I’m not sure I’d want to be swapping my battery out like a propane tank. Not everyone would follow charging recommendations, etc.

One of my cats will headbutt me if I say “headbutt”, he’s like a pokemon or something. Hard enough that I can hear a thunk.

This is a good point, I’m more inclined to support a unionized company. Still… my understanding is that GM and Ford (and others) all circumvent unionization by manufacturing (to some extent) in Mexico. I guess it depends on the individual car. I’m supportive of Federal and State EV incentives that prioritize made in the US, unionized manufacturing.

Yeah, this is my dilemma. I have heard positive things about Ford and GM in regards to them making it easier to skip the dealership, so that at least addresses the convenience factor. Another factor in wanting to avoid the dealership is that I don’t trust their business model where they sell you a car that they want you to bring in regularly for maintenance. I’d rather buy from a company that doesn’t see vehicle service as a revenue opportunity. Does that apply to Tesla? I’m not sure, but I know that’s how the traditional dealership model works so it’s hard to trust those companies.

Replies to a thread with lots of well-thought out comments with some BS and doesn’t even elaborate.

You seem to be missing the point. Show me a car company that’s not screwing over the consumers and the workforce, and I’ll buy from them. Not every consumer has the luxury of maximizing altruism with their car purchase. At least those supposedly untrained employees are US citizens getting paid a US wage. Do you honestly think that things are better at the Mexican plants?

Maybe Honda and Toyota or Subaru? But they’ve been too busy sucking off the oil industry with their hydrogen push, and now their EV offerings can’t compete.

Cars and car companies suck. If I could lug all my sports shit around in an e-bike I would.

I imagine the conditions aren’t great at all these “American” car plants which are conveniently located in Mexico for maximum abuse of labor.

I’m not saying you’re wrong, there just needs to be alternatives in order for consumers to vote with their wallet on these issues.

For something like a car which is not optional for me, it’s either an ICE from a scummy car dealer with a scummy company behind them that uses questionable labor practices, or an EV from a scummy car dealer with a scummy company behind them that uses questionable labor practices, or an EV from a company with a scummy CEO that uses questionable labor practices. At least with a Tesla you can cut out some of the scumbags? I’d be interested in Rivian too if I could afford one but they start at 70k.

It seems like it would be a good move to have him step down.

I’m not sure they will though, I think the board is probably still stuck in the mindset that their company is valued highly because of Musk.

This probably is true for some people, which is why I hope he steps down.

Me, I’m waiting for the prices to come down (more than the recent price cuts) on the Model 3, or for a more affordable AWD EV with similar range to become available.

I order online from Amazon and Walmart too, it doesn’t mean I agree with their CEOs, board, or business practices. The shit those companies get away with is arguably worse than Musk’s right wing BS on X, with union busting and employees depending on benefits to survive.

If you’re able to make a statement and buy something else, great! I support that. My requirements for a vehicle are: full EV, AWD, 300+ mile range, final cost under 40k. The access to supercharging also seems nearly essential, but I’m willing to explore my options if they meet the other requirements. I also never want to buy from a scumbag car dealer again. That really doesn’t leave me any other options that I’m aware of.

If not, I guess I could stick it to Elon and just buy another ICE vehicle…

Two that I watched on Netflix a while back:

The Untold History of the United States - good overview of US history with an emphasis on conservatives fucking us over and liberals not really doing a whole lot about it

Winter on Fire - striking footage of the Maidan revolution in Ukraine prior to the invasion of Crimea

If they called it cleanup mode, or guest mode, it would be more accurate.

Use this when you are on a shared device so that you don’t leave history or login sessions or mess with any sessions that the primary user has. That’s it.

If definitely seems dystopian, but hopefully this ends up helping some people who are quadriplegic.

It was tough because for me I was into a lot of things where I would just never meet women.

Super Smash Brother? Never met a woman Magic the Gathering? Same Rec baseball? Same

For me it was getting into coed softball, but there are other sports if you didnt play baseball growing up.

Some areas have coed kickball in the evenings and people are holding beers while playing it’s basically just a big social thing. There are organizations like MySocialSports that organize those things.

I know a guy who met a girl playing in pool leagues.

You could try Meetup, there are organized singles events on there.

I thought it was bullshit advice when people told me that too.

I think the key is that when you “work on yourself” it’s not necessarily about losing weight, becoming more attractive, getting a better job.

For me it’s more about gaining confidence and improving your own self esteem. If deep down you don’t feel like you’re worth dating, then you won’t exude the confidence that will be required to be attractive to someone.

If dating apps are helping you meet people more than they are killing your confidence and self-esteem, then by all means continue to use them.

For me, they just made things worse.

Delete all dating apps, and most social media. For me, I don’t have apps for Instagram or Facebook on my phone but will log in in the browser if I need to contact someone.

I found that dating apps were not good for my self-esteem and were therefore counter-productive. It’s like speed-rejection on a daily basis.

You just have to get out and find activities you enjoy where you can also meet people. Dating apps were not a good tool for meeting people for me. I had success with coed sports though.

Just forget about chasing women for a bit and work on yourself, which happens to also include some coed activities. Some areas have kickball, coed softball is everywhere, get out there and do something, build up confidence instead of letting dating apps and social media drag you down.