The ‘Mad Scientist’ has been a common trope in fiction – novels, movies, comic books – ever since Mary Shelley’s Dr Frankenstein, and possibly before. (There’s an incomplete list of them here: https://fearplanet.net/2024/07/17/top-20-mad-scientists-in-fiction-and-film). My favourite one as a kid was the Mekon, from the Dan Dare comic strip in the Eagle, whom I’ve mentioned – and pictured – before (https://bernardjporter.com/2020/02/13/journey-to-mekonta/). They came in a variety of shapes and sizes – some, like the Mekon, weren’t even human; but they all shared one common feature, which was their cold rationality, and consequently their lack of human empathy. This was their most evil attribute, and the most difficult one for decent heroes like Dan (British public school-educated, of course) to counter, without sacrificing their own humanity. The post-World War II ones were generally based on Nazi doctors and scientists; or even on Hitler himself.

Which is why my mind immediately turned to them when I read this statement by the Nazi-saluting Elon Musk: that ‘the fundamental weakness of Western civilization’ – no less – ‘is empathy.’ (For context, see https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/elon-musk-empathy-quote/.) – Now, Musk may not be much of a ‘scientist’, if what I read about him is true; and his exploding spaceships don’t give one much confidence here. But he surely satisfies the ‘mad’ bit of that appellation. He’s also, we’re told, inordinately rich, and owns much of the ‘social media’; which are what make his ‘mad’ views particularly dangerous. In short, he seems to be the evil (query-) scientist and capitalist de nos jours. He’ll surely figure in a Marvel comic, on the side of the ‘baddies’, before very long.

In short: a monster.