People ditched their cars on the road and kept moving on foot as they escaped the wind-fueled <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/los-angeles-area-neighborhood-goes-up-in-flames-as-wind-driven-blaze-rages" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wildfire</a> in Pacific Palisades on Tuesday that engulfed the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/los-angeles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Los Angeles</a> neighborhood and prompted officials to order thousands of residents to evacuate, making for apocalyptic scenes in images shown on news reports and across social media.
CBS News <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/pacific-coast-highway-shut-down-drivers-told-to-flee-their-cars-as-palisades-fire-jumps-in-size/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that authorities told drivers to leave their cars behind as Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) was shut down in the Malibu area. The news outlet also noted that all lanes of Topanga Canyon Boulevard were closed as the wildfire grew in size and, on part of Sunset Boulevard, drivers were told to leave their cars and move on foot as the blaze approached.
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The Palisades Fire moved in so quickly, evacuees panicked. Every car represents someone or a family that, in fear, abandoned their cars, and fled on foot. The wind could reach 100 mph tonight. <a href="https://t.co/z0weB3WS2d">pic.twitter.com/z0weB3WS2d</a>
— Jonathan Vigliotti 🐋 (@JonVigliotti) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonVigliotti/status/1876800633505763674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The fire came right down to the road and the fire department came up and said get out of your cars now — because the fire was right up against the cars,&#8221; said Marsha Horowitz, who was driving down Sunset Boulevard at the time, according to the <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/pacific-coast-highway-shut-down-drivers-told-to-flee-their-cars-as-palisades-fire-jumps-in-size/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from CBS News. &#8220;There were three lanes of cars, and the fire was right down and there was nothing to stop it.&#8221;
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Fire crews are using a bulldozer to move abandoned cars to make way for firefighters fighting the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PalisadesFire?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PalisadesFire</a><a href="https://t.co/IOu5ZtSubn">pic.twitter.com/IOu5ZtSubn</a>
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Phil_Lewis_/status/1876767802645741973?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Fox 11 Los Angeles <a href="https://x.com/FOXLA/status/1876778574079983787" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that fire crews used a bulldozer to move cars out of the way so that they could respond to the wildfire. A <a href="https://x.com/Phil_Lewis_/status/1876767802645741973" target="_blank" rel="noopener">segment</a> from KLTA, which was posted to X, showed a large red bulldozer shoving multiple vehicles as a reporter on the scene explained that drivers &#8220;panicked&#8221; and took their keys as they left their cars behind for as far as he could see.
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&#8220;I have friends up there that can&#8217;t get out&#8221;: Actor Steve Guttenberg urges those living in the Pacific Palisades area to evacuate. He advises people leaving vehicles behind to leave their keys inside so they can be moved. 
More: <a href="https://t.co/G7qJkk06mI">https://t.co/G7qJkk06mI</a> 
NewsNation affiliate <a href="https://twitter.com/KTLA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KTLA</a> <a href="https://t.co/rLxfPCNewH">pic.twitter.com/rLxfPCNewH</a>
— NewsNation (@NewsNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/NewsNation/status/1876763870531854777?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Police Academy&#8221; actor Steve Guttenberg, a local, <a href="https://ktla.com/entertainment/actor-steve-guttenberg-helping-fire-crews-by-moving-cars-near-pacific-palisades-brush-fire/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> KTLA that he was moving abandoned cars on Palisades Drive to help people who got stuck in the gridlock. &#8220;What’s happening is people take their keys with them as if they’re in a parking lot. This is not a parking lot. We really need people to move their cars,&#8221; Guttenberg said. &#8220;If you leave your car behind, leave the key in there so a guy like me can move your car so that these fire trucks can get up there.&#8221;

Los Angeles-Area Fires Erupt As Dangerous Wind Storm Begins

People Abandon Cars As They Flee Palisades Fire In Southern California

California

Cars

Los Angeles

Los Angeles County

Natural Disaster

U.S.

