Opinion piece by Tesla owner Michele Miller in the Boston Globe: "I didn’t buy my Tesla in 2020 to make a political statement. I bought it to stop burning gas; And I’m not going to undo that choice just because the narrative around it has changed. What’s unfolding now is a case study in how some progressive movements have become more invested in symbols than systems; Years ago, when I bought my first Tesla, it was the political right that mocked the car. My father — a lifelong Republican — urged me to get rid of it. He saw it as a symbol of elitism: impractical, smug, unnecessary. I bought my second Tesla in 2024 for the same reason as the first: to continue reducing my reliance on fossil fuels. Now, that same father has warmed to it. Tesla is often praised in conservative circles, while many progressives are actively protesting against the company. What changed? Not the car, but the story we tell about it. If the political pendulum can swing that easily, maybe the car isn’t the problem. Maybe we’ve just gotten too comfortable treating every purchase as a declaration of identity, rather than asking: What does this tool actually do? What troubles me is the selective outrage. It’s easy to denounce a choice you didn’t make. It’s even easier to suggest someone sell an expensive, low-emission vehicle without acknowledging the real trade-offs involved. Progress, after all, isn’t just about individual choices, it’s also about building systems that make better choices possible. Tesla’s EV charging network, once exclusive to its own customers, is now opening to other electric vehicles, creating critical infrastructure for broader clean transportation. That’s a tangible environmental good that extends far beyond any single company or CEO. So no, I’m not selling my Tesla. Not because I’m ignoring the conversation — but because I’m engaged in it. Because I believe evolution doesn’t come from symbolic purging. It comes from working — however imperfectly — toward progress." Full piece: bostonglobe.com/2025/05/09/o…