What do you think? Should I get rid of it?
Don’t answer too fast. Because you should know something:
We have two of them.
Yes, two, and like most people, I’ve cycled through different cars over the years. Truth is: I love them (politics were not included other than the positive environmental benefits). I never bought a car with politics included; it was always just the car. The fact that I have not just one Tesla but more than one speaks to how awesome these cars are. I would argue that the Tesla is the best car I’ve ever owned. The most intelligent. The least maintenance. The safest. The fastest. The most high tech and user friendly… and the least expensive. But just bear with me and give me a slightly-better-than-TikTok attention span before you simply say, “dump it.”
At the moment, if I don’t scrap them and hope someone recycles the parts (which would only go to other Teslas), I’m just adding to environmental waste. But I need to not just react emotionally—I need to think this through with more characters than a tweet.
Let’s start with the fact that most legacy car brands—including Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, Ford, GM, Nissan, and Toyota—have pretty horrific histories.
Mercedes, BMW, VW: Used forced labor during Nazi Germany, actively supporting Hitler’s war machine. “Forced labor” is a –hmm—more subtle way of saying Jews, Africans, Wanderers, LGBTQ people, disabled human beings in concentration camps, peppered only by those in other prisons. VW used over 50,000 and Mercedes used over 40,000 “forced laborers,” including Jewish prisoners, during WWII. VW even had Nazi war criminals in leadership after Germany lost the war (Fritz Kuntze) and tried to cover its tracks.
How about Ford being “Ford Tough”: Henry Ford was an open anti-Semite and did business with Nazi Germany before WWII. He reportedly hung a painting of Hitler in his office and received the Grand Cross of the German Eagle from the Nazis. Ford was also built on horrible racial discrimination and segregation policies, like many American companies. And, not to be outdone in the politically evil category, GM and Chrysler both had business dealings with Nazi Germany, and Opel manufactured military vehicles for Hitler before and during WWII.
And before we forget that WWII also included Japan’s Nissan and Toyota were closely tied to Japanese imperialism in WWII, with Nissan’s precursor producing military equipment for war efforts.
If moral purity were the main reason for choosing a car, almost no major brand would pass the test. I mean…how about sneakers? Just sneakers? Beer? Fast food? Amusement parks? Yet, over time, so many car brands (and others) have distanced themselves from their dark pasts and became accepted in the global market. Society may not have “forgiven” them, but we have looked past their history and no one is pure.
Today’s outrage against Tesla is real and important—but it’s rooted in present-day politics. It doesn’t matter what party you subscribe to or if you are left, right or (whatever center is if you can find it); does exiting a car mean you enter righteousness? The outrage isn’t against the automobile (which employs over tens of thousands of working people and has made huge environmental advances) but against an eccentric Musk and the present snapshot of wherever he is at the moment impacting the world. Put politics aside and ask yourself if his design, tech, space and environmental contributions to the world have been more negative than positive? And while all of this is subject to change, I ask again: is it the car?
What if, suddenly, North Korea’s dictator decided to nuke all of Europe, and the only thing that stopped him was SpaceX and Starlink intervention—saving hundreds of millions of lives? Would all the Teslahaters still be throwing eggs at Tesla dealerships?
What if Tesla removed Musk as CEO and was bought by Ford—the company with the anti-Semitic history? Or GM and Chrysler—companies built on racist hiring policies?
Tesla is unique because, unlike legacy automakers, it revolutionized the EV industry, forcing the entire auto industry to accelerate EV adoption, reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
How about the fact that Tesla employs over 120,000 workers, many in the U.S., supporting families and communities. Remember every boujee liberal fought to get one as a status symbol because Tesla’s really helped shift consumer perceptions of EVs from niche to mainstream (and of course, these cars are lightning fast and crush most standard sports cars in any drag race). Tesla’s environmental benefits are real—zero tailpipe emissions, pushing innovation in sustainable energy, tax breaks, lane preferences… I feel confident that Tesla’s impact is net-positive for jobs, innovation, and the planet.
Then there’s Elon.
Musk’s politics are all over the place, alienating so many consumers and former supporters. X (Twitter) has wandered into an amplified PA system for conspiracies and hate speech (in the name of free speech), and just when you think it stops there, he has more random children with more baby mamas just to spice up the drama. There are plenty who find his politics nauseating but–wake up, America–the majority of American voters supported Musk’s choice of Trump. And for the critics who rightfully scolded Trump for claiming only elections he lost were rigged but the ones he won were A-Ok, the Democrats lost and lost all of it. As for how long the “bromance” between the President and Musk will last? I guess we’ll find out. But whatever side of the political spectrum you’re on, I don’t think protesting the most transformational pro-clean energy car brand is going to move the needle.
But is the remorse and are the protests against the car or the man? Should they be separated?
In the past couple of years, Nike, Adidas, Chick-fil-A, Bud Light, Disney, and so many other brands have had to contend with a political pile-on effect when reputational disasters hit. Where and how things pan out? We just don’t know.
So many companies’ founders have controversial views, yet their products remain successful. Meanwhile, school children still sing R. Kelly’s “I Believe I Can Fly” and Michael Jackson songs without protest. Steve Jobs allowed sweatshops and labor violations. Coco Chanel was literally sleeping with the Nazis. (Nice Chanel bag, status seeker!) James Watson discovered DNA and then made insanely racist and sexist comments—but his work still laid the foundation for modern genetics, biotech, and medical breakthroughs.
How pure are you? Any of these brands in your wallet?
So what is the “clean” option for a Tesla owner who loves their car but doesn’t feel so lovely toward Musk?
I guess if the social stigma is impacting your daily life and you’d rather someone else drive the car (which will still be on the road, by the way), then sure—sell it.
And if resale drops so harshly that you might as well dump it now? Okay… dump it, I guess.
But after you take the loss, you still have to get another car.
Who wins?
Not the environment.
Not your wallet.
Hmmm…
Tesla’s core mission—EVs, sustainability, innovation—remains strong. If you still believe in why you bought your Teslas (environmental impact, efficiency, cost savings, innovation), you have solid reasons to keep them.
I’m still not sure what I’ll do about the cars. But if you hear about me driving another Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, Audi, Ford, GM… well…how holy are weI?
I’m grateful I have the ability to have something safe to drive and deliberate over the options. There was a time I lived in a car so the privilege of this debate is not lost on me at all. That’s American dream stuff and I still believe in that, too.
Maybe we just need to be better as a society.
You got a bumper sticker for that?
