Death by Car

BMW’s flagship pure electric model iX (picture) is drawing attention as it succeeded in climbing a ski slope for the first time in the world as a pure electric vehicle in Yangsan. Known as a luxury electric vehicle with a comfortable ride, iX is said to have shown BMW’s core value, “the joy of driving,” … Read more

6,500. That is the curb weight, in pounds, of the standard (not upgraded) forthcoming “electric” version of the Ford F150 pickup truck.

This is the basic hypothesis of Death by Car: Automobiles are the lifeblood of corporate capitalism. Without them, the system implodes, due to demand shrinkage (aka efficiency). Hence, they have been and are *dictated* to us, no choices or even coherent discussion allowed.

Bill Gates isn’t stupid. But he also isn’t nearly smart enough to transcend money’s delusionary effects. He obviously thinks he’s not only entitled to his enormous voice, but that this voice is not far from being science incarnate. It isn’t. Predictably, it contains huge swaths of unexamined class bias. Consider what Gates just said to … Read more

According to Automotive News, this is a photo of Toyota’s forthcoming first-in-brand bZ4X “electric” vehicle: Small cars, as we know, mean small profits. So, as we approach the coming wave of EV subsidies, let’s watch, shall we? It’ll be chock full of such gigantisms, for the usual reasons. This is yet another reason to oppose … Read more

…if the year were 1895. Can you imagine a better proof of excessive wealth’s delusional effects? That this thing actually got built is enough to make every cat in town laugh for an hour. Mind-blowing, though not for the reasons feigned by the technophile (read: money-worshipping) commercial press.

Here’s what the State of Maine’s Department of Transportation — not its Department of Automobiles, mind you — just tweeted out. Shows what the public’s servants perceive their roles to be, even at this rather late date:

Auto corporations have always equated themselves with the nation, and vice versa. But this is really quite remarkable: Over at its website, Ford says, to its target audience of U.S. SUV customers, that it is “proudly committed to building things for you and by you.” Lying doesn’t get more shameless than this.

The quasi-official explanation for the existence of cars-first transportation in the United States is an extension of American Exceptionalism: “Americans are having a love affair with the automobile,” it is said, is all there is to know about the making and meaning of mobility in this, the best of all possible societies. Now, one important … Read more

Here is a speaks-for-itself map of Ireland’s railroad network, first in 1920, and then again in 2020: