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0 pointskodah4y ago0 comments

If you were rich enough to buy a Tesla wouldn't you try to talk the government into buying your battery off of you?

0 comments

5 comments · 2 top-level

ZeroGravitas4y ago· 2 in thread

You think that regulatory capture of the government by rich, individual Tesla owners is a key energy policy concern? That seems outlandish.

kodahOP4y ago

I don't think Tesla owners are that influential, no. I was merely making a joke that we get solutions codified into law that are driven primarily by rich people, and I don't think anyone would argue buying a $60k car doesn't make you rich.

ZeroGravitas4y ago

And the rich people you worry about influencing policy aren't the Saudi Royal family, Vladimir Putin and the giant corporations who profit from fossil fuels and literally started a conspiracy theory that scientists were lying to us in an effort to destroy modern civizilation and so on, but rather 'rich' people who have bought an EV with the same total cost of ownership as a Toyota Camry?

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tsimionescu4y ago· 1 in thread

You might, but that's not the question, it's the other side that's more important.

Will any state be willing to rely on used car batteries as a critical component of their power grid?

kodahOP4y ago

Personally, I think these used car batteries will go straight to the dump and will be just another investigative journalism story about how we're damaging the local ecology. Batteries can be recycled but it's fairly expensive, so someone would have to engineer a process that optimizes for time, cost, and life of the battery. As far as I know, nothing exists in mass production like this today.

What I think is more feasible is us finding a way to store energy outside the means of a typical lithium battery. I could very well be idealistic in this sense though.

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0 comments

5 comments · 2 top-level

ZeroGravitas4y ago· 2 in thread

You think that regulatory capture of the government by rich, individual Tesla owners is a key energy policy concern? That seems outlandish.

kodahOP4y ago

I don't think Tesla owners are that influential, no. I was merely making a joke that we get solutions codified into law that are driven primarily by rich people, and I don't think anyone would argue buying a $60k car doesn't make you rich.

ZeroGravitas4y ago

And the rich people you worry about influencing policy aren't the Saudi Royal family, Vladimir Putin and the giant corporations who profit from fossil fuels and literally started a conspiracy theory that scientists were lying to us in an effort to destroy modern civizilation and so on, but rather 'rich' people who have bought an EV with the same total cost of ownership as a Toyota Camry?

1 more reply

tsimionescu4y ago· 1 in thread

You might, but that's not the question, it's the other side that's more important.

Will any state be willing to rely on used car batteries as a critical component of their power grid?

kodahOP4y ago

Personally, I think these used car batteries will go straight to the dump and will be just another investigative journalism story about how we're damaging the local ecology. Batteries can be recycled but it's fairly expensive, so someone would have to engineer a process that optimizes for time, cost, and life of the battery. As far as I know, nothing exists in mass production like this today.

What I think is more feasible is us finding a way to store energy outside the means of a typical lithium battery. I could very well be idealistic in this sense though.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse