Elon Musk has called for an end to the war against plastic straws. Given he is the founder of Tesla, a company perhaps doing the most to clean up our environment, this was a bit of a head scratcher. However, Musk's words point to a larger critique of society.
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Tesla is perhaps the single most important company working to clean our environment. According to the EV maker’s latest Impact Report, “in 2021, the global fleet of Tesla vehicles, energy storage and solar panels enabled [Tesla] customers to avoid emitting 8.4 million metric tons of CO2e”
Tesla also said the EV maker’s “solar panels have generated more electricity than has been consumed by [Tesla] vehicles and factories between 2012 and 2021.”
Elon Musk personally is also dedicated to cleaning up the environment. Musk has joined forces with the Xprize foundation and has put up $100 million of his own money to accelerate the innovation of carbon recapture technology.
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Given all of Musk’s environmental bonafide, it was a bit of a head scratcher when Musk recently called to “stop the war on straws.”
Musk’s crusade against the war on straws seems to have begun in response to an article by Reason magazine titled “California considers $1,000 fine for waiters offering unsolicited plastic straws”.
The article goes on to detail a new bill introduced by Ian Calderon who is the Democratic majority leader in California's lower house. Reason writes “under Calderon's law, a waiter who serves a drink with an unrequested straw in it would face up to 6 months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.”
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Musk responded to the article simply saying “this is messed up”. In response to Musk’s tweet, a Twitter user wrote “paper straws are the worst. Stops working after like two minutes.” Musk agreed with this sentiment and added, “and tastes like cardboard!”
Following, Musk shared his amazement asking “seriously?” when he learned the paper straw movement “started from a viral YouTube video in 2017 of a straw being pulled from a turtle's nose.”
So far you might be wondering why anyone, let alone the founder of a sustainable EV company, would advocate the use of plastic straws. Does Musk have no heart? Does he not care about the turtles?
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However, Musk explained his criticism of the war against plastic straws as part of his larger critique of current societal norms writing “the straw war is emblematic of larger social issues.”
Elon Musk frequently likes to say that he is obsessed with the truth. And when Musk says this, he makes a seemingly small but crucial clarification saying there is a difference between “the appearance of seeming good, and actually being good.”
And nothing epitomizes preoccupation with seeming good than raging against plastic straws while at the same time ignoring more fundamental pollution sources throughout society.
When you put Musk’s overall thinking in this context, it becomes clear that he’s not actually calling for more plastic production or harming turtles but rather commenting on larger societal issues.
We will be sure to keep you updated on Tesla’s continued growth and the societal benefits that come out of it. Until then make sure to visit our site torquenews.com/Tesla regularly for the latest updates.
So what do you think? Disappointed with Musk’s stance on plastic straws? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
Image: Courtesy of Tesla
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Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and The evolution of the EV space on a daily basis for several years. He covers everything about Tesla from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.
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