One of the things I truly loved about the book “Yellowface”, that new(ish) outstanding novel by Rebecca Kuang, was her take on the whole Gen Z culture that you find so prevalent on Twitter (I guess it’s officially called “X” now but whatever..). One need only scroll through for a few seconds before the crybaby revolution makes themselves known. I mean, just this morning, there was a selfie by Bruce Springsteen, eating a hotdog and onion rings at the Newark Airport. His caption said, “This meal just cost me $78. No wonder America thinks the economy sucks.” It’s a really good point. The prices are just getting stupid. Especially if you find yourself traveling or on vacation. Hotels and airports are ruthlessly cracking people over the head.
The comments are what you might expect: “cry me a river,” “here’s a millionaire complaining…” “says the rock star who uses dynamic pricing for his tickets” etc etc. Mind you, we’re talking about a guy who has been releasing timeless classics since the early 70’s. Think about the fact that Interscope mogul, Jimmy Iovine, was essentially an unproven apprentice when he was working with him on his THIRD album, Born To Run. Bruce has been doing his thing for most of my lifetime.
I swear to you, it feels almost as if there’s a certain contingent of the population that gets a semi-sexual thrill over calling people out, feeling indignant, or being the first to discover a perceived injustice. Like there is a certain code that people who reach a higher level of success must live by and if they don’t, they’re certainly going to hear about it. One of those rules obviously must be that one can not point out problems with the American economy.
Can you imagine if John Steinbeck or Upton Sinclair were actively writing today? “Oh yeah, Mr. Famous Author is going to tell us about the dust bowl …” and “Why am I reading about illegal practices in the meatpacking industry by a guy with a bougie name like Upton?”
And yet, this is acceptable practice today. If one is successful they somehow lose the luxury of having an opinion. Opinions are solely for the proletariat.
Another annoying meme that the Twitterati are fond of using is “late stage capitalism.” Implying, obviously, that somehow capitalism is in hospice and getting its affairs in order. I suppose, if one were to spend a majority of their time on sites like Reddit or Twitter, this might seem like it’s the case; but as someone who has spent my first week in a Tesla orientation, I promise you, capitalism is alive and well and even-gasp!-thriving. Right now, this company is opening a nearly million square foot distribution center in my region. As CEO, the generally lambasted Elon Musk is not only giving hundreds of people in this area good paying jobs, but he’s giving them great health insurance for their entire families with no contribution from their paycheck. This includes twenty-five therapy sessions a year and orthodonture for their children. Oh, and these benefits start on DAY ONE.
The culture at the company, believe it or not, is super progressive and forward thinking. Our General Manager is a woman in her mid-thirties and I have never seen a more inclusive and diverse environment. Add to it the fact that these cars use no fossil fuels and this idea becomes more compelling. But the cars are only half the story.
There is also a whole segment of Tesla that is involved in the production of energy for residential and commercial use. So last year, when the power companies were beginning to hike their rates to ridiculous levels, Tesla was helping people get off the grid entirely. It was a small side business that generated about four billion dollars last year alone.
Once again, I have to remind you that we are not talking about employing people for fracking or for the oil fields. This is a company dedicated to ending our reliance and addiction to oil and fossil fuels. These cars being on the road has eliminated the need for nearly 6 million gallons of gas, giving Tesla the distinction of being 6th in the top ten companies helping to slow down climate change.
Now maybe I sound a little gung-ho, but that’s only because being a truck driver and driving rigs that got 7 miles to the gallon gave me a little cognitive dissonance over the last decade. I am truly excited to be involved in helping with the problem instead of adding to it.
So, perhaps struggling people have a difficult time trying to understand why anyone would need to amass a fortune of $197 billion. I don’t have an answer for this. But after what just happened to me with my last job, this feels very positive and hopeful.
I’ve seen France, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Denmark and none of them are remotely close to the panacea that people on Twitter imagine. Everyone goes to work and busts their ass to survive.
And as far as I’m concerned, it’s a pleasant change of pace to bust my ass for a socially conscious company, as opposed to a criminal one.
Editor’s note: the Twitter post I reference in the beginning of the article was actually a spoof made by a Springsteen fan, but the complaining was all done by real people who didn’t understand that it was a joke and, therefore, does not detract from my original argument that most people on Twitter need to get a grip.
Another great read. I had a chuckle and impressed how you started this piece with X and ended with Tesla. I hope Elon reads:)
I like how the subject changed so fluidly and congrats on the new job. I did not know all that about Tesla. Sounds like an amazing company to work for, and to help our sad little planet come back to a healthy state of being. Thanks Billy.