A Tesla Owner’s Lament

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Photo by Nikola Spasenoski

Tesla Problems

Yes, I own a Tesla. No, I don’t admire Elon Musk. In fact, I hold him in utter contempt, along with his deeply disturbed enabler in the Oval Office. However, I’m not particularly fond of those who believe that demonizing Tesla owners and vandalizing their vehicles is a valid way to strike blows against the evil empire. If you are of this persuasion, we have issues.

First off, many of us purchased our Teslas before the Muskrat devolved into his true self, which seems an odd concoction of various mental and behavioral disorders. What’s more, our motives were to help address the climate crisis by embracing zero emissions. At least that was true in my family. And while there are many more comparable EVs to choose from today, that has only recently been the case.

Would I buy a Tesla now? No. But I have no intention of shooting myself in the financial foot by selling or trading it at a significantly devalued price. And I do continue to appreciate not giving more money to the fossil fuel industry that knew all along it was destroying the environment and said, “Who cares as long as we’re making money?”

Fuel in Our Cars

That’s what we do every time we put fuel in our cars. We make them richer and make the Earth poorer. These are the capitalist predators who donated $75 million to Trump’s campaign knowing he would undermine efforts to combat climate change. And, yes, I have another vehicle that runs on petrol, so I’m guilty as charged as well.

And for those self-righteous zealots who now demonize Teslas and their owners, I trust you don’t use X (Twitter) or Starlink internet (both owned by Musk). And may I assume you are also punishing other Trump sycophants, like Jeff Bezos, by not using Amazon or Whole Foods, or reading the Washington Post? Then there’s Zuckerberg, so if you use Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads or Meta Quest, you helped him donate a cool million to Trump’s inauguration.

Except for those who truly live off the grid or have boycotted any and all oligarch-owned enterprises, all our hands are dirty. So, spare me the holier-than-thou proselytizing.

Frustration and Fury

Look, I understand the frustration and fury. Many of us feel helpless against the spoiled brats and greed mongers ruining our economy, our planet and our sanity. But those persons are not your average Jane or Joe behind the wheel of a Tesla.

So boycotting Tesla, not to mention the other Musky firms out there, is just fine because that does the real damage. Keying a Model S or spray painting a swastika on a Model Y isn’t hurting Musk. Not buying his crap or using his services does.

Tesla sales are plummeting, along with the firm’s stock value. That hurts Musk where he lives, in his greed. But messing up these EVs or vandalizing a dealership only hurts innocent people. If that’s your gig, count me out.

Power of Money

I suspect some of those taking revenge on Tesla harbor a positive intent, one I can likely embrace. It’s the methods they employ with which I take issue. They are, however, on the scent, because the best way to kick oligarchs where they live is by cutting off their money. So, the damage done by not buying a Tesla is far greater than slashing some poor soul’s tires or throwing paint on a windshield.

The rub, unfortunately, is that many decent people work in oligarch-owned enterprises and will be hurt if their revenue tanks. Our lives are incredibly intertwined. Nonetheless, the power of the purse, along with the ballot box, is the most potent weapon at the disposal of what is increasingly called “the resistance.”

Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress, said: “When morality comes up against profit, it is seldom that profit loses.”

It doesn’t have to be that way. Morality can prevail if we cut these cruel hominids off at their fiscal knees. That’s on us. But trashing some schmuck’s car because your pissed off at the CEO behind it does zero to advance this cause.

What does? Boycott.