Over one million people have viewed the Instagram video I made while stranded at a broken Electrify America charging station in my $2000 Nissan Leaf, whose range after 12 years is down to just 20 miles due to battery degradation. A huge portion of those 1 million people are electric vehicle skeptics, and the things many of them are saying in the over 10,000 comments are wild.
In addition, the U.S. arm of the British tabloid The Sun even wrote an article about my situation. It seems I’ve somehow found myself in the middle of a massive culture war. Behold some of the jaw-dropping comments that make it clear just how divided America is when it comes to electric cars.
Let’s show the reel that started this whole thing, and try to imagine you don’t have the context of having read about the car here first:
View this post on Instagram
This video depicts me frustrated that three Electrify America charging stations are broken at the same time that my 2011 Nissan Leaf — a vehicle that I bought for just $2000 and that will end up being $1000 after a rebate from my power company — had pretty much no juice left. This shouldn’t be surprising to a regular follower, since I’d previously noted that the vehicle’s battery had degraded to about 40 percent capacity, meaning it will power the vehicle only about 20-ish miles on flat ground.
The video ends with me stating that I’m likely going to have to ditch the nearly-dead Leaf in that parking lot and take an Uber to my destination, though I actually managed to find a Level 2 charger nearby, and later I drove the Leaf home; I state in the video’s caption that America’s charging infrastructure still needs work.
It’s OK To Be An EV Skeptic
This was enough for anti-EV extremists to go wild and to use my clip as ammo to promote an anti-EV agenda. I want to make clear before I go further: I don’t use the term “extremist” in the headline lightly (also it’s worth noting that there are just as many extremists on the other side, obsessed with Tesla to a degree that’s almost cult-like). It is OK if you don’t like how the government is forcing EVs upon everyone (I myself am not 100% onboard with it), and it’s even OK to hate EVs themselves (though I find that objectively weird given how technologically impressive electric cars are) — if people did just those two things, I would not use the term “extremist.”
It is totally OK to be an EV skeptic given relatively long charge times, significant infrastructure issues (including the grid’s inability to handle it all), high average EV cost (a huge player in dividing EV fans from EV skeptics, as price makes it a class issue), battery degradation concerns (especially not knowing the battery condition when buying used), range anxiety (especially in winter or when towing), concerns about mining of minerals in batteries, road/bridge concerns related to high weight of EVs, concerns over how violently EVs can burn in a crash, and on and on. Some of my closest friends hate that Americans are being forced to buy EVs when we so love our gas cars. I don’t hold that against my friends. That’s totally fine.
But people in the comments of my Instagram reel did not just voice their displeasure over America’s EV push or with EVs themselves or with any of the other issues I mentioned; instead, they went overboard, calling me a “sheep,” frequently mentioning “virtue signaling,” implying that I’m somehow a “sucker” who bought into some kind of government trickery, and bullying me. Hard.
America Is Intensely Divided On Electric Cars
I’ve been in the media limelight for nearly a decade, so this stuff truly does not affect me one bit, but for those of you who are maybe having a tough day, I’d recommend you stop reading. Some of this is tough to see, but it’s indicative of the incredibly volatile place America’s EV transition finds itself in socially — this is a culture war, make no mistake about it:
dave_chungus_connery went absolutely wild with his comment above, stating:
If your dumb enough to buy an EV, you deserve worse than this. I hope your life becomes so miserable that you move to a red state specifically so that you can purchase a firearm and then blast a tunnel through your brain with it.
Yes it is you FUCKING LOSER ! IT’S ALL A BIG SCAM ! WAKE UP YOU FUCKING LOSERS ! ELECTRIC WILL NEVER WORK, PERIOD. END OF STORY ! ????????????????????????????????????????
I can’t get over the fact someone can be so ugly ?
Or you can work on that double chin and walk
Misogynistic Views Towards EVs
This lady needs to call a man
Libtard!!! Lol. Ha ha!!!
Sell car, buy testicles.
