Anti Tesla Guy on Twitter, Boycott Tesla Site, and the "Solyndramobile"

[leilanimunter]

This guy has been arguing with me on and off on twitter about Tesla. I don't know how many times I can try to explain the benefits of electric cars, so if anyone wants to jump in, here he is:
Ton Aarts (ton_aarts) on Twitter

I am not sure if he runs this site or not, but there is this Boycott Tesla website which calls Tesla a "Solyndramobile"
Solyndramobile: How bribery corruption ruined the auto markets | An Online Newspaper about Tesla Motors, Fisker, and the whole CAR-GATE affair

I am listed on their site as one of the "shill reporters for Tesla" - funny because I am not a reporter, nor am I paid for ANY articles I write (Tesla or otherwise) for Discovery's Treehugger or Huffington Post Outing SHILL REPORTERS who are compensated for rigged stories on Tesla | Solyndramobile: How bribery corruption ruined the auto markets

Anyone who wants to jump in, feel free!

 

[dsm363]

Thanks for fighting the fight but you'll likely find that arguing with people like this ends up going nowhere quick. You can present some facts and if they aren't acknowledged then you are likely not entering into a genuine discussion.

Looks like you will be joining the Tesla mafia along with the rest of us. That website is priceless.
By Driving a Tesla you are supporting, and involved in, ORGANIZED CRIME. | Solyndramobile: How bribery corruption ruined the auto markets

 

[Stoneymonster]

He's engaged me on twitter before. I think he has a saved search for mentions of Tesla and jumps on anyone who says anything positive. Just ignore him.

 

[vfx]

The haters like the Boycott Tesla site that spend so much energy on Tesla are ones that are betting with big money that the stock will fall and are trying to facilitate it.

Here is another.

https://twitter.com/TeslaMotorHead

We usually ignore them like a gnat. Ton may not be one of them but I would not be surprised if he was.

 

[bonnie]

+1 to ignore. Every time we respond (and sometimes you just HAVE to), we draw more attention to whatever drivel they're pushing.

 

[Discoducky]

+1 to ignore. Every time we respond (and sometimes you just HAVE to), we draw more attention to whatever drivel they're pushing.

Not to mention 'clicks'. After JP and SA I don't give them any money with my 'clicks'.

 

[Mr X]

probably a troll


and this is exactly what he wants, attention


just ignore him

 

[GlennAlanBerry]

I wouldn't waste your time "debating" people like that. Some people can be convinced by facts and evidence, and some people will believe what they want to regardless of any evidence.

Just continue to write honestly about your experiences with Tesla and EVs in general.

 

[callmesam]

Leilani

I don't say this lightly, but someone who does not respond to reason, should be left alone.

The purpose of some agent-provocateurs is to slow down your message to the greatest number.

There's an expression: Don't feed the trolls.

You are a great ambassador.

 

[Jack6591]

I am left wondering what Noam Chomsky's take on this matter would be? While I don't advocate arguing with those who promote reasonless agendas, I do question their financing. Someone is paying for a website and investing significant time. I cannot imagine it is their passion for OPEC. It is in their self-interest to do so. Follow the money, and you'll know the truth.

 

[bonnie]

I'll go a step further.

This nutcase has about 30 followers on twitter. You have well over 10k. When you respond to him, another 10k+ people see his tweet. If no one responds to him, only his followers see what he has to say.

And they already know he's not right in the head.

 

[MikeC]

Don't waste your time, Leilani. Probably a short, I doubt you'll be hearing from him after August 7th.

 

[teslasguy]

Leilani, this guy has been trolling my twitter account ever since our #teslaroadtrip recreation of the infamous Broder test drive. He was looking for anything to trash us and Tesla. Please ignore him, and thanks again for your passionate and heartfelt speech at Teslive!

 

[tigerade]

Well guys... let me try to give some advice. I talk with climate change deniers all the time. EV bashers and Renewable bashers are a similar breed. Basically their end goal is to do whatever possible to defend the interests of fossil fuels. Truth is a sacrifice that they made early on. Honesty and integrity are absent, but a red-blooded passion, anger and ignorance are still pretty powerful. It is very, very unlikely that you will win these people over one-on-one. HOWEVER, the conversation is not always wasted. You have to keep in mind that if it's an online conversation, then more than likely other people are reading in. It's the man in the middle that you are trying to win over. Reason and facts will win him over, while your opponent's hysteria and ignorance will hurt his argument. So an argument is not at all wasted if someone reads into it and gets more information on global warming/electric vehicles/renewable energy. Something to keep in mind. :smile:

 

[robballan]

My favorite article: "Tesla and Fisker use Vaginal Orifice to trick abusive rich guys into buying cars!"

What a hoot. Total moron.

