The EVisceration of Your Future
Dear reader,
I have rigor mortis of faith. You might ask yourself how that could be…and I’d reluctantly disclose it was because I’d heard it all, seen it all. After decades of diligent service within a disjointed, broken and corrupt hellscape of slaughtered, good intentions; I can confidently tell you who’s acting in your best interests. Incidentally, it also bestows me with the ability to warn you about who isn’t.
I can also foretell that what awaits at the end of your fated trek to the EV Emerald City may not be as benign as you’d hoped. Initially, you may scoff at what appears to be coarse cynicism…coming from a war-weary traveler. However, what you’d surely, unknowingly disregard is that my naive and dilated hopes were once as gilded as your own.
Shadows and sages:
With trepidation, I’d allude to vehicles powered by air and more controversially, constituents of water. Incredulously, you’d dismiss the former as farcical despite the fact that their engines use COMPRESSED air to function (just like millions of consumer power tools).
Then, you’d hastily lambast the later. Yet, quite tellingly, Reuters was much more impartial with their judgment. And without knowing all the proprietary information, it certainly appeared to be a variation of the electrochemical processes of today’s hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. That said, rampant skepticism hasn’t hindered further fuel cell development. Furthermore, few historians would argue the existence of steam-powered cars which allegedly date as far back as the 1700s…though sometimes cited earlier. Nevertheless, despite revelations such as those, you’d still indignantly conclude that Victorian-era, electric cars were an affront to common knowledge. Perhaps even with anecdotal support.
Further along my journey, there were cars with exotic, composite bodies sprouted from the earth. I whimsically indulged legends of vehicles and devices that could run on enzymes. Curiously, I even stumbled upon backyard ethanol refineries and gazed upon the flickering specter of biodiesel.
Pop culture compels you to unceremoniously denounce seemingly wayward, alt-fuel testimonies with the speed of a reflex. Comfortably surmising there’s a moral, corporate litmus test that vets viable options for humanity’s sake…not business. Of all the fanciful things I’ve encountered, I’ve yet to find any substantive evidence of that.
The bleakly dead or comatose state of many endeavors are typically attributable to inefficiency, and/or the pressures of the marketplace. In regards to steam-powered cars, there was also an overreliance on supplemental fuels to boil the water. Ostensibly, they were quasi-hybrids. Which means we’ve returned to a direly familiar crossroad once again. Shoved squarely into a multifaceted quandary. Yet, this time we’re required to evaluate worldwide perils we didn’t have before.
Peer through the fog and you’ll see there’s a monolithic narrative that permeates the ether of our consciousness. A vapidly concealing vacuum of explorative thought. This pervasive and despotic zeitgeist implores certain actions to take, but seldom provides reasons why. Well, at least not legitimate ones.
Justifiably unforgiven, steel skullduggery:
With exacting precision I’m going to circumnavigate the treacherous realm of condemnation associated with conspiracy theorists. As a consequence, that means I’ll only summarily address tales related to the architects of our future…and futures past. In the interest of brevity, I’ll omit references to sordid personal lives, executive resignations, dubious poaching and actions that have little bearing on the general populace. Similarly, I won’t cover union corruption, cancel culture-proof racism, sexism or incendiary faux pas. And lastly, certainly don’t expect commentary on wartime slavery, modern day, longstanding refusals of reparations…or oft retreaded reveries. Okay?
-Long before John Z. DeLorean audaciously marketed the “ethical sports car” there was another industry luminary who genuinely threatened to turn the automotive world upside down. His name was Rudolf Diesel. Before jumping to conclusions about how dirty diesel engines reportedly are, you should consider that its inventor, Rudolf, successfully built his creation to run on peanut oil. Much to the world’s chagrin, we’ll never fully know the extent of his merits because Mr. Diesel mysteriously vanished from a ship he boarded in 1913. He was never seen alive again.
-During the early half of the 20th century, Henry Ford and General Motors’ Alfred P. Sloan Jr. directed the industry to loftier financial heights than previously thought possible. With its rise came Sloan’s pharaonic rhetoric of planned obsolescence and Ford’s well-documented brand of discrimination. Later, Ford’s alleged methods of persuasion would also be uncovered. Subsequently, his company would proceed to irresponsibly sell defective and accident-prone vehicles long after his death. Often aware of the maelstrom of mechanical issues well in advance.
-Film buffs know that some Hollywood fiction is based on real life incidents. That happens to be the case with the fiercely debated “General Motors streetcar conspiracy”. Which wasn’t a “conspiracy theory” per se, but actually how it’s formally referenced. And, frankly, the debate over whether or not the outcome was instigated by malevolence teeters on the brink of irrelevance. It was suspicious enough to warrant an antitrust lawsuit filed by the United States Justice Department…which resulted in an interesting combination of convictions and acquittals. So, please feel free to draw your own conclusions.
-Recently, multiple manufacturers were implicated in major scandals that negatively affected the environment, consumers and the vulnerable. First, following the near ubiquitous and shallow endorsement of hybrids by famous celebrities and politicians; studies would later show that they didn’t always live up to their claims. Unwittingly, buyers also purchased cars produced with substandard steel provided by an unscrupulous supplier. Lastly, few would realize their car’s paint and manufacture might have exploited child labor. Honestly, would such revelations fiscally make a difference to automakers? I won’t speculate either way, but it doesn’t change the facts.