Wildfires

It’s great to be back after a long Christmas break. Much has happened in the world since my last post. Today, however, I’d like to begin with a story that’s unfolding in New York. 
There’s one thing we know: Government officials, whether they&#8217;re elected politicians in this country or despots in the third world, do not like being reminded of their failures. This is why the greatest crime in any dictatorship is noticing. You aren’t supposed to notice things that are embarrassing to the ruling regime. It’s also why comedy and satire are banned in places like North Korea, just like they&#8217;re banned on late-night talk shows in this country. Petty, corrupt and ineffective people can&#8217;t stand it when their incompetence is exposed. They&#8217;re willing to take extreme measures to prevent that from happening. Right now, in the city of New York, we&#8217;re getting a very clear sense of what those &#8220;extreme measures&#8221; look like, in practice.
If you&#8217;ve seen the news lately, you know that the subway system is one of the most obvious and unavoidable signs of New York&#8217;s decline. It&#8217;s a monument to the many failures of the city government. As of late last year, ridership on New York&#8217;s subway system is <a href="https://gothamist.com/news/nyc-subway-ridership-hits-new-milestone-but-still-far-short-of-pre-pandemic-levels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">down</a> more than 25% from pre-pandemic levels. That means that, every day, there are at least a million fewer people riding the subway in New York, as compared to five years ago.
It&#8217;s not exactly a great mystery as to why people are avoiding it. There&#8217;s a constant stream of violent attacks on the trains and the platforms — from people being <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/assailant-charged-after-allegedly-shoving-man-directly-iin-path-of-oncoming-ny-subway-train" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pushed in front of the trains</a> to a woman getting <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nypd-identifies-woman-burned-to-death-on-subway" target="_blank" rel="noopener">burned alive</a>. Yes, if you didn’t hear about that, a woman was burned alive, on a train, in New York, in front of a crowd of people. This is what’s happening now in the third world country known as New York City. And that&#8217;s just within the last few weeks. These attacks are effectively endorsed and enabled by New York&#8217;s government, which has made the political decision not to incarcerate most criminals.
That explains why a man named Jamar Banks was able to use the subway the other day. The New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/01/05/us-news/madman-accused-of-two-nyc-train-stabbings-is-busted-carrying-large-knife-sources/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports</a> that, &#8220;A subway maniac with 87 prior arrests was just busted for two transit stabbings — carrying the large knife he allegedly used in the violence &#8230; Banks&#8217; rap sheet includes arrests for alleged attempted murder, weapons possession, assault, criminal trespassing, turnstile jumping and petty larceny.&#8221;
If politicians in New York didn&#8217;t want to destroy the city, they&#8217;d immediately throw every criminal like Jamar Banks in prison. They&#8217;d start enforcing the law. It’s actually not hard to prevent people from getting randomly stabbed, torched, or thrown in front of trains. This is a very easy issue to address. The city could effectively end all of this madness overnight, in one fell swoop, if they wanted to. All you have to do is take all the people who are already known violent criminals and put them in prison. Then you have to ban homeless people from setting up camp in the tunnels or on the trains, and arrest anyone who causes a disturbance. This could all be done in one day.
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But none of that is happening. Instead, rather than admit they&#8217;ve failed their constituents, politicians in New York have just decided to compel citizens to use the subway. They&#8217;ve opted to make it financially untenable for most New Yorkers to avoid public transit. That&#8217;s their solution to the fact that no one in the city wants to ride the subway anymore. They&#8217;re going to force them to do it.
I&#8217;m talking about so-called &#8220;congestion pricing.&#8221; After several years of debate, this &#8220;congestion pricing&#8221; has just taken effect in Manhattan. In essence, this is a tax on anyone who wants to drive a vehicle into the heart of New York during work hours — as if it wasn&#8217;t already expensive enough to live in that diseased, rat-infested, crime-riddled, reeking, filthy, godforsaken hellhole of a city. This new tax is a very clear effort to force New Yorkers to use the subway system, which has become an international embarrassment. People don’t want to use it because they don’t want to be assaulted by schizophrenic vagrants. So the solution isn’t to get rid of the schizophrenic vagrants. Instead it’s to simply force everyone to use it, basically offering law abiding citizens up as sacrifices to the dregs of the community.
