Ford and Musk. They Made Cars. They Backed Fascists.
prospect.org
Each age’s premier industrialist has had appalling politics.

Summary

Parallels between Henry Ford and Elon Musk illustrate their transformative roles in automaking alongside troubling political affiliations.

Ford’s antisemitism and support for Nazi Germany mirror Musk’s current opposition to unions and endorsement of Germany’s far-right AfD party, which is linked to neo-Nazism.

Musk’s intervention in Germany’s election and promotion of far-right figures on X echoes Ford’s use of media to propagate hate.

Both industrialists are criticized for their social and political impact beyond their industries, with Musk’s actions raising alarm about democracy and labor rights.

  • idiomaddict@lemmy.world
    3·
    2 days ago

    If everyone around you seems to be really stubborn, maybe it’s time to check your shoes.

    Obviously ford was antisemitic, but he’s not the same as musk for several reasons:

    He was actually way more racist

    He was a competent engineer

    He controlled a much larger share of the auto market

    • NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world
      11·
      2 days ago

      You’re trying to move the goal posts here, but I’ll bite

      He was actually way more racist

      I think we can both agree they’re both bad people at this point in their own ways, I don’t see the need to rate

      He was a competent engineer

      This is where the delusion usually sets in. While he does not have a engineering degree, so he can’t sign off on projects for other people companies, he is an engineer at SpaceX for all intents and purposes. Anyone who has spoken publicly about this, including Tom Mueller who helped build SpaceX from nothing says so. People all try to deny it by saying he and others lying to save face, making it a big conspiracy and they fall back to anonymous sources that try to say he does nothing and gobble it up.

      He controlled a much larger share of the auto market

      Tesla is the global leader in BEV vehicles.

      • idiomaddict@lemmy.world
        1·
        2 days ago

        I don’t think I’m moving the goalposts, but I was being facetious. Ford was an incredible engineer and musk is probably a pretty good engineer. It looks to me like BYD is the market leader.

        • NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world
          1·
          2 days ago

          Tesla is first in market.

          Any other stat will be including plug in hybrids which are still ICE vehicles.

          BYD almost surpassed them this year, but didn’t. They probably will next year.