Kimbal Musk on growing up in South Africa | Lex Fridman Podcast Clips
Summary
TLDRThe speaker reflects on growing up in South Africa during the 1980s, amidst the violence and protests against apartheid. They share a formative experience witnessing a murder, highlighting the stark contrast in valuing human life between South Africa and the United States. The conversation delves into the societal impact of perceiving human life as disposable, and how this perspective can both enable mass violence and foster a unique appreciation for life's fleeting nature, leading to a more carefree and joyful existence.
Takeaways
- 🌍 Growing up in South Africa during the 1980s was marked by widespread violence and social unrest.
- 📉 The fall of apartheid was a significant period in the speaker's life, shaping their worldview.
- 🌟 The United States is appreciated for valuing human life, in contrast to the experiences in South Africa.
- 🗣️ The speaker witnessed firsthand the disregard for human life, with people being killed in public.
- 🚆 A formative experience involved witnessing a murder on a violent train, highlighting the casual acceptance of death.
- 🩸 The impact of violence was profound, with the speaker stepping into a pool of blood and walking through it.
- 📈 The speaker contrasts the value of human life in different countries, noting a lower value in the Soviet Union compared to the United States.
- 🌐 Violence on a mass scale is easier when individual lives are considered disposable.
- 🎉 Despite the violence, there was a sense of joy and celebration in South African communities, embracing life's impermanence.
- 🥗 The speaker recalls dinners with black friends, highlighting the joy found in accepting mortality and living in the moment.
- 💡 The message is to maximize joy and happiness in life, embracing the fact that everyone's life will eventually end.
Q & A
Where did the speaker grow up and how did the environment shape their perspective on violence?
-The speaker grew up in South Africa during the apartheid era. The violence they witnessed firsthand, including participating in anti-apartheid protests and seeing a murder, shaped their view on the value of human life and the acceptability of violence.
What was a significant aspect of the speaker's social life in South Africa?
-A significant aspect of the speaker's social life was participating in anti-apartheid protests, which involved mixing with people of different races and backgrounds.
How did the speaker's experience with violence in South Africa influence their appreciation for life in America?
-The speaker's experiences with violence in South Africa, where human life was not highly valued, made them appreciate the value placed on human life in America, where it is taken more seriously.
What was the age of the speaker when they witnessed a murder?
-The speaker was around 16 or 17 years old when they witnessed a murder on a train.
How did the community react to the murder the speaker witnessed?
-The community reacted with a sense of normalcy, as everyone walked through the blood and continued on their way, reflecting a societal acceptance of violence and a lower value on human life.
What philosophical concept does the speaker suggest underlies many ideologies?
-The speaker suggests that the concept of human life being disposable underlies many ideologies, making it easier to engage in mass violence and suffering.
How does the speaker compare the value of human life in the Soviet Union, the United States, and South Africa?
-The speaker believes that the value of human life was lower in the Soviet Union compared to the United States, and that in South Africa during apartheid, life was not valued as much, leading to a different social dynamic.
What impact does the loss of a life have on the speaker's community?
-The loss of a life in the speaker's community is very painful and creates a significant social vacuum, as it is a reminder of the high value placed on individual lives.
How does the speaker describe the coexistence of violence and joy in their experiences?
-The speaker describes that despite the violence, there was a sense of joy and celebration in moments of community and togetherness, as accepting mortality allowed for a deeper appreciation of life.
What is the speaker's perspective on living a longer life?
-The speaker believes that living a longer life should be about maximizing joy, happiness, and peace, rather than being attached to misery or suffering.
How does the speaker's experiences in South Africa contrast with their experiences in America?
-The speaker contrasts the violence and lower value of human life in South Africa with the higher value placed on human life and the seriousness with which death is treated in America.
Outlines
🗡️ Formative Experiences in Violent South Africa
The speaker reflects on growing up in South Africa during the 1980s, a time marked by violence and apartheid. As a teenager, they were deeply involved in anti-apartheid protests, which were a significant part of their social life. They describe the stark contrast between the value of human life in South Africa and the United States, recalling a traumatic incident where they witnessed a murder on a train. The speaker emphasizes the societal acceptance of violence and the disposable nature of individual lives in South Africa, which was a stark contrast to the value placed on human life in America. They also discuss the philosophical underpinnings of violence and how it's easier to inflict suffering on a mass scale when human life is considered less valuable. Despite the violence, the speaker notes a sense of joy and celebration in South African culture, stemming from an acceptance of mortality and a focus on living in the moment.
