Tesla Takedown Gets Everyone’s Attention

Almost every newspaper and media outlet has the story somewhere in their morning rundown, and we didn’t want to be left out. Yesterday’s global Tesla Takedown happened with people protesting at all 200+ dealerships across the US and several dozen more across Europe and Australia. Attendance at any particular dealership varied in predictable ratio to the surrounding populations. Larger cities such as LA, Seattle, Chicago, and New York had massive demonstrations. Protests such as the one in Indianapolis were smaller but still significant enough that they couldn’t be ignored.

Yes, there were a few counterprotesters at several of the dealerships. For the most part, they were kept away and didn’t cause anything more than the yelling of insults back and forth between the two groups. Way to act like adults, folks. You’re setting such a good example for your children.

Turnouts in Europe were not quite as large as those in the US, but they were more forward in their dislike of Leroy Muskrat. Picket signs in London showed pictures of Muskrat giving a Nazi salute. A person in a Tyrannosaurus rex costume held another sign with a picture of Musk’s straight-arm gesture that said, “You thought the Nazis were extinct. Don’t buy a Swasticar.”

US protesters had plenty to say, but it was often more personal. Melissa Knutson, protesting in Georgetown, said, “There’s a very serious and strategic component in what we’re doing. This is a way to say we’re not afraid,” said Knutson, who has neighbors who were recently fired in a round of DOGE cuts and have put their homes up for sale. Her daughter, who is disabled and relies on Medicaid, is another source of motivation for her, she said.

Melanie Aron has a nephew conducting studies about Alzheimer’s disease at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and saw his research funding slashed by DOGE. “Those studies benefit American people. When we cut those off, people are going to suffer,” Aron said. “I know we tend to talk about the workers. But we need to focus on the people who are impacted when the work doesn’t happen.”

In Arlington, Virginia, Ed Grass, 56, was sitting in his wheelchair holding up a sign, saying he worries about the future of health care research for people like him with lifelong conditions. “There won’t be as many (medical) breakthroughs,” Grass said. “We have the jewel of the education system, and they’re destroying it…It’s a long-term problem. I may be long gone, but my grandchildren may suffer.”

Whether or not the protests result in positive change at any level remains to be seen. Late Friday night, employees of the US Institute of Peace were fired via mass email. Since the markets were closed on the weekend, it’s unknown if the Tesla stock price will see any change. The markets tend to respond more dramatically to situations happening in real time than to what took place two or three days ago.

Still, the protest demonstrated that those fed up with Muskrat and his DOGE accomplices proved that they can hold civil, peaceful protests without anyone getting hurt. This could be a good setup for another set of broader protests scheduled for April 5.