-Little is publicly known about the history of bribery within the dealership networks, unfortunately. Therefore, it’d be acceptable for oblivious outsiders to repudiate the prevalence of outrageous price gouging (that extends to the most trusted, legacy brands).
-Frankly, executives post-2020 have eagerly proclaimed that profits will take precedence over middle-class affordability for the foreseeable future anyway. So, the machinations of dealers probably won’t be an issue for the majority of buyers soon. You’ve gotta pay to play, after all. Oh, and if you can’t pay, they’re preemptively filing patents for your invasive car to repossess itself. I’m not kidding.
With all of the social justice posturing and virtue signaling the internet has to offer, why haven’t these entities come under more scrutiny? Their polished façade of deceit still reflects the starry-eyed innocence of their victims with nary a flaw…despite a scathing array of distorted motives. Big Auto’s here to preserve the environment, right? To campaign for and save your future, I assume? By way of a callous course that wasn’t charted for the greater good, but rather the greatest, manipulated dividends. We’ll see how that pans out…one way or another.
The lethality of silence:
At the risk of getting too meta, I should inform you that there’s a reason I write under a pseudonym. There’s also a reason that you’re likely receiving much of this information for the first time. Spoiler alert: the reason’s the same for both. CENSORSHIP.
If you don’t believe there’s an agenda in the auto industry, you’re very mistaken. Tragically, I must confess. That stony edifice of disbelief would crumble and cascade into the oceans of cash spent lobbying each year. Such a futile stance would also dictate vehemently disavowing an entire century of history. Chronicles which would include the dawn of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and how the group cunningly engineered the 1973 Oil Embargo on political grounds. Leveraging fuel and greed to seize massive geopolitical control. A dominion which rendered codependent nations virtual puppet states. Sycophantic pawns conditioned to acquiesce to directives coerced by a foreign power. Now, just because that was one of the most jarring instances, don’t think that after fifty years they’ve lost their sway.
From my caged personal experience, I can attest that the censorship within the industry is prevalent and routine. It’s been covered on disturbingly rare occasions, but the very nature of censorship necessitates that dissent isn’t condoned, promoted or freely heard. Instead, the message is clear. Stay in your lane. Ralph Nader could’ve easily been the Sinead O’Connor of the auto industry, but he’s industry adjacent. As an activist and lawyer, he’s not formally within the ranks. Therefore, the public could receive and heed his message.
Nowadays, you’ll mostly observe censorship in the hidden minutiae of expert knowledge. So, if a manufacturer downgrades suspension components the spin with be softball critiques or glowing, subjective soliloquies about how it “feels”. All in lieu of castigating the company (in period) for petty cost-cutting. Or journalists will applaud a firm like General Motors for making an allegedly “green” Hummer EV, but colorfully downplay that it’s 9,000 pounds of absurdity. For the record: the flagship, thirty-one foot long, 2023 Airstream Classic trailer weighs roughly 1,000 pounds LESS with a kitchen and bathroom!
Marques historically have been guilty of lavishly accommodating industry writers at various events around the world. The ultimate result is tainted coverage that subversively undermines true journalism and the ethos of progressive product manufacturing. Also worth noting is that defect scandals generally break via traditional media channels and websites/forums instead of from within. The addictive ad revenue models manage to tame otherwise harsh criticism and investigation.
Unsurprisingly, when the proverbial raised nails aren’t hammered, they are conspicuously ignored. For example, if an acclaimed physicist like Amory Lovins highlights that a car uses less than ONE percent of its energy to actually move the mass of the driver; the silence becomes deafening. Haven’t heard that before? I’m not surprised. That’s why reducing vehicle curb weights are so crucial. As long as they’re overweight, energy will be wasted as a consequence (regardless of the power source).
Scorched-earth policy:
Our planetary neighbor, Mars, lost its ability to maintain a life-sustaining atmosphere billions of years ago after losing its magnetic field. Since its atmosphere is less than one percent of Earth’s, the dead Red Planet will likely never have the breathable air we all take for granted. This is scientific fact unencumbered by artifice, hype or delusion. All the influence and money in the world won’t change that. Truth be told, we may never live to see the end of Earth’s atmosphere, but there’s definitely convincing and unregulated ways to accelerate it.
Accordingly, no single individual has been granted global authority to turn any myopic, doomed and ego-driven dream into the cinders of a collective nightmare. This truth pertains to entire industries of moguls bent on satisfying their own constructs of self-gratification. As evidenced by the aforementioned, we’re frequently dealing with some capriciously driven, shortsighted people. To put it mildly.
The automotive industry complex is one of the most volatile, man-made forces in the known universe. It’s also a behemoth we’ve communally created, embraced and nurtured. As such, it’s reasonably within our control. We can sensibly foster it to remain an evolving instrument of our free agency…if we make sustainable choices. With that knowledge, believe the truth, not the lies. Remember, that the auto-related businesses and manufacturers are supposed to amenably serve you. The government is also obliged to support you. In doing so, gluttonous profitability will no longer be the prevailing priority.
When you guide the generations of the future from the point where you stand now, do it with wisdom. Do it with foresight. Do it from a perspective that’s authentic, grounded and informed. And most of all, because you believe your decisions will be in their best interests. Those very same interests will align with your own.