Politics And EV Ownership
What does the bullying and the misogyny tell us about the state of Americans’ EV transition? I think it highlights just how vehemently a significant portion of the population detests electric cars; they hate EVs so much that anyone who drives one is no longer an “us,” but rather a “them,” and a cursed, emasculated “them,” at that. Many folks made assumptions about my political preferences, too, and all because I drive a $1000 Nissan Leaf:
“Typical liberal,” writes Instagrammer t1_jossh. “But your being a good little Democrat. Stop complaining and do your part. It’s not supposed to make sense,” saintcloud69 writes, implying here that I’m under some kind of government trance.
“I think these are the same people that voted for you know who, hows that all working out…Trump and gasoline 2024,” writes Instagram-user yorkie_sydney. “It must be hard to be a liberal, like if you get stranded but you also voted for no guns so your’e just going to have to sit there if anything happens,” chimes in Instrammer kev_the_truth.
“This guy probably voted for Biden too …” wrote scooter_diablo_dffd. “You people support lithium and cobalt mines that basically enslave children,” states damniel_gets_lost. That latter comment about mining is echoed throughout that comment chain, as are assertions that electric cars are, in fact, no cleaner than gasoline cars (the best research out there has found that new EVs are, in fact, cleaner than new gas cars).
Instagrammer stupidweekends asks: “do you get to keep your woke patch?” Instagram-user 23_whiteboy_summer_23 says something similar: “The consequences of your choices. Stay woke cornhole.”
Here’s my video-response to these comments:
View this post on Instagram
Skeptics Circulate Claims That EVs Are Dirtier Than Gas Cars
Electric vehicles should not exist. Their footprint on our planet is SOOOO much more toxic than fossil fuels.
Instagram user cuetlachtli_ writes:
Electric vehicles are a scam and are worse for our environment. People need to stop buying…into this
User ant7t2 follows up with:
Go back to petrol & be normal. you ain’t saving no environment bro.
Then there’s el_chabelo73 who says:
It looks that you didn’t research anything about those cars and the damage that they cause to extraction of lithium WAKE UP
Instagrammer tat2rob73 tells me to stop being a sheep, before claiming that EVs put out more carbon than gas cars (a largely inaccurate claim for new cars when evaluated over lifetime-use, though this article isn’t meant to debunk all these claims, but rather to highlight the extent to which many Americans are critical of America’s EV path). Here’s the full comment:
Quit being a sheep and follow along just a start they will shut off electric at anytime they want to that’s what they won’t so they can control you and besides to make that car puts out more carbon ruins the earth than a gas vehicle for its life of being on the road and that have ass car is going to ruin roads faster so there’s more money out you’re pocket to pay higher taxes to fix the road its going get with it sheep
It’s worth noting the beginning of that comment, “follow along just a start they will shut off electric at anytime they want to that’s what they won’t so they can control you,” because this idea that EVs are a way for the government to control your movement is, by far, the biggest concern that people in the comments of this reel have voiced.
The Biggest Concern By Far: EVs Are A Tool That The Government Is Using To Limit Your Motion
Without question, the most commonly-mentioned concern in the 10,500+ comments is that the U.S. government is using EVs to control its citizens’ movements. It goes without saying that there’s no proof of this, but nonetheless, it’s something that worries thousands of Americans.
“Non reliable energy will make you reliant on those who control it (government). This is how they will imprison and enslave us,” writes Instagram user 81ronin41 in the comment above.
“All by design – a means to control our movements,” shares shane1122469 in the comment above. Instagram user g_mabev1957 wrote something similar, saying “It’s all about control, all they have to do is turn off the electricity. Wake up people.”
Instagram user ronin_skater_138 (a similar username to the other 81ronin41, curiously), writes in the comment above:
It’s by design. They want you to get so frustrated you just give up, move into the pod in your nearet 15 minute city, eat the bugs, own nothing, and like it. It’s the progressive agenda in a nutshell.
Then there’s this comment from Instagrammer phiyaatv, in which they refer to me as a zombie and liken EV ownership to a “plandemic”:
Sorry but I feel no sympathy for any of these zombies. Maybe he should’ve done his due diligence and he wouldn’t be in this situation. Evs and the climate crisis are as big of a scam as the covaids plandemic ????
Writing on the wall. Read it, believe it. ‘They’ want us helpless.
