“It is arduous to go larger than being this sort of a second-in-charge or second-in-popularity to Trump,” Zelinsky mentioned.
On Reddit and X, Zelinsky analyzed messages from Musk followers who actually believed that Dogecoin worth hikes are Musk’s “present” propelling Dogecoin to turn out to be not simply the “forex of Earth” however the forex of Mars. That is the actual fantasy that makes Musk such a charismatic determine, Zelinsky instructed.
“If we maintain believing within the coin and every little thing we should always make it stand for, we will likely be chilling on Mars,” one Musk follower mentioned.
“Overlook concerning the effing moon, Elon Musk is taking Doge to Mars!!!” one other posted.
Others, whom Zelinsky satirically refers to as pirates, are extra pragmatic. In a “non-devotional approach,” Zelinsky informed Ars, they belief that Musk “may create a momentous demand that may drive the worth of Dogecoin upward and allow them to revenue from credulous buyers who’re late to the celebration.”
“I used Doge the proper approach,” one Musk follower mentioned. “I’m not gonna maintain that shit,” it “has no utility. Simply have notifications turned on for [Elon’s] twits and [make] some simple cash.”
Zelinsky informed Ars that traditionally, followers of charismatic leaders typically maintain onto their beliefs till the charisma wanes and figures turn out to be considered as mundane. Since Musk’s political affect is arguably higher than ever, it is probably that his followers have solely strengthened their perception in his energy to meet his guarantees to popularize Dogecoin and take them to Mars.
However charismatic authority is “a really risky sort of phenomenon,” Zelinsky mentioned, forecasting that even Musk “can’t keep charismatic eternally.” He pointed to a discipline of research into technofeudalism, which theorizes that tech leaders particularly have gotten extra conventional and fewer disruptive over time.
One may argue that Dogecoin, too, has charismatic authority over merchants, lots of whom love that Doge is disruptive and purchase Doge only for amusing. But when Dogecoin turns into extra steady, as Stebbing needs, Dogecoin dangers turning into “much less fascinating as an object of perception,” Zelinsky instructed.
And though there are many believers in Dogecoin right this moment, there additionally persists a cussed phase of Dogecoin followers who don’t need the joke to finish or see the memecoin turn out to be as regular as a crumpled-up greenback. Dogecoin may danger dropping this joker phase if it turns into too steady and critical.
Schurck informed Ars that whereas he may simply see extra individuals utilizing Dogecoin if corporations began adopting it as a cost technique, for him, “Dogecoin stays a joke first. A humorous, costly joke and a cool meme, positive! However nonetheless a joke.”