John Oliver Says Elon Musk's 'Thin Skin' Is A 'Biological Fact'

A middle school friend of mine taught me to be mean to bullies. I was bullied a lot until that point. For a while, I would use my sense of humor (aka a complete lack of embarrassment) to make the teasing and laughter happen on my terms. It helped soften the problem, but it didn’t stop it. It wasn’t until my friend Rich encouraged me to be mean back. I was quick on my feet, and years of being picked on made me adept at dishing out insults.

Insulting people is a tool that, I would argue, most comedians possess. It can be dangerous when in the wrong hands. Some comedians become the bullies themselves. Others use their power to take on thin-skinned losers who only receive praise by paying for it. They look at the privileged and powerful and call them things like “the less f***able reimagining of Billy Zane’s character in Titanic.”

Where comedians and bullies differ is that comedians can take the insults hurled at them and work them to their advantage. You can insult them as much as you want, but they won’t (always) break. Bullies break like tissue paper. They refuse to believe that they have any flaws (real or perceived) and collapse into embarrassing shame spirals that include claiming what was said about them isn’t funny.

In December, John Oliver used his Emmy-winning show and platform to take shots at the notably thin-skinned bully, Elon Musk. Musk, being weak and lacking humility, has repeatedly claimed to his social media sycophants that John Oliver isn’t funny because of wokeness. You know, that thing that totally exists and isn’t just a dog whistle/car alarm for racists when they don’t like something. Well, Oliver has responded.

The HBO host (it’s not Max, just like Twitter isn’t X) was leaving the airport, so of course, TMZ was there. They asked Oliver about Musk’s comments, and like someone who isn’t a thin-skinned baby, Oliver handles it with humility and humor. His response is a perfect example of how he is everything Musk wishes he were. He can buy as many Twitter friends as he wants, but he can’t buy a personality.