Spotify’s CEO asked his Twitter followers on Monday what one thing our society does that would be hard to explain if aliens visited, which gathered replies from many, including Elon Musk, who reached back to a question a now Supreme Court justice could not answer.
"If aliens were to visit us right now, what’s one thing we’ve chosen to do as a society (that feels relatively simple or obvious) that would be super hard to explain," Spotify CEO Daniel EK tweeted.
The tweet was seen 3.2 million times as of 7 p.m. on Monday, with nearly 6,500 likes and 458 retweets.
Some of the replies include, "The Cleveland Browns never reaching a Super Bowl despite 8 championship rings," "NFTs," and "The use of ties at formal events."
Also chiming in was Twitter CEO Musk, who answered, "What is a woman?"
The tweet appeared to be in response to Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who under questioning before being sworn in in 2022 said she "can’t" define the word woman.
During questioning, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., brought up the topic of transgender issues, asking Jackson, "Can you provide a definition for the word ‘woman?’"
"Can I provide a definition? No, I can’t," the judge responded. "Not in this context, I’m not a biologist."
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 21: U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson listens during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill March 21, 2022, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Jackson’s answer received sharp criticism, with critics blaming progressive and woke ideology in their replies.
"Ridiculous," media personality Piers Morgan tweeted at the time. "I’m not a brain surgeon but I know what a brain is. This is where ‘progressive’ thinking leads - to a terror of stating basic unarguable facts lest it offend the woke brigade."
Musk’s response received over 3 million views and garnered several responses, as well.
One person said, "Nope they’ll understand," while another said, "A woman is someone who cares and brings happiness to the world, completes the man, a symbol of love, care, strength, devotion and creation."
Still, one other user said, "Think back to 2019. The question ‘what is a woman’ was perfectly easily answered by everyone. In 3 short years, it has become the most difficult. 3 years. That’s all it took."