Specifically, this new tax covers the vast majority of vehicles entering Manhattan between 60th Street and the Battery, which includes Times Square, Hell&#8217;s Kitchen, the theater district, and other high-traffic areas. From 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekdays, and from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m on weekends — which is obviously a huge block of time — the so-called &#8220;peak period toll rate&#8221; is in effect. For all &#8220;passenger and small commercial vehicles,&#8221; that toll rate is $9.00 during the peak period.
To be clear about the political dynamics here, the majority of New Yorkers oppose congestion pricing, as far as I can tell. A Sienna College <a href="https://abc7ny.com/nyc-congestion-pricing-nearly-two-thirds-of-new-yorkers-oppose-plan-siena-college-poll-finds/14721916/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">survey</a> from last summer found that nearly two-thirds of people living in the city didn&#8217;t want a $15.00 &#8220;congestion toll.&#8221;
In response to the outcry, the governor of New York briefly suspended the plan. Then she said she&#8217;d lower the toll a few dollars, claiming it would save New Yorkers some money. To reiterate, she claimed she was saving New Yorkers money by taking less of their money than she was originally going to take. This was a prime example of political &#8220;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUMgX7-yZZs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">girl math</a>,&#8221; as I outlined at the time. And now it&#8217;s taken effect.
Naturally, some Left-wing New Yorkers rallied in response to their government gouging them even more. But instead of rallying against it, they actually rallied to thank their overlords for the privilege of being bilked by them. Some of these scenes are so absurd that they don&#8217;t even seem like they can be real. 
Here for example is a crowd cheering as the signage for the congestion pricing is unveiled:
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&quot;3, 2, 1… Happy congestion pricing!&quot; &#8211; New Yorkers *applaud* as the MTA unveils new regulatory tolls on them <a href="https://t.co/o55GtYlw92">pic.twitter.com/o55GtYlw92</a>
&mdash; End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) <a href="https://twitter.com/EndWokeness/status/1875782069361766504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Yes, you just heard someone shouting, &#8220;Happy congestion pricing.&#8221; They are celebrating the implementation of an unprecedented tax, as if it&#8217;s a national holiday.
 This would seem to be boot-licking taken to an unparalleled extreme, and it is. But we should also understand that really they&#8217;re celebrating the fact that, because of this tax, wealthy New Yorkers will have to contend with fewer working class people on the roads in Manhattan. The same people who celebrated the assassination of the health care CEO as some kind of twisted &#8220;victory for the little guy&#8221; are very, very happy about using a tax to keep poor people away from them.
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That&#8217;s a pretty big clue that none of these people actually care about &#8220;the little guy.&#8221; If you ask them, of course, they&#8217;ll pretend otherwise. In particular, they&#8217;ll say that congestion pricing is necessary because it will help pay for improvements to the subway system. 
For example, when the governor briefly halted the plan for congestion pricing last summer, this was the response:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Pro-congestion pricing rally held in Manhattan" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/y-nnHGHfXi4?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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If you want to explain to someone how cities like New York are collapsing, just show them that clip. According to the residents of New York, it&#8217;s a &#8220;great betrayal&#8221; that the government isn&#8217;t taxing them enough. That is how these people think.
To be fair, the first guy was arguably a little less pathetic. He was talking about all of the alleged benefits that will result from congestion pricing. He&#8217;s saying they&#8217;ll be able to improve the subway system to make it more &#8220;accessible,&#8221; which is a talking point a lot of these protesters used. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Parents with strollers rally in favor of congestion pricing in NYC" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qTGJf7Y3NeI?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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One of the many false assumptions these people are making is that more money will improve the subway system. But that&#8217;s not true. And we know that because the New York subway system is a comically obvious example of waste and mismanagement in government.