That is the Democratic Communist Swamp terrorists plan by pushing electric garbage has zero to do with emissions and climate change political hoax its about control. They can cut the power and boom nobody is going anywhere. Vote Red
That’s their whole plan to keep people from moving around. You think if everyone drive those things. They would be able to move around freely. hell no, all they have to do is turn of your charging stations at your not going anywhere, ANYTIME
And more from arteims21:
FYI EV”s Are For MICRO CITIES!! WHERE YOUR EVERY MOVE IS MONITORED FOR THE BENEFIT OF THIS TYRANNICAL GOVERNMENT REGIMEjosh_weiland
Wait til they shut your shit down bec your social credit score was low in 2023
Welcome the dystopia of electric car control. Thank your local government, electrical supply company and the owner of that site.
“They don’t want you traveling.”
Jeremy.forget.90 wrote:
Hahahahaha..you drank the kool aid. Obviously you believe what you hear and do no homework. Thinking this was all a good idea until now lol good luck with that electric toilet @davidntracy
Battery cars are the biggest hoax since the election of Pappy Bi-duh-n. Zero market demand and zilch infrastructure support. I dare ya to take one of these ???? piles across the country. And don’t dare take the family with you. Your odds of making it look to be about the same as going west with a wagon train. Farce. Scam. Joke. Swindle. Brought to you by the US govt. Figures.
Almost like your Government lied to you about all the false information making it better than when it’s actually about to offer? Nahhh your Government wouldn’t lie to you…
There’s A Class Component To All Of This
America isn’t awful – you’re just a mindless sheep with more money than sense. Enjoy your uber – fucking tool hahaha.
Spend 100k on a car that doesn’t even work. Liberal logic. Mean while rednecks have a 40 year old pickup that’s half rusted out flyin down the road breathing air and sending fuel while the old degenerate laughs at you liberals stranded with a charger handle in your hand.
It’s also worth noting in response to the above comment that I own a bench seat-having, stamped tailgate-equipped, long bed, regular cab, gun rack-equipped, carbureted, straight six, four-speed manual-having 1985 Jeep J10, and I bought my coworker Jason a 1989 Ford F-150 with a 300-inline six and a T18 four-speed stick. So these assumptions folks are making about me couldn’t be more wrong. I address this in the Instagram reel I made yesterday (the same one I posted earlier).
The Sun Article
He said he planned to head to Pasadena and hoped he would reach his destination with enough charge.
David had only traveled 15 miles but the battery’s range was down to nine.
The driver had to pull over as the battery had reached a “dangerously low level,” but he was met with a long line of electric car drivers waiting to charge their respective vehicles.
I ran out of charge because my EV’s range had depleted. That happened.
But I often see websites hide behind excuses like “The facts are true and from primary sources,” when the reality is that editorial fairness goes well beyond that. Media bias is so much more than just about whether you write a true story, it’s about which stories you decide to cover in the first place. I noticed this at a previous employer; our site was running anti-Elon Musk stories far too frequently, in my opinion (and I’m not a Musk fanboy at all). Every time an Autopilot failure happened we wrote a story. Every time Elon tweeted something dumb, we wrote a story. Were these things real? Yes. Were they technically newsworthy? Sure. But every now and then you have to step back and question whether the whole of your coverage fairly represents a situation, and at the old shop it seemed like the whole of our coverage implied that Elon was a dingus and that Autopilot was useless garbage — neither of which are true.
As for the Sun, the whole of its coverage would lead one to surmise that electric cars are awful, and as a regular EV user and car journalist who covers EVs, I can tell you: This is so far from true. Here are some of the stories The Sun has written recently:
Again, these stories may be 100 percent accurate (I doubt it, but let’s roll with it), but that still doesn’t mean the coverage isn’t deeply biased. Again, it’s not just about whether a publication writes a true story, it’s about what they choose to cover in the first place.
It’s also about providing context, and that’s what both The Sun and the reel commenters seem to be lacking.
My Nissan Leaf Situation Is Hardly A Microcosm For EV Ownership At Large
My Nissan Leaf does not in any way represent a typical EV ownership experience, and in truth, I could have easily avoided being stranded. My reel was meant mostly to criticize Electrify America, a company whose chargers are known for being dodgy. For me to arrive at a station and see three out of four chargers broken, and two cars waiting to juice up, was frustrating. I think anyone would have been a bit annoyed in that situation.
