“rich dude.”

Hey, whoa whoa whoa, there are plenty of elitest female grifters as well! Equal’ish opportunity! (only for grifting tho).

/s

“Honestly, I’ve kind of assumed that crime is a made up American thing to put minorities in jail.”

It’s definitely not made up, although it may be exaggerated and positioned to drive fear.

I’ve been to a couple dozen countries at this point, primarily but not exclusively in low and medium low income countries.

Based on my experience (which is, in sum total, still pretty limited), organized crime groups will often try to avoid stirring up trouble with tourists and expats as incidents can generate too much heat and could hurt too many wallets.

I also got the impression that organized crime groups in most countries typically try to avoid stirring up too much stuff with locals as that too can draw heat. This is assuming that the locals likewise try to avoid stirring things up with organized crime members.

People living in Mexico may in many cases may be more exposed. Then you’ve got failed and near failed states like the DRC where things are really, really dire.

There often are areas that are best to avoid and if you do go there, you’ll want to keep a low profile. This is true in the USA, parts of Europe, and many low and medium low income countries. I’ve ended up in some pretty shady areas through life but never had anything happen. That said, the risks are heightened.

There are also safe low and middle income countries that are, at least with violent crime, much safer than the USA and other high income countries. Examples: Malaysia (upper middle income), Vietnam, Costa Rica.

lol. I assure you, the one who’s tone deaf here is absolutely you.

Buying a used car comes with various risks and it’s easy to end up with a bad deal. If you know what you’re doing and you have a bit of luck you can find good deals. But that’s not everyone, many people are rightly afraid they could get ripped off or just suffer some bad luck and not have a warranty to bail you out.

And there are plenty of middle and upper middle class people on tight budgets not due to luxury.

Do you realize how many people are bankrupted by medical costs?

Do you realize people get laid off, suffer debilitating injuries, or otherwise take a big hit to their income and finances through little to no fault of their own?

If you were making $125,000 a year five years ago, buying a Model E could make financial sense (save on gas, once solid resale value, longevity, etc.)

Then a few years you lose your job. Selling your tesla at a steep lose in that situation could be a really bad move depending on your position (especially if the care is paid for.)

The amount of examples here is endless.

You… don’t think that some middle and upper middle class people face tight budgets?

You “seriously” are trying to argue against that?

Beyond which, the Model 3 isn’t that expensive compared other new models. But eating a $10,000 loss on a car can be difficult for many people.

having been to countries some consider third world shitholes, it’s far worse (edit: in the USA) IMO.

In many low income countries this would have been a $50 bribe and 5 minutes to resolve (which could mean being deported).

I’m only like half way through. This one makes me see enough red I’m having to read it in chunks. Just found out about the poor pastors JFC take a wrong turn and straight to jail and it’s not funny.

edit: It just gets worse and worse. In a halfway decent world reading this story would feel like jumping the shark not business as usual.

What an f’ing disgrace. She went to an American government office to apply legally for a visa. The absolute worst consequence should have been “we’re sorry, we can’t process your Visa and you’ll need to return to your home country.”

That’s it.

This is a minor point compared to her suffering, but also, what an f’ing waste of taxpayer money. Some private facilities got good money I’m sure to lock this innocent lady up.

I mean we know their sales numbers: ~39,000

I’m way too lazy to try to figure out how many Teslas are on the road, but they sold 350,000 in the USA in 2022 alone and I think they doubled that in 2023, although by that point the mask was coming off.

Yes. I get that and I agree with you. But now we’re missing the context: This discussion started over harassing if not attacking Tesla owners in general. My original point is that many if not most Tesla owners bought their vehicles before Musk took off the mask. It’s fine to point out Cybertruck owners as making the decision knowingly, but keep in mind they are like .005 percent of all Tesla owners.

Nah, I’m just pointing out how numbers work.

Hundreds of thousands of Teslas were sold before Musk pulled off the mask. Cybertrucks account for a tiny percent of Teslas.

By all means, boycott Tesla. I sure as hell wouldn’t buy one anymore.

From CNN:

" The move to detain the mayor of Turkey’s largest city, a key political battleground, comes after Istanbul University said on Tuesday it had annulled Imamoglu’s degree over irregularities, dealing a blow to the opposition and dashing the mayor’s presidential ambitions.

Without a university degree, Imamoglu of the main opposition CHP, would be disqualified from running for president.

Imamoglu said the university’s decision was illegal and outside its jurisdiction, and that he would launch a legal challenge “The decision of the Istanbul University Board of Directors is UNLAWFUL” he said. “The days when those who made this decision will be held accountable before history and justice are near.”

---- Yeah Erdogan isn’t even pretending any more. Clearly just a move to take out the opposition.

Removed by mod

So you actually have nothing to say or any point to make then?

Sorry, try again, but only if you’re serious. Otherwise, silence is the best gift you can give.

Okay? So a truck that has sold almost nothing?

And I don’t know how you came to this conclusion, because it certainly wasn’t with anything I wrote. Try again.

We had two: Kamala Harris or Donald Trump.

This is a fact as plain as the world is round. What are you even trying to do?

Nah, it’s a situation where if forced to choose between 5 people dying and 25 people dying, I’ll go with 5. Obviously, I would rather no one die, but that’s not one of the choices.

And in this case, Americans literally did choose, electing a man who will not flinch at greatly increased deaths.

I think the real answer, and what could actually hurt Tesla, is flooding the market with cheap used Teslas. If you don’t care about the politics and optics and are looking to buy a Tesla, you might be able to pick up a gently used one at a major discount. This could drive buyers away from show rooms and new cars, which could cripple Tesla.

To be clear, I do not support attacking or harassing Tesla owners. Doing so will only swell the ranks of the alt-right.

The Biden administration, and pretty much every US administration’s stance on the Israel-Palestine issue leaves a lot to be desired. But Trump is absolutely going to drop the bar and lots of Palestinians are going to pay the price for that.

As bad as things were under Biden, that administration always wanted to avoid high body counts. The Trump administration will look at high body counts and then attaboy Bibi.

Roughly 50,000 Gazans died during the last phase of the war. That is an absolute tragedy, but the Trump administration could see that number grow by multiples and they’ll probably view it as a good thing.

We traded a wolf for a rabid lion and that is going to have consequences.

And I wish you the worst of luck in your efforts to swell the alt-right’s ranks!