For example, the Second Avenue subway that was recently constructed in Manhattan somehow cost more money than any other similar subway system on the planet — by a lot. As <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-23/in-nyc-subway-a-case-study-in-runaway-transit-construction-costs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bloomberg reports</a>: &#8220;At $2.5 billion per mile, construction costs for the 1.8-mile Phase 1 of the Second Avenue Subway were 8 to 12 times more expensive than similar subway projects in Italy, Istanbul, Sweden, Paris, Berlin and Spain.&#8221;
So that&#8217;s one potential way to raise revenue, right off the bat. They could stop lighting money on fire. Secondly, if you&#8217;re worried about congestion in Manhattan, you could try a lot of things besides charging people to drive their cars. You could, for example, try opening more lanes, instead of closing them for cyclists and construction. Anyone who&#8217;s ever driven through Manhattan could tell you that. Here&#8217;s one example:
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Couldn’t have said it better myself.
The city caused this “congestion”. And now anti-car activists are celebrating by taunting drivers at toll gantries.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FuckCongestionPricing?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FuckCongestionPricing</a> <a href="https://t.co/nMIYOiWQLY">pic.twitter.com/nMIYOiWQLY</a>
&mdash; The Fight against Anti-Car (@NoBikeLanes) <a href="https://twitter.com/NoBikeLanes/status/1875717693355298824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
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This is something no one ever mentions as a possible solution. Get rid of the stupid bike lanes. You’ll find this same thing in cities all over the country. You have to sit in traffic because the city has blocked off entire lanes so that people can ride their bicycles in the street. As I’ve said many times, they might as well block off lanes so that you can use your ab roller or bench press in the middle of the street. If you want to exercise — that’s great, I support it. But you shouldn’t be doing it in the road when everyone is trying to commute to work.
One of the arguments you&#8217;ll hear from these activists is that, somehow, this new tax will reduce carbon emissions and change the weather and save the planet. This is science, you see. Step 1: you pay a toll. Step 3: hurricanes stop happening. The problem is that Step 2 is a bit foggy. And anyway, even if you assume that reducing carbon emissions by a tiny amount will change the weather for the better, it’s a moot point, because this won’t actually reduce carbon emissions. Instead, traffic is going to move elsewhere. People living in New Jersey understand that pretty well, which is why they&#8217;re suing to stop this tax.
<h3><a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MATT WALSH&#8217;S &#8216;AM I RACIST?&#8217; NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a></h3>
But regardless, even if you don&#8217;t buy any of the counter-arguments — even if you think that New York&#8217;s government urgently needs more money to improve the subway — it&#8217;s still not clear why &#8220;congestion pricing&#8221; is the best way to raise that revenue. Why not raise taxes on those evil corporations that the Left claims to hate so much? Why are they raising taxes on regular citizens instead?
It only makes sense when you realize, again, that the objective is to force more people into public transit, and get them off the roads.
Admittedly, this whole fiasco may seem irrelevant to anyone who has the good sense to not live in New York. But this sort of madness can be found, in varying degrees, wherever Democrats have power. The idea that Trump’s re-election would be some kind of wake up call for Democrats is a fantasy. They can’t be woken up because they aren’t asleep or in some sort of trance. They’re doing exactly what they want, and their policies are having precisely the effect they intend. 
Here for example is an image from the New York subway system:
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🚨 NYC subway riders are all terrified of being shoved in front of a train. <a href="https://t.co/HCXmcRJ69S">pic.twitter.com/HCXmcRJ69S</a>
&mdash; Breaking911 (@Breaking911) <a href="https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1876039855458979983?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
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You&#8217;ll notice that everyone is standing against the wall, because they don&#8217;t want to get pushed on the tracks by some psycho. It&#8217;s straight-up dystopian and you have to wonder how long people will put up with it.
If there’s any waking up that can happen and must happen, it’s among the average citizens in places like New York. If they ever come to their senses and realize that the people they put in power are actively and intentionally making their lives worse in just about every measurable way, then maybe things will start to change for the better.
Unfortunately, for everyone living in New York, based on the celebrations we&#8217;re seeing in support of &#8220;congestion pricing&#8221; — which is really a tax on using your own property and going about your daily life — it doesn&#8217;t look like that will happen any time soon.