But not only did I get out of that situation unscathed thanks to a local charger that worked just fine (but was a bit slow, partly because the Leaf’s Level 2 charging is limited to 3.3kW), but I could have avoided that conundrum quite easily.
First off, I knew that my Nissan Leaf’s range was severely limited. I should have planned accordingly, and there are a number of apps out there to help me do that. EV Navigation, for example, accounts for elevation change, which was a factor in depleting my Nissan Leaf’s severely degraded battery pack perhaps a bit more quickly than I’d anticipated. PlugShare is a very common app that, had I been more used to charging on the road (I generally charge at home and at work), I’d have already had in my arsenal, and that would have told me that the three Electrify America plugs were broken.
In large part, me being stranded was my own doing. Were there some chargers broken? Yes. Does my EV only have 15 miles of range due to severe degradation? Yes. And if you just reported these facts without context, as The Sun did (for the most part), then sure, EVs would seem like a pretty bad proposition.
View this post on Instagram
But the car cost me $1000 (after a rebate). That’s dirt cheap. And its battery degradation is due largely to poor thermal management, and is not at all indicative of the degradation you can expect from most modern EVs (earlier EVs like my BMW i3 also had issues on this front, to be sure).
The truth is that I got stranded not because EV batteries are crap (modern EV batteries have been shown to last much longer with minimal degradation) and not because our infrastructure is that awful here in California, but because my car is a dirt cheap junker, I did not plan properly, and this particular Electrify America station wasn’t well maintained.
A $1000 Nissan Leaf at one faulty Electrify America charging station does not represent EV ownership as a whole. Not by far. So Instagrammer cwhiten11, you can relax with your comment:
Ya’ll better share TF out of this video before they delete it. This is EXACTLY what we all been saying.
I’m not deleting that clip, as it did happen, though I know it’s being unfairly weaponized to push an anti-EV agenda.
What’s The Takeaway, Here?
I want to be clear that, hidden in some of the rather alarming language, there are some valid criticisms of EV ownership in these comments.
Regardless of what these “experts” are telling the sheep, EV’s are basically only good for shorter commutes… dependable extended range commuting is not a valid option at this time and this happens more frequently than most people realize. I drive by a large charging station a couple times per week and it is full of vehicles without anyone near by… where are the drivers of these vehicles at at 5a??? They are not eating or shopping while the cars are charging…
Electric cars or one of the biggest . You’re not saving any money 25 $30 to charge your car takes an hour I’m gonna blow right past you in my fossil breathing dragon. Under five minutes to put gas in it at the end of the night. I’m home with my family and you’re out there Dicken around. Looking for a charger. Congratulations she just became a statistic of the government.You are now a puppet.
What a weird stew of misogynistic, misinformed or just plain missing-brain takes from some very fragile specimens. I’d say “get a dang hobby” but apparently, this is their hobby, and perhaps their lives.
There’s a bunch of folks out there who need to log off and find new hobbies, that’s for sure. Touch grass! Talk to other people, including some of differing views! Rediscover how to function in polite society! Do literally anything else with your time!
This basically sums up The Internet as it is today. Everything is polarizing. Just being from California seems to piss off a lot of angry rednecks. The irony in them calling you of all people a girl for driving an EV (as if that’s a problem) just goes to show that these people truly don’t care enough to get the proper story, they don’t care who you are, as long as the echo chamber proves their misguided views are correct, they’ll be happy.
I’m willing to bet most of the people writing these comments aren’t functional adults.
I wonder if DT would of gotten the same coverage had he still been in Michigan for this situation.
Oh, The Sun definitely included that “of California” quip as rage-bait. Without a doubt.
David, thank you for your sensible, reasonable and even-handed remarks in the section It’s OK To Be An EV Skeptic.
I’m glad you have thick skin, David. Although I do believe that degree of poor grammar, spelling, and run-on sentences may entitle you to file a class action lawsuit for possible resulting long-term brain damage.
