Tolkien references in Silicon Valley's Trump-supporting elite

Christian Caliandro on Artribune analyzes how the Trump-supporting tech elite, including Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, and Bill Ackman, appropriate J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings' to justify an oligarchic, anti-democratic ideology. Thiel's Mithril Capital, Vance's Narya fund, Palantir, and Anduril drones all draw names from Tolkien's legendarium. This technocratic lobby ignores the hobbits' humble, peaceful nature, instead embracing a vision of society ruled by privileged dynasties, with technology replacing magic as a tool of control. The article also notes a parallel appropriation by Italy's new right in the 1970s, and links J.D. Vance's hillbilly mythology from 'Hillbilly Elegy' to this fusion of medieval privilege, drones, and AI serving wealth. Curtis Yarvin, a philosopher-blogger admired by Vance, openly advocates white nationalism. The piece argues this cultural phenomenon is one of the most significant of 2024, with potential impacts on future political and social scenarios.