 

[bonnie]

Well guys... let me try to give some advice. I talk with climate change deniers all the time. EV bashers and Renewable bashers are a similar breed. Basically their end goal is to do whatever possible to defend the interests of fossil fuels. Truth is a sacrifice that they made early on. Honesty and integrity are absent, but a red-blooded passion, anger and ignorance are still pretty powerful. It is very, very unlikely that you will win these people over one-on-one. HOWEVER, the conversation is not always wasted. You have to keep in mind that if it's an online conversation, then more than likely other people are reading in. It's the man in the middle that you are trying to win over. Reason and facts will win him over, while your opponent's hysteria and ignorance will hurt his argument. So an argument is not at all wasted if someone reads into it and gets more information on global warming/electric vehicles/renewable energy. Something to keep in mind. :smile:

Twitter does not lend itself to thoughtful, reasoned responses.

 

[tigerade]

Twitter does not lend itself to thoughtful, reasoned responses.

True. Sometimes I just reply with links to specific articles from Skeptical Science or Energy Fact Check. It's a much faster way to plow through the most common talking points.

 

[AudubonB]

That is one cross-threaded, mis-aligned, worbled-out, stripped-thread, off-kilter set of posts. Holy Bandwidth!

It often is the case one can find kernels of useful information in negative posts. I tried six or seven of these posts, and have come up entirely empty-handed. I wonder how many of them are written by disgruntled former employees, or would-be employees who weren't hired?

 

[evme]

Well guys... let me try to give some advice. I talk with climate change deniers all the time. EV bashers and Renewable bashers are a similar breed. Basically their end goal is to do whatever possible to defend the interests of fossil fuels. Truth is a sacrifice that they made early on. Honesty and integrity are absent, but a red-blooded passion, anger and ignorance are still pretty powerful. It is very, very unlikely that you will win these people over one-on-one. HOWEVER, the conversation is not always wasted. You have to keep in mind that if it's an online conversation, then more than likely other people are reading in. It's the man in the middle that you are trying to win over. Reason and facts will win him over, while your opponent's hysteria and ignorance will hurt his argument. So an argument is not at all wasted if someone reads into it and gets more information on global warming/electric vehicles/renewable energy. Something to keep in mind. :smile:

There are all kinds of people, there are a lot of people ignorant or taught otherwise. And there are crazy people who don't care if they are right or wrong. This guy in question falls into the don't care territory. He is a hater and he hates Tesla. Your not even going to end up agreeing to disagree with this kind of crazy. He is best ignored.

To explain it best, here is what he writes on his site:
"* Over 18 different current and former employees of Tesla confirmed or input on all parts of the data in this site."

There are people with special interests who care less and their only goal is to misinform.
“Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.” ― Mark Twain

 

[tigerade]

There are all kinds of people, there are a lot of people ignorant or taught otherwise. And there are crazy people who don't care if they are right or wrong. This guy in question falls into the don't care territory. He is a hater and he hates Tesla. Your not even going to end up agreeing to disagree with this kind of crazy. He is best ignored.

I used to agree with this. In fact, there is a quote from an Apollo astronaut Gene Cernan who said in regards to Moon Conspiracy theorists: "Truth needs no defense" and "Nobody can take those footsteps I made on the surface of the moon away from me."

I thought that in the age of unlimited information, the truth would eventually sort itself out. But this is wrong. Misinformers, particularly climate change deniers, thrive when they publish misleading and/or deceptive information and no one debunks them and calls them out on it. They own the podium and have free reign over the people in the middle, who don't know better. Over the past ten years or so, somewhere between 40-60% of Americans thought that global warming wasn't real or wasn't caused by man. What does it matter, they aren't scientists and they don't know better? A legitimate argument. However this unbridled ignorance has a consequence. People do vote, and we have a Congress full of climate change deniers thanks to public ignorance. And what has that done? Delay action on getting off fossil fuels, and making climate change even more perilous.

Scientists have pretty much waken up to this fact, that is why you see scientists like James Hansen and Michael Mann being a lot more assertive than before. I feel like it's working and we're gaining more soldiers fighting on our side. The persistent contrarians, led and mislead by the Fossil Fuel industry, have now aimed their sights at newer, weaker target: EV's and renewable energy. The FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) articles and comments that plague the internet are not a coincidence. They are an organized disinformation campaign to keep America dependent on fossil fuels. I'd hate to see history repeat itself. I'd much rather go on the offensive instead of playing defense on all the time. Put the ball in their court. Make -them- defend their irrational and incorrect positions. Win people over who may be skeptical. Fight denial of climate change and respond to EV/renewable energy attacks.

I am honestly starting to feel like the winds are blowing in our direction. People have been fighting against the fossil fuel industry's dirty tricks for decades now. I really think we can conquer this beast. It's not going to be a swift blow of justice. It's going to be a thousand tiny spears at it's feet. Just my 2 cents.