Looks like your post got recommended to people who are strongly anti EV (likely due to the Instagram algorithm) it’s important to realize how these sort of algorithms create echo chambers in the comments of every social media and that the sentiment you see doesn’t even represent 1% of the views the reel received
What a time to live?! The very man who gets trench foot trying to fix a Jeep, is now a symbol for the elite class. David, you are a true icon, we all love and appreciate you here. Just try not to get trench foot when you start harvesting parts from the Leaf.
My GOD, What did I just read? I think I might have a brain bleed after that one.
David, I really hope all you did was laugh at this nonsense.
I think I forgot how to spell from reading those comments …
Bye a High Brid!
What’s that? Buy rye bread, are we out of seven grain again…
That’s what big Rye wants! Sheeple!
Your fyne, it hasn’t not effected me atoll..
Their they’re, yule bee awl write.
These comments restored me, thank you!
NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THESE SCREENSHOTS SPELLED “CAMERO” RIGHT!
SMH. We’ve failed as a society.
Meh. It’s human nature to fear unknown new products and ideas. Some people take that fear to the extreme, so what?
Take the wayback machine to the year 2000 and put the original purchaser at a Nissan dealership. Pick between an Altima and a Leaf at about the same price. 24 years later, which vehicle is still viable transportation?
Excuse me? So what? These people are telling David to literally kill himself for driving an EV and that’s all you have to say? So what? Come on now, you’re not that dense.
First off the Leaf wasn’t available in 2000, they came out much later, 2010 in fact. Second, the Leaf was a half-assed early adopter special, with very lackluster engineering and no active cooling on the battery unlike every single other EV on sale today. Tesla Model S’ from 2010 still have a very usable battery for many of the cars on the road today, and the tech continues to get better. Also good like finding a 13+ year old altima that isn’t $2-4k behind on maintenance and body damage.
Shitting on all EVs because of the Leaf is like shitting on all ICEs because of the Cimarron.
Exactly. I understand the confusion if you haven’t spent a ton of time in researching them, but at the end of the day we are still in the early days of EVs, batter tech will get significantly more advanced over the next 10 years, and I suspect to a point where replacements and degradation are a much lower concern, to the point where running costs and maintenance will be greatly improved over the majority of ICE cars.
Social media is a cesspool so none of those responses are all that surprising.
Also not surprised it was picked up by anti-EV folks to further their cause. I cringed a bit reading the original thinking how it could easily be read that way.
u have electric car u suck, u gust lost sale bitch
These are the same people who complain about gas prices while also complaining that our roads and bridges are worse than they’ve ever been. If only there was some sort of revenue collection system tied to the consumption of fuel that could fund this infrastructure…
Similarly, it’s easy to focus on government incentives to switch to EVs but completely ignore the massive subsidies given to the oil/gas industry.
Well done for mentioning the oil & Gas subsidies, why is that never mentioned? $7Trillion globally.
I tried to find the price of gas without government subsidies, the best I could find was $12.75 from a 2011 article https://www.triplepundit.com/story/2011/increasing-gas-prices-despite-subsidies/77911
I’d be interested to see the current real numbers, alas the internet has to much conflicting info
Yeah, it’s funny how an incentive at the consumer end is viewed so much differently than supplier subsidies. I actually saw someone arguing that the gas subsidies didn’t exist because they were just lowering taxes on the corporations, rather than money handed out…which, you might notice, is how the EV tax credit currently works for individuals, as well.
Well one is capitalism and one is socialism or something smart someone said on TV and I can’t remember.
David, you are amazing at covering this crazy. I hope you are mentally well after processing all of that. I appreciate that your response is compassionate and empathetic. Also hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
“Some of this is tough to see, but it’s indicative of the incredibly volatile place America’s EV transition finds itself in socially — this is a culture war, make no mistake about it:”
Well if you find it DOES get to you and you want to do something about it…
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vuBWbpTJRqk
I think you need an exorcism after reading all that shit. Hell’s teeth…
Pazuzu is present.
Every time I read something like this I have to wonder why anyone would post anything on Instagram ever.
“A stranger on the internet bought something I don’t want and was mildly inconvenienced by it! I must threaten him!”
I’ll never understand it.
Everyone MUST think they way I think, or else they are sheep. (but once everyone thinks the same way aren’t they all sheep?
