For a variety of reasons, from the technological to the industrial to, now, the political, Tesla and its electric vehicles have long been a source of considerable debate. As a recent incident suggests, heated arguments around the company and its products do not seem to be letting up any time soon.
Per Reddit, a Tesla owner recently found the hood of their Model Y SUV, parked in their driveway at the time, severely scratched — or, as commenters quickly identified, keyed. They suggested that the act "could have been done deliberately."
The motivations behind the act remain unknown (or at least were not publicly followed up on), but one user hypothesized that it may be related to disagreements with Tesla CEO Elon Musk's recent controversial political ventures. Whether or not Musk's recent actions are agreeable and whether or not Tesla is a perfect company, taking out frustrations with the man and the company on their products, whether vehicles or charging stations, can do damage to perceptions of EVs and slow their widespread adoption.
Such a backlash to electric vehicles would be especially disappointing at this moment because widespread EV adoption has always been key to cutting the use of dirty energy sources like gas and oil.
Though there have always been reasonable critiques of EVs, ranging from the pollution created during battery manufacturing and charging to the environmental impact of mining for elements needed in battery creation, they are still far more energy-efficient than traditional vehicles. Electric vehicles release about six times less carbon air pollution annually, per a recent study from the Department of Energy, and mining for electric vehicles, even in its earlier stages, is far cleaner than mining for dirty fuels.
EVs replacing dirty energy-based automobiles as the status quo is not a solution to the energy and climate crises on its own, but the change would be a significant help in addressing those global concerns. Damaging them makes potential customers feel like such a purchase would not be worthwhile and avoid a purchase that, in its own small way, could eventually help clean our air and brighten our skies.
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