NY Congestion Pricing Plan’s Fate Unclear After Court Ruling

2025 Just Started And Things Are Already Getting Crazy

Automobiles

Kathy Hochul

Manhattan

Matt Walsh

New York

New York City

Opinion

Subway

Traffic

Even those who have never considered purchasing a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cars">Jaguar</a> are confused by the brand’s latest <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/advertising">relaunch</a>, which has been getting attention for all the wrong reasons. Viewers are saying the luxury car brand has gone <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/woke">woke</a> and in doing so, has destroyed more than 100 years of legacy.
Some thought the colorfully bizarre, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woke-is-dead-jaguar-gets-mocked-for-colorful-car-free-brand-re-launch">car-free car commercial</a> and the introduction of the “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-jaguar-concept-car-revealed-mocked-for-being-pink-batmobile">Pink batmobile</a>” electric concept car this month came out of nowhere. However, the descent into madness at Jaguar has been going on for decades, even if most people weren’t paying attention.
There may be no exact date to point to in terms of steering this <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/united-kingdom">British</a> brand in a new direction. But it may have started around 2002 when brand reps conducted a survey and determined that they should be marketing to gay and lesbian car buyers who at the time commanded $450 million of purchasing power in the United States, as The Advocate <a href="https://www.advocate.com/news/2002/12/19/jaguar-targets-gay-drivers-7249">reported</a> at the time. 
&#8220;[LGBT buyers] spend more money on luxury cars, and they have more money to spend,&#8221; Jaguar spokesman Simon Sproule said. &#8220;They are very loyal to brands and organizations that talk to them in a way that is relevant.&#8221;
“In recent years, Jaguar has targeted gay consumers on a smaller scale and found the brand is very appealing to this segment,” Jaguar North America marketing vice president George Ayres <a href="https://www.just-auto.com/news/usa-jaguar-targets-new-ad-campaign-at-gay-and-lesbian-buyers/">agreed</a>.
Their <a href="https://www.jaguar.co.uk/partnerships/jaguar-x-attitude.html">website</a> offers further clues to the brand’s progressive shift, touting that since 2016 Jaguar has been “a proud partner to the world’s biggest LGBTQ+ media brand, Attitude Magazine.” 
The brand also sponsors Attitude Magazine’s big annual event, the Attitude Awards, claiming to be the largest of its kind anywhere in the world. In 2019, in partnership with Attitude Magazine, the brand <a href="https://www.thedrum.com/news/2019/10/04/jaguars-long-term-attitude-partnership-births-jag-race-mini-series">launched</a> an online mini-series – Jag Race – featuring four drag queens, which happened to coincide with the popular American reality show “Ru Paul&#8217;s Drag Race” premiering on the BBC.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Courtney Act and The Vivienne actually drag race | Heat One – Jag Race S1, E1" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4OLZnksXD4U?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Jaguar Land Rover UK marketing director Anthony Bradbury told media outlet The Drum that their goal was, &#8220;challenging stereotypes of what an automotive campaign can be.”
&#8220;The industry has a stereotypically masculine image, so it’s important we use our platform to challenge that perception and reflect the diversity not only in our customer base but our employee network,&#8221; he said of the campaign, also noting that the Jaguar Land Rover Pride community had more than 450 members.
Mike Buckley, head of partnerships at Attitude, said he’s been thrilled with the collaboration with Jaguar. He said “Jag Race” is just one example of the brand’s “commitment to the LGBTQ+ audience.”
&#8220;They&#8217;ve been a dream partner since the start, committed to providing bespoke content for our audience,” Buckley said. “A number of concepts were initially presented by us to them but they wanted to be even more fearless than we thought they did. So Jag Race was their idea which we developed, produced and distributed for them.&#8221;
Also in 2019, Jaguar partnered with Queer Screen to present its 26th Mardi Gras Film Festival. Their “Fit for a Queen” campaign to promote the festival had the <a href="https://campaignbrief.com/jaguar-launches-new-fit-for-a/">intention</a> of  “celebrating individualism and queer storytelling.”
Mark Cameron, managing director of Jaguar Land Rover Australia, said of the sponsorship, “Inclusion is integral to the way that we do business at Jaguar and we recently established the Jaguar Land Rover PRIDE LGBTQI network in the UK. We are excited to celebrate creativity, equality and diversity with the incredible line-up of LGBTQI talent and films in this year’s festival, and of course to have some fun at our Jaguar Service Centre.”
There’s more. In 2022, Jaguar highlighted “the voices of two queer creatives” to discuss topics like representation and not caring what people think. Layton Williams <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eggWFSxN3XM">discussed</a> being cast as the first black Billy Elliot cast in a stage production of a show. “As queer people, sometimes we have to… well, you have to work a little bit harder sometimes. Well, I feel I have.”
The work that Jaguar started in 2002 and has been dutifully working toward ever since – to turn the brand into an homage to LGBTQ ideals – should not have been a surprise at all. During an appearance at the Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards in October, Santino Pietrosanti, UK Brand Director at Jaguar Land Rover, said the company rebrand was exactly what it looked like.
&#8220;We&#8217;re on a transformative journey of our own. Driven by a belief in diversity, inclusion, creativity, policy and, most importantly, action. We&#8217;ve established over 15 DEI groups such as Pride, which are here tonight, and Women in Engineering and Neurodiversity Matters,&#8221; Pietrosanti <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/jaguar-marketing-directors-comments-celebrating-commitment-dei-resurface-after-woke-rebrand">said</a> at the time.
&#8220;We&#8217;ve launched major policy revisions such as transitioning at work to drive equity and support for our communities, embracing individuality as our superpower,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;We&#8217;re not just talking about new cars. We are talking about all new ways of thinking and embracing the full spectrum of human potential and creativity. Because Jaguar has always stood for fearless originality, striving to be a copy of nothing. And we believe that every person has the potential to be something unique, something original, and that&#8217;s what makes us strong.&#8221; 
He said, &#8220;At Jaguar we proudly stand with the LGBTQ+ community because we know that originality and creativity thrives in spaces where people are free to be themselves.”
Despite Bud Light’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bud-lights-parent-company-lost-over-1-billion-in-revenue-after-dylan-mulvaney-partnership-report">billion dollar advertising train wreck</a> and several high-profile companies shying away from hot button social issues and abandoning <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/companies-are-running-from-dei-lgbt-initiatives">DEI initiatives</a>, Jaguar is all in for progressive values and unashamed to say so. Time will tell if that works out for them.