I swear, these days you could post something as innocuous as “I tried to put mustard on my hot dog and got some on my shirt,” and the responses would be “THAT’S BECAUSE MUSTARD IS A SCAM WAKE UP SHEEP YOUR IN THE POCKET OF BIG MUSTARD.”
Mustard causes cancer and THEY don’t want you to know about it!
“One of the Bottles in Your Fridge Will KILL YOU! You Won’t BELIEVE Which One!!” <shocked face>
Everyone eats mustard dies*. Libtard media never mentions that.
*typically within 100 years but there may some outliers
I swear to god I’ve actually seen that conversation happen on Instagram.
But seriously that better have been brown mustard and not yellow mustard!
French or English mustard?
Even mustard is divided.
I blame the Plantagenets.
Worse: Chinese
I ONLY EAT MAYONNAISE TO PROTECT MY PRECIOUS BODILY FLUIDS FROM THOSE TAINTED MUSTARD SEEDS!
It’s ironic, isn’t it…
Sort of like how a certain group of people love calling everyone who disagrees with them “snowflakes”, while they themselves are actually the most sensitive group of “snowflakes” around.
Every time I try to understand other people’s logic in situations like this, I just can’t. Someone told David to buy a set of balls, but I’m pretty sure they would hate him even more, if that were possible.
I don’t have a catchy name for the formula, but I think the level something affects you is inversely proportional to the amount of outrage and legislation you need.
I don’t know why I didn’t heed your warning to stop reading. I am by no means an EV apologist but I came away with the strong feeling that most of these people should be thrown into a lion pit and the world would truly be a better place.
Sell tickets, proceeds go to buy David a new battery pack?
Where do I sign up?
As soon as you posted that you bought this thing I assumed these were the clicks you were looking for, honestly. As a pro-plug-ins person I wasn’t real happy to see one of my favorite sites go this “I bought this broken EV and won’t fill the tires, here’s what it says about America” direction in the first place.
I think pointing out that Electrify America sucks shit and is bad is a good thing. They should fix their chargers.
I’m in complete agreement with that.
I really expected that it would turn into a story about replacing the battery or otherwise making it a lot more usable, and the story about it getting more range than expected was also pretty pro-shitbox EV. Sure, there were always going to be anti-EV folks who’d show up for this, but I think that an article or two about how to refurb it and maybe add a cooling system could be pretty good. This is the guy who took a ute that a sane person wouldn’t even see as scrap metal and got it back to running condition.
So it’s not a government conspiracy?
There’s a reason I don’t use social media. Heck, I only joined IG because you have to be a member now to look at posts, and I only go to a few of those
I don’t know how you managed to read all that vitriolic garbage, because I only managed to read about half of what you wrote about that vitriolic garbage before I had to search for a kitten article to make me feel OK again.
One thing’s evident: This crap is clearly why your “friend” remains identified only as your “friend…” because people suck.
Internet perception of masculinity is utterly bizarre, and each time they find a new thing that they declare isn’t “manly” it’s something weirder than the last. The only real tie between all of these ideas is that somehow being a man means being needlessly aggressive.
I’m a large-ish man with a great big beard and a penchant for wearing workwear. So, externally, very masculine. I’ve also never had any doubts that I’m a man. But I definitely would not fit these fragile guys’ definition of masculinity, and not just because I have a boyfriend. And none of the best guys I’ve ever met – gay or straight – would either. There’s nothing particularly manly about the internet “man” patrol’s point of view. They’re just weak and pathetic.
Anyways, just musing on a small part of the larger display of comment section awfulness on display.
I get stereotyped all the time because of this, add in my shaved head and you might think I was a crazy white supremist. I’ve actually had people casually say some pretty fucked up things to me assuming I’d agree with them all because of how I look, unbeknownst to them that I support all rights for everyone, hate bigots, hate racists, and I absolutely hate Trump. While I don’t like bringing politics into things, I had to add that last part because that’s usually the direction random people assume I lean just because I look the part.
What 240 do you drive? Mercedes 240D? Volvo? Something else?
This is honestly a carryover name from Jalopnik so people will recognize me. I no longer drive a 240, but the 240 in question was a Nissan 240sx. I owned four of them for a while.
Whoa, that’s love.
Lol… I’d like to buy another eventually. Too bad they’ve tripled in value since I bought my last one.
