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Depends on the agency. Nobody is going to not buy a Tesla because Musk angered the SEC, because the SEC protects an abstract public good. It’s a wildly differen

Depends on the agency. Nobody is going to not buy a Tesla because Musk angered the SEC, because the SEC protects an abstract public good. It’s a wildly different case when you get into a fight with an agency that protects public safety in an easy to understand way; even if you win the legal fight consumers might decide that your product is dangerous and to be avoided, a Pyrrhic victory. Someone else here mentioned Tylenol, which is a good counter example. Aggressive and transparent moves in the direction of consumer safety can both save a company in a PR crisis, and actually turn it into a boon for brand good will and loyalty.

panarky 6y ago
He also blatantly defied Alameda County covid shutdown orders to reopen a Tesla factory. Tesla promised workers that they could stay home if they didn't feel comfortable breaking the law. Workers who stayed home then received termination notices. Hundreds of people who returned to work at Tesla were then sickened by the disease. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/03/12/hundreds-covid-cases-reported-tesla-plant-following-musks-defiant-reopening-county-data-shows/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/03/12/hundred...
- enriquec 6y ago
  That was an unconstitutional order.
- kadoban 6y ago
  Consumers are for the most part ignorant of or indifferent to worker abuses. "This may kill you" is both an easier story to sell in the media and more compelling to consumers.
- ghufran_syed 6y ago
  hundreds of people who didn’t work at tesla were also “sickened by the disease” - was there a difference in the rate of infection between tesla workers and other people in the community?
  - posterboy 6y ago
    yes. those stayed at home are the ones to compare to.
- toast0 6y ago
  Honestly, I don't have strong feelings about fighting over the covid shutdown (telling employees they could stay home and then firing them is bad though, and significantly worse than ignoring the county order). IMHO, fighting with the SEC over stupid shit reflects poorly on Elon and the board who refuse to supervise him, but not so much on the company. Fighting with the NTSB has a bad look. Throwing shade on people who died using your product, is also a bad look.
  - FredPret 6y ago
    Imagine having - in your job description - the responsibility of supervising Elon Musk. Dear lord.
- rebuilder 6y ago
  That still falls into the category of "not my problem" for the buyer. They're not likely to catch SARS-CoV-2 from a new Tesla.
- aerosmile 6y ago
  > Workers who stayed home then received termination notices. 2 people received notices. 10,000 people work at the plant. This might be the single most shockingly and blatantly manipulative article I've read in a long time. Let me list the number of ways that The Post tried to obfuscate the truth. 1. They publish an article in June 2020 titled "Tesla gave workers permission to stay home rather than risk getting covid-19. Then it sent termination notices." The title is entirely disconnected from the body of the article - in the body they specify they are talking about 2 out of 10,000 people, but the title doesn't reflect that even in the slightest. 2. In March 2020, they publish another negative article about Tesla, in which they once again use a more outrageous and misleading language, citing their previous article but not linking to it so that nobody can actually catch the fact that we're talking about 2 out of 10,000 people. Let me remind you that The Post is owned by Jeff Bezos, who is a sworn enemy of Elon Musk. And then the media complains that there's so much push back on their reporting?
birdyrooster 6y ago
I refuse to buy Tesla cars because of Elon and his background of profiting from the mining of emeralds in apartheid Zambia. Elon has worked hard to erase his origin from the minds of potential customers but I could never forget. Elon is also the reason no company will buy Tesla. Elon would have to be all the way out of the picture.
- gamegoblin 6y ago
  I've seen this "Elon comes from stolen emerald money" story a lot, but as best I can tell, the following is true: - Elon's father claims in the mid-80s he bought a partial stake in an emerald mine in Zambia. There is no paper trail of this ownership, so we are taking his dad at his word here. - Zambia was already independent at the time and in no way an apartheid state. The ruling party was ideologically socialist and African nationalist. - This partial ownership of the mine obviously did not make Elon a super wealthy kid, as he moved to Canada for university, gradudated with $100K in student debt, and according to roommates and friends at the time, he was notoriously frugal. So it seems like even if Elon's father is telling the truth here and the mine even existed, that wealth didn't seem to be significant enough to give Elon a huge boost when he came to North America. There are definitely a ton of things to criticize Elon for, but I am not sure the emeralds is one of them.
  - throwaway2037 6y ago
    Why is this downvoted? Please comment.
  - birdyrooster 6y ago
    White colonizers from Africa with a history of mineral extraction... that’s not going to leave any impression on your morality. Suuure.
- ErikVandeWater 6y ago
  Are you saying Elon himself used apartheid to his favor?
- FredPret 6y ago

