Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and world’s richest person, has hinted that his next purchase will be Coca-Cola, a worldwide beverage firm.
His proposal to buy Coca-cola, may be more difficult because he adds that he will “reintroduce cocaine.”
This comes just a few days after the company announced a $44 billion acquisition of the social media network Twitter.
Musk in a tweet via his verified Twitter handle, @elonmusk with over 87 million followership, said: “Next I’m buying Coca-Cola to put the cocaine back in.”
The viral post has elicited a wide range of opinions from his followers. While some oppose his encouragement of cocaine use, others urge him to make the acquisition as quick as possible.
Coca-Cola was invented in 1885 by John Pemberton, a pharmacist from Atlanta, Georgia, who made the original formula in his backyard.
Pemberton’s recipe contained cocaine in the form of an extract of the coca leaf, which inspired the “Coca” part of the beverage’s name. The “Cola” comes from the kola nut (which contains caffeine, another stimulant).
The amount of cocaine in Coca-Cola was decreased until it was completely eradicated in 1929.
This was during the United States’ Prohibition Era, when alcohol was prohibited. Coke quickly gained popularity as a “soft” drink that could be substituted for hard liquor.
