Marjorie Greene Says The Dumbest Thing I Think I’ve Ever Heard About EVs – CleanTechnica

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There’s a scene in the movie Dumb and Dumber, where Lloyd drives the dog van the wrong way for hundreds of miles. Then, in desperation, he trades the car for a moped that the pair must then use to get to Aspen, Colorado.

“You know, Lloyd, just when I think you couldn’t possibly be any dumber, you go and do something like this…AND TOTALLY REDEEM YOURSELF!”

I’m sure this is what devout followers of Marjorie Greene must be thinking to themselves right now, because the lady (I use the term loosely in this case) just said about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard anyone say about EVs. Here’s some video, along with a good rebuttal by transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg:

Marjorie Taylor Greene: “You think gas prices are high now? Just wait until you’re forced to drive an EV.”@PeteButtigieg: “If you really wanted to think it through, I suppose if everybody’s driving an EV then global petroleum markets would probably show a drop in demand, which… pic.twitter.com/ydqWtrofXy

— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) July 22, 2024

I have to admit that I’m a little impressed. Normally, Greene’s penchant for theatrics and lies somewhat resembles the truth, or at least her version of it. She’s been good at playing to the crowd, whether it means playing to her ignorance or playing to theirs. But, this time she’s both showing us that she doesn’t think things through and that neither do her fans.

Secretary Pete (sadly, no relation to Pete & Pete) quickly points out the problems. The obvious one is that if you’re driving a gasoline-powered car and are forced to switch to one that runs on electricity, you’ll no longer have any need for gas. So, the price of gas should prove to not be bothersome at all. The other issue is that an EV mandate (something the United States doesn’t really have) would drive the price of gasoline down. The people who keep their used gas vehicles instead of buying a new EV would find that demand for gas has gone way down, and because supply and demand make price, the price would indeed fall.

But, he does point out that she likely didn’t think this through at all. For people like Greene, it doesn’t matter what truth is, or if what they’re saying even makes sense. All the world’s a stage when you’re a political shock jock.

Laughter Is The Best Medicine

If Donald Trump has proven anything, it’s that this kind of political personality isn’t dissuaded by fact-checking or even fear of getting caught lying. They don’t build bases of support that are susceptible to such things. Instead, they find safe districts (deep red or deep blue—as there are people like this on the left at times) where they won’t have to appeal to both sides. Then, they thrive on negative energy, and entertain the crowd’s preconceptions so thoroughly that they simply don’t care whether they’re being lied to or told nonsense.

What do crowds like this appreciate? Dunks on people they perceive as enemies. No matter the cost, this kind of a mob just wants to get a chance to ridicule and fight the other side. If that means overlooking a few Jewish space lasers and exploding Toyotas, so be it.

So, there’s only one reasonable response to this kind of nonsense: to laugh at it, too. Instead of explaining why they’re wrong, it’s best to give demagogues what they want: an ugly fight. Instead, do what the secretary and the podcaster guy did: discuss it a bit but have fun laughing at it. If they see the “woke left” or whatever it is they’re mocking today laughing along, it takes all of the fun out of it.

Featured image by Jennifer Sensiba.