I have left Twitter.

My archive finally arrived last night (four days after I requested it) which allowed me to delete my past tweets and leave a simple message for anyone who cares to find me.

It’s not an easy decision. I’ve spent years building my follower list to more than 7,000 people, and for someone like me trying to make a career as a creative, that’s a huge asset to give up. On the other hand, it’s probably good for my mental health and concentration. For years I have found myself either spending too much time either on Twitter, or thinking about things I could tweet. But being a cog in the Elon Musk machine is a line I cannot cross. So I’m gone.

In the days since Elon’s purchase became official, there has been much discussion about how people should respond. Here’s what it comes down to for me:

I don’t trust Elon Musk.
Plenty of people have pointed out that other platforms are owned by evil billionaires, and I have no problem saying that I hold a special loathing for Elon Musk.

The man is a liar, a cheat, and a fraud. He was born into great wealth, made one or two smart investments, and then built his fortune mostly by defrauding governments and pocketing tax dollars. His promises are empty, his announced projects rarely come to fruition, and yet he has a reputation as a genius inventor and entrepreneur. The man has…