Elon Musk is a racist man who has spent millions of dollars trying to bring a bloodthirsty fascist back to the White House. But I found myself in a dilemma on Friday morning while reading a new article in Bloomberg about the Tesla restaurant and electric car charging center Musk is opening in Los Angeles. I hate that I love it. I really wish anyone other than “Musk” would build it now.
The car, designed in the style of the fifties, located on Santa Monica and Orange Drive in Hollywood, will have 28 electric car charging stations, a restaurant with a rooftop seating area, and two cinema screens. Dinner will also be open 24 hours a day, according to reports. Anyone who knows me can easily understand why I admire the appearance and concept of this thing. Bloomberg describes it as a “mix of film, theater, and future film and theater.” I happened to be the man who was writing Paleofuture, a blog about past visions of the future, since 2007. This place was basically created for me. I mean, look at this rendering that shows how it’s supposed to look in the end. It’s straight out of the Jetson.
And that’s why I’m extremely conflicted. Because everything I love about the mid-century design of Los Angeles – its hopeful vision for the future and its excessive use of Googie – represents something totally different from men like Elon Musk. For him, the modernist aesthetics of the future are a nostalgic look back at the fifties and sixties of the last century, mixed with all the racism and “traditional” gender roles he constantly complains about these days.
Just take a look at the way “Musk” speaks to see the connection, whether it’s at big Tesla events or in interviews with people like far-right influencer Tucker Carlson. “Musk” talks about how the future should look like the future, meaning it should mimic the old futuristic glamor of the past. And then he goes on the podcast to complain about the “awakening mind virus,” spreading lies about transgender people, and demonizing immigrants. How futuristic.
It’s not hard to understand how the aesthetic choices of this restaurant could mesh with “Musk’s” policies. There are plenty of people who enjoy the futuristic look of the sixties and are not fascists. But if you’re an extreme right-wing billionaire, that aesthetics represent something entirely different. It celebrates a moment in time before annoyances like birth control (which “Musk” dislikes), DEI initiatives (“Musk” thinks diversity and inclusion is discrimination against whites), and the prevailing social acceptance in America of transgender people (“Musk too” has a real problem with it since his trans daughter disowned him). When someone like “Musk” adopts the modernist futuristic style, the focus is on the retro side more than the future side.
I have never owned an electric car. In fact, I don’t own a car of any kind at the moment. But sometimes I drive electric cars for my friends and family and I know how difficult charging can be, depending on your proximity to Tesla superchargers. This car seems like a great way for people to charge while having something to eat or watching a movie.
Musk is an unethical person who regularly uses shady techniques to avoid robot presentations and violates many labor laws while vehemently opposing unions. Not to mention the fact that he is also trying to tap into a new wave of Trumpism promising to terrorize Americans. Trump promised to deport millions in a “bloody” operation, and said he would use the military to chase political opponents like Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi, described by his former senior advisors as literally a fascist who wanted generals like Adolf Hitler.
However, I am stuck looking at the upcoming Tesla restaurant and I think it’s a place I would be happy to visit if “Musk” wasn’t involved. Am I evil, to rewrite a popular meme? I think I’m the bad guy.
It’s still unclear when the restaurant will open. The 247Tesla channel on YouTube posted a new drone video earlier this week from Hollywood showing progress on the dinner site in Hollywood. But reports indicate that this dinner concept can be expanded to include other locations if it performs well.
I hate everything “Musk” represents politically and I can’t stand the other aesthetic choices the man has made with garbage like Cybertruck. But I think it’s important to acknowledge that I love the concept of this Tesla restaurant. I sincerely hope that “Musk” escapes to Russia (we learned yesterday that the billionaire has been in “regular contact” with Vladimir Putin since late 2022), but I must give credit where it’s due.
It seems that my conflicting feelings are the important point. The new article in Bloomberg suggests that liberal electric car owners are nervous about Musk, and this dinner is one way to reach out to consumers who see the billionaire as fundamentally opposed to their values. It’s a branding exercise and it has worked completely with me so far.
Unless something drastic changes after this dinner, it seems like a very strong concept for retailing. And if “Musk” doesn’t eventually leave the country for any number of reasons (he said he believes he will be thrown in jail if Kamala Harris wins the election), we hope that the employees at the new “Musk” restaurant at least work to unify the place. There’s no way George Jetson would get a two-hour workday through any means other than strict unionization.