😃 Maximizing Joy Through Acceptance of Mortality
The conversation shifts to the idea of embracing the inevitability of death as a means to maximize joy and happiness. The speaker suggests that acknowledging the transient nature of life allows individuals to let go of attachments and enjoy every moment more fully. They argue that this acceptance of mortality fosters a celebratory element in life, as seen in their experiences with friends in South Africa. The speaker concludes by advocating for living longer with the goal of achieving joy, happiness, and peace, rather than succumbing to misery.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡South Africa
💡Apartheid
💡Violence
💡Human Life
💡Protests
💡Social Vacuum
💡Soviet Union
💡Mass Violence
💡Joy
💡Mortality
💡Celebration of Life
Highlights
Growing up in South Africa during a violent period.
The fall of apartheid in the 1980s.
Community social life intertwined with anti-apartheid protests.
The stark contrast in valuing human life between South Africa and America.
Witnessing violence firsthand, such as a stabbing on a train.
The age of 16 or 17 during the formative experience of witnessing death.
The societal reaction to violence, stepping over blood and continuing on.
The underlying philosophy of disposable human life in violent societies.
Comparing the value of human life in the Soviet Union versus the United States.
The ease of mass violence and suffering in societies with lower human life value.
The social vacuum created by the loss of an individual in a community.
The beauty and celebratory element found in places with a lower value of human life.
The joy of life when mortality is accepted.
Enjoying life to the fullest by letting go of attachments.
The goal of living longer should be focused on joy, happiness, and peace.
Maximizing joy as a life goal.
Transcripts
growing up in South Africa you said it
was a violent place what are some
formative moments that you remember from
that time South Africa was so I grew up
in uh a paride South Africa but more
specifically the fall of AP parite so it
was was the 80 I was a teenager in the
80s and uh our community would would
um part of our social life frankly was
the anti- aparte protests and to go be
with white people black people kind of
mix mixing it all
together the most formative experience
is frankly how much I appreciate a place
like America where we have value for
human
life so that was a country where where
human life was not valued it was
a it's a weird thing to come from that
to here where where we we take it so
seriously if someone dies in a war or
something like that and um we just
didn't take it seriously in South Africa
people died but people were killed I saw
someone killed in front of
me um with uh was getting of a train and
it's a very violent train known known
for violence we were stupid kids we
didn't really listen to our parents we
went on this train and uh the doors
opened and I had people trying to get
off the train and in front of me two
black people one black guy just stabbed
this knife in the side of this other
black guy's head and you're like what
the and you just I'm I got to get
off the train how old were you this time
probably 16 or 17 and I got to get off
the train and everyone is trying to get
me to get off because you know they're
all behind me so I step off and I step
into the pool of blood one foot and then
I just walk for about 100 Paces while
the stickiness of the blood just kind of
for my sneakers just on one foot just
like leaves a footprint behind me and
you just walk on you just walk on did
the others as well everyone walked on
that's an interesting point you make
underlying the violence is a kind
of philosophy that human life is
disposable the individual life is
disposable I mean that underlies many
ideologies you know I grew up in the
Soviet Union the value of human life was
lower there than in the United States
the value of the individual in the
United States is really high there's
probably an index you can put together
like yeah right
exactly per nation that that's a really
interesting way to put it because
violence is much easier on a mass scale
suffering causing suffering on a mass
scale is much easier when you don't
value the human life I've heard this
before where which I think I agree with
is when someone is killed someone is
someone's taken from our lives the the
vacuum that it creates the social vacuum
is extraordinarily painful and and it
truly is true I mean if someone in my
community passes away very very sad for
me and when you go to a place where
where you live grow up in a place where
where that human life is not valued
there's there's something about the
there's a little bit little bit less of
of social vacuum created because
everyone is kind of expecting everyone
to potentially be taken out at any
moment um but then there's also a beauty
to it because there's a much more of a
celebr
celebratory element when we my my cousin
Russ and I we again we're stupid kids we
shouldn't be doing this but we' go into
the townships where all a lot of the
violence would be happening and we
really didn't see most of the violence
there it was in in these more protests
and so so forth but but the the there's
a joy that also comes
from lower value of human life there's a
real Joy like everyone is like well I
mean it's beautiful it's we we have
dinner with black friends you know
friends with their family we were still
pretty young and um and there was just a
real joy to it when you accept mortality
yeah you you can really enjoy life you
can really enjoy I mean I think there's
actually quite a nice inside I I've
never really put it that way but I think
that's right actually I think you you
just chill out a bit take things a
little less seriously cuz life does end
for everybody it does right and if you
just head on accept that fact yeah you
can just enjoy every single moment and
let go of this attachment uh and just
enjoy the moment it's a real I do love
that we will live longer and so forth
but we should live longer with a with
the goal of joy and the goal of
happiness and peace um not of
some some form of misery that you choose
to attach yourself to maximize Joy
maximize Joy that's
right
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