I recently suggested that it was silly for consumers to buy or sell commercial products on the basis of whether they happened to like the political views of the CEOs of the companies that make them. This, of course, was a response to those Americans who had bought a Tesla because they liked the idea of it politically, and have now sold that Tesla because they no longer like the idea of it politically. In my view, this practice is irrational — and, worse still, it is likely to contribute to the politicization of everything that, as a classical liberal who wishes the government to be limited in size and influence, I abhor.
If anything, I think I understated my case. Every day, more and more left-leaning Americans trade in their Teslas, while a handful have gone even further and either destroyed their own cars or attacked Tesla dealerships. In their eyes, these actions represent a form of practical protest that confirms their commitment to the cause. In my eyes, they suggest that a sizable number of America’s most vocal progressives never actually believed in any of the things that they said they did — and, indeed, that all it took to expose this was the arrival of a sexier ideal.
Environmentalists — particularly those environmentalists who say . . .
