If the truck were a completely enclosed strong box, then it probably would have increased the damage. But it still has windows, which aren’t nearly as strong as the steel body. And the windows on a Cybertruck largely point upwards.
That thought occurred to me as well, but then, why the camp fuel? And while (even assuming the news is correct on this point) he is a US Army Green Beret doesn’t mean he has training in improvised explosive devices, you would think he’d have enough exposure and good sense to be cautious with pyrotechnics and flammable liquids. There isn’t really enough information to credibly speculate at this point but the available evidence–such as it is–kind of points toward some mental health ‘challenges’ and wanting to go out with a big production.
I remain concerned that regardless of intent or whether there was or was not a conspiracy of any kind, this and the NOLA incident are going to be utilized into some kind of ‘Reichstag Fire’ response justifying something like the ‘Enabling Decree’ granting broad national security powers to the executive. Would a GOP-dominated Congress with so many vocal and influential MAGA backers resist this?
I really hate this timeline.
Stranger
If he shot himself just previous to the explosion, that would imply a plan. A plan would imply the existence of a document that details his motivation.
Given that he’s a Trump-truthful, I’d be curious to see what his motivation was.
Not only does Musk track vehicles at the charging stations–he films them:
(My bolding in the quotes.)
(continuing slight hijack)
Nor did I, but I’m thinking maybe Q.Q.Switcheroo was referring to the sudden loud window crash after the advert initially starts out tranquil.
It made me jump, and I’m a pretty difficult person to make flinch (mostly because my brain and body are so lazy now).
…and it’s totally unnecessary to the joke of the advert. It would have worked with e.g. suddenly they hear loud music, or someone in swimming trunks suddenly runs by them.
Yes, exactly. For that one split second, it looks as if they’re leading up to the punchline “Our product is so authentically ‘Mediterranean,’ you’ll swear you can hear the IEDs shattering the display window behind you!”
As @LSLGuy notes, the rest of the commercial isn’t objectionable in the least. But there’s no way that moment wasn’t going to raise a few eyebrows - which may well have been the point.
And with that, apologies for the (ahem) hijack.
No. Some people may have had Sentry mode turned on.
Every source is saying “video from charging stations” or variants. If you enter a Tesla charging station, cameras will record your visit.
(Search: Musk film OR video OR camera “charging stations”)
And, yes, the vehicle itself records and stores video:
Owners do NOT have the option to disable all video recording:
My bolding.
Ah. That makes more sense. Those are security cameras, People like to vandalize the stations because they hate Tesla or to steal the cables for scrap copper. Gas stations have cameras too.
I’m really hoping this isn’t real. But my hopes are not high.
Elon purportedly tweeted the following today:
Good luck getting the smell of burnt human flesh out of it…
Why not Google that quote first to see if it’s true?
I did and it appears to be, but I’ve cancelled my X account and searching X without an account is a little hit-or-miss. I get hits but they go to a signup page.
It appears to be real:
The Elmo fanboys in the replies are utterly deranged.
“The bomber was a little old lady from Pasadena…”
Jack Murphy, a veteran author / journalist / podcaster says that there’s a manifesto that’ll be read tomorrow.
Tldr: you can hand-build a whole truck out of a surviving lugnut and a mountain of new replacement parts if you want. Ain’t gonna sell it for a profit though.
Long form:
As a matter of engineering it’d be an interesting exercise. As a business matter not so much
Back in my college days I had a biz rebuilding burnt up Porsches. The late 70s / early 80s fuel injection systems were prone to aneurysms that burst, spraying liquid fuel all over the running engine’s exterior. The fire reliably started a few seconds later.
In SoCal there was a never ending supply of them. Which paid for my college and kept me in fancy cars. Such fun.
In the damage from the ensuing fire most of the expense and effort was replacing all the wiring whose insulation had melted / burned.
That’s if the FD was fast and saved the dashboard / forward half of the car. If the cabin comprehensively burned we didn’t buy the hulk. The cost of repair seriously exceeded the value of the result.
Returning to the present …
I gotta bet a Tesla has a metric fuckload of wiring in it. And the pix shows a destroyed cabin.
Anything can be fixed if you have enough money & time & expertise. Which the factory plus the service centers surely do.
But it won’t be anything but a story to sell to rubes. Anybody in the biz or with a brain will recognize it as a useless “Ship of Theseus” stunt costing $500K.
Musk will patch it up and auction it off to the faithful as the “vehicle even a bomb couldn’t kill” – sorta like a Zombie.
Like that I. G. Farben ad: “but anyway, imagine what we can do about your mouse problem!”
All information currently available says he was a Green Beret. If so he absolutely had training in improvised explosive devices. The media generally overestimates the level of training a soldier gets and make it seem like every supply clerk is Rambo. In this case they are correct. The Special Forces MOS 18C specifically trains in both making and neutralizing improvised explosives. Since they work in small teams all members are cross trained in each other’s specialty. If he was a qualified Special Forces soldier he absolutely had training in improvised explosives.