free speech is saying anything you want whenever you want. That is now what they meant when they wrote the First Amendment. … You never could say something that could endanger someone’s well-being, whether it’s physical or mental, with your words,” Snider claimed at the time.
“You can’t say things to people or post things online that could hurt people psychologically, mentally, and physically destroy their lives. That’s not free speech,” the artist added.
Snider has also voiced his opinion on the so-called “gender-affirming care,” saying that he believes children have not matured enough to undergo radical gender procedures.
The rock singer later faced backlash, which he addressed by saying, “I was not aware the Transgender community expects fealty and total agreement with all their beliefs and any variation or deviation is considered ‘transphobic.’”
