Tesla Takedown

Last Saturday, a friend of mine and I went to a Tesla Takedown. These protests are happening all over the country right now, with the express purpose of bringing down Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk. Musk is also a senior advisor to President Trump, after having dumped millions into his second run for President, and the de facto head of DOGE, or the Department of Government Efficiency.

I don’t usually like to write or talk about political issues, mostly because I don’t pretend to understand the complexities involved. I am not a good debater, and therefore hesitate to get drawn into discussions about things about which I don’t feel completely confident. However, going to protest the appointment of someone who supports the so-called Project 2025 and is an admirer of Adolf Hitler seemed like a reasonable decision, no matter what my reservations.

I’ve written before about the ten stages of genocide, and our country’s government seems to be in the middle of the list somewhere, getting rid of people, sending them to horrific prisons outside of our country, or denying access to get into our country to legitimate travelers. Elon Musk is on board with all of this, and bringing him down through Tesla is a way of controlling his worst urges and grip on the controls, not to mention sending a message to those in power.

I have nothing against the Tesla automobile itself. I believe electric cars are a necessary step to saving our environment and getting us off our addiction to fossil fuels. People in my family own Teslas, and like them very much. (Disclosure: I own a Nissan Leaf.) However, Musk had nothing to do with inventing the car, he simply bought his way to the top of the company, then paid himself a nice fat compensation package valued at over one billion dollars. His other companies, X, the Boring Company, Space X etc., are all failing. (This is something that is verifiable, if you care to do the research.)

Many of us were there protesting because of the very real threat to Social Security, money that we made, is ours, and was put there to help us when we’re no longer able or want to work. The SS administration is in chaos right now, due to Musk’s interference. If that money is put on hold, literally millions of Americans will feel it.

We stood on a corner of Santa Monica Boulevard in LA, in front of a Tesla showroom. There were about one hundred protesters, and someone with a bullhorn was leading our protest chants, such as “Hey hey, Ho ho! Elon Musk has got to go!” My friend had brought a sign with a photo of Musk with devil horns which we took turns holding up, and there were many creative homemade signs by other attendees. As we stood there, many people honked in agreement as they passed (even some driving Teslas), truck drivers used their air horns, and a very few (three?) slowed down to give us the finger.

When I arrived home, I put up my photos of the event on my Facebook page, explaining where I had been and why. After about an hour, I checked back, and was somewhat surprised at the result: one woman cheering me on, and several white men deriding my participation (none of whom I know personally). Apparently, Elon has many admirers, and for me to protest his current activities hit a nerve. In a matter of minutes, a few more came in, and I decided to delete the post. I also unfriended the complainers.

I couldn’t tell from the response if my being a woman protesting a man was the main crime, or that Elon is having a hard time and I shouldn’t rub it in, or ? Whatever it was, I don’t have the emotional reserves to deal with people who allow their ego to cloud their vision. It’s simply not acceptable to me to have our Constitution trampled, and to be part of a growing movement towards rich autocrats running not just our country, but the planet. I intend to go to the next protest, and the next, and there will be plenty to choose from.

If you would like to know more about the strategy behind the Tesla Takedown movement, go here.