All of these comments tell me these people have no idea who the real David Tracy is. He’s just swapped “severe chassis degradation” with “severe battery degradation”.
this is the point, right here. The man LOVED to wallow in rust. But he moved to a place where there is no rust. He had to find another sort of trash to wallow in. There’s plenty of used up batteries in CA so this is why this is happening.
Absolutely double rat fuck all the knuckle dragging idiots. The world would be better off without them.
Thanks for sharing, David.
It’s bigger than EV’s these are the same trolls that have a bigger agenda of stomping out anything related to climate change. The sad part is, I don’t know if they truly live the future they hate or just like being antagonistic.
I would like to see these naysayers eliminate all of the progressive tech from their daily lives. Iphone? NOPE, uses lithium batteries. Garage door opener, NOPE, uses radio frequency. Google maps, NOPE, uses gps and location tracking. Cordless Drill, NOPE, again lithium.
None of these things are things that people would think twice about using daily, yet if there is a political angle to attack anything to protect or improve the environment, they all come out of the woodwork.
“I would like to see these naysayers eliminate all of the progressive tech from their daily lives”
I draw the line at vaccines and other safety items. Idiots who refuse to take a $ ounce of prevention and end up costing everyone else $$$$ deserve to be:
A) Forced to either take that $ ounce of prevention with no exceptions for non physical reasons. “Physical reasons” to be supported by physical evidence.
OR
B) Be forced to put up a $$$$ bond or have adequate private insurance to cover that potential cost.
AND
C) Have their loved ones sign a waiver recognizing they accept the non financial risks and responsibilities of that decision to refuse that $ ounce of prevention.
I’ve been an EV owner since February and an all EV household since July. We live in a deep red state and frequently run into the stereotypical MAGA type and bible thumping conservatives. We have yet to have any public interaction where anyone tried telling us we were wrong to buy EVs. For the most part, people just don’t care. Except on the internet, I think people look for things to be offended at on the internet.
IMHO, the pushback is natural given the EPA proposals to push many people into electric cars by 2032. Add the CARB new ICE ban in 2035 and the states that are following California, it’s forcing a change that many would probably make on their own once EVs hit price parity.
I went EV because I was replacing an ICE car that was unreliable. I wanted a hybrid but I couldn’t touch a hybrid anything in 2022. I expanded my search to include EVs and ended up with a Model 3 after the price drops and tax credits came back. After my wife adapted to driving an EV, she didn’t want her ICE SUV anymore. Once you go EV, you typically don’t go back.
This, a lot of it is anger over the perception of being compelled to switch by an arbitrary deadline, vs allowing the technology to take hold organically.
How do you think loyal electric car owners would have responded if, in 1910, the government declared that all new cars must be internal combustion only by 1922? Of if steam power enthusiasts had been told that? Ultimately, steam and electric cars disappeared from the marketplace in the first half of the twentieth century due to technological progression and customer preference, not due to any mandates, but it happened gradually and organically to the point that someone who traded in their old steam Locomobile for a new ICE Packard felt that they were making the choice of their own free will, not because of options being taken away from them by the powers that be. If the same thing was allowed to play out with electric cars, I think most of the vitriolic culture war rhetoric would disappear, most, but not all. And also, electric cars would likely still end up dominating the market within a short time anyway, just maybe by 2040 or 2045 instead of 2035 or whatever
A lot of those comments remind of of a post I made to Oppositelock several years ago, complaining about diesel bros taking the emissions equipment off their trucks. The diesel bros came out in force. It was pretty funny. I have a bunch of them saved somewhere.
The situation with your Leaf is a perfect examination of why ICE cars are still relevant though. I am by no means an EV hater, but the infrastructure just isn’t there yet.
Also, your cheap EV junker is so much more limited than an ICE cheap junker. I’ve been bombing around for the last year in a ’99 Corolla that I bought from a friend for $200. Now, if I bought it on the open market, it probably would have cost somewhere between th $1000-2000 that you paid for your Leaf.
My Corolla does all my shitty commuting and errand hopping for 10-12 gallons a month. It has ice cold AC and a beatiful heater. It also got me from Chicago to St Louis and back with only one gas stop.