panarky 6y ago

He also blatantly defied Alameda County covid shutdown orders to reopen a Tesla factory. Tesla promised workers that they could stay home if they didn't feel comfortable breaking the law. Workers who stayed home then received termination notices. Hundreds of people who returned to work at Tesla were then sickened by the disease. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/03/12/hundreds-covid-cases-reported-tesla-plant-following-musks-defiant-reopening-county-data-shows/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/03/12/hundred...

enriquec 6y ago
That was an unconstitutional order.
kadoban 6y ago
Consumers are for the most part ignorant of or indifferent to worker abuses. "This may kill you" is both an easier story to sell in the media and more compelling to consumers.
ghufran_syed 6y ago
hundreds of people who didn’t work at tesla were also “sickened by the disease” - was there a difference in the rate of infection between tesla workers and other people in the community?
- posterboy 6y ago
  yes. those stayed at home are the ones to compare to.
toast0 6y ago
Honestly, I don't have strong feelings about fighting over the covid shutdown (telling employees they could stay home and then firing them is bad though, and significantly worse than ignoring the county order). IMHO, fighting with the SEC over stupid shit reflects poorly on Elon and the board who refuse to supervise him, but not so much on the company. Fighting with the NTSB has a bad look. Throwing shade on people who died using your product, is also a bad look.
- FredPret 6y ago
  Imagine having - in your job description - the responsibility of supervising Elon Musk. Dear lord.
rebuilder 6y ago
That still falls into the category of "not my problem" for the buyer. They're not likely to catch SARS-CoV-2 from a new Tesla.
aerosmile 6y ago
> Workers who stayed home then received termination notices. 2 people received notices. 10,000 people work at the plant. This might be the single most shockingly and blatantly manipulative article I've read in a long time. Let me list the number of ways that The Post tried to obfuscate the truth. 1. They publish an article in June 2020 titled "Tesla gave workers permission to stay home rather than risk getting covid-19. Then it sent termination notices." The title is entirely disconnected from the body of the article - in the body they specify they are talking about 2 out of 10,000 people, but the title doesn't reflect that even in the slightest. 2. In March 2020, they publish another negative article about Tesla, in which they once again use a more outrageous and misleading language, citing their previous article but not linking to it so that nobody can actually catch the fact that we're talking about 2 out of 10,000 people. Let me remind you that The Post is owned by Jeff Bezos, who is a sworn enemy of Elon Musk. And then the media complains that there's so much push back on their reporting?

birdyrooster 6y ago

I refuse to buy Tesla cars because of Elon and his background of profiting from the mining of emeralds in apartheid Zambia. Elon has worked hard to erase his origin from the minds of potential customers but I could never forget. Elon is also the reason no company will buy Tesla. Elon would have to be all the way out of the picture.

gamegoblin 6y ago
I've seen this "Elon comes from stolen emerald money" story a lot, but as best I can tell, the following is true: - Elon's father claims in the mid-80s he bought a partial stake in an emerald mine in Zambia. There is no paper trail of this ownership, so we are taking his dad at his word here. - Zambia was already independent at the time and in no way an apartheid state. The ruling party was ideologically socialist and African nationalist. - This partial ownership of the mine obviously did not make Elon a super wealthy kid, as he moved to Canada for university, gradudated with $100K in student debt, and according to roommates and friends at the time, he was notoriously frugal. So it seems like even if Elon's father is telling the truth here and the mine even existed, that wealth didn't seem to be significant enough to give Elon a huge boost when he came to North America. There are definitely a ton of things to criticize Elon for, but I am not sure the emeralds is one of them.
- throwaway2037 6y ago
  Why is this downvoted? Please comment.
- birdyrooster 6y ago
  White colonizers from Africa with a history of mineral extraction... that’s not going to leave any impression on your morality. Suuure.
ErikVandeWater 6y ago
Are you saying Elon himself used apartheid to his favor?
FredPret 6y ago