Screenshot 2024-12-10 at 12.01.19 PM

Jaguar Has Been Going Woke For Two Decades, Even If We Just Noticed It

Jaguar Has Been Going Woke For Two Decades, We Only Just Noticed It Now

advertising

Business

LGBT

United Kingdom

Wokeness

The new <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cars">Jaguar</a> concept car has been revealed, and just like the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/woke">woke</a> advertising that preceded its debut, the electric vehicle is being mercilessly mocked online.
The Type 00 two-door coupe has an extra long hood and a low roof with no rear window. Jaguar chief creative officer Gerry McGovern <a href="https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/jaguar-unveils-polarizing-concept-ev-as-part-of-its-rebrand-133026168.html#:~:text=All%20of%20this%20is%20part,officer%20at%20Miami%20Art%20Week.">said</a> of the vehicle, “When Jaguar was at its best, it threw away the design rulebook and created E-Type and the XJS; objects of desire.” 
Futuristic design elements aside, the detail about the Type 00 that’s getting the most attention is the car’s colors: Satin Rhodon Rose, dubbed ‘Miami Pink,’ and Inception Silver Blue.
Podcaster Jay Anderson addressed the redesign on X, <a href="https://x.com/TheProjectUnity/status/1863576689764147470">writing</a>, &#8220;Go woke&#8230;You all know the rest.&#8221;
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&#8220;I have a feeling [Jaguar] may be about to find out that there are fewer well off non binary woke lesbians of color than their echo chamber assured them there were,&#8221; another commenter <a href="https://x.com/LozzaFox/status/1863593708081324519">wrote</a>.
“Copy Nothing, i.e. upsize a 2008 Chrysler Crossfire and &#8230; make it a Mary Kay Cosmetics sales prize,” another commenter <a href="https://x.com/iowahawkblog/status/1863671960472842466">wrote</a>, referencing the brand’s tagline that goes along with the redesign.
&#8220;Jaguar has successfully copied nothing. Nobody has ever demolished a brand more quickly or efficiently than this. Kudos,” Babylon Bee CTO Dan Dillon <a href="https://x.com/dandillondev/status/1863639336840737152">agreed</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Jaguar has successfully copied nothing. Nobody has ever demolished a brand more quickly or efficiently than this. Kudos. <a href="https://t.co/qiTUy9EoCY">pic.twitter.com/qiTUy9EoCY</a>
&mdash; Dan Dillon (@dandillondev) <a href="https://twitter.com/dandillondev/status/1863639336840737152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“Copy nothing? It’s a pink Batmobile,” former Kevin McCarthy speechwriter Charles Correll III <a href="https://x.com/_CharlesCorrell/status/1863648971098325157">added</a>.
The Jaguar brand redesign had already been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woke-is-dead-jaguar-gets-mocked-for-colorful-car-free-brand-re-launch">making headlines</a> as of last month after it premiered a bizarre ad with no cars in it. The colorful commercial included people dressed in vibrant, outlandish outfits, making gestures such as grabbing sledgehammers, painting over the camera lens, and striking poses.
It also featured disjointed phrases such as “create exuberant,” “live vivid,” “delete ordinary,” “break molds,” and “copy nothing” on the screen.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded to the ad by asking, “Do you sell cars?”
The car brand’s chief creative officer Gerry McGovern is quoted as saying, “Jaguar has its roots in originality. Sir William Lyons, our founder, believed that ‘a Jaguar should be a copy of nothing.’ Our vision for Jaguar today is informed by this philosophy. New Jaguar is a brand built around Exuberant Modernism.”
He continued, “It is imaginative, bold and artistic at every touchpoint. It is unique and fearless. We are creating Jaguar for the future, restoring its status as a brand that enriches the lives of our clients and the Jaguar community.”

JAGUAR_TYPE00_SIDEPROFILE_16x9_021224

New Jaguar Concept Car Revealed, Mocked For Being ‘Pink Batmobile’

New Jaguar Concept Car Revealed, Mocked For Being 'Pink Batmobile'

Electric cars

General

As the mockery of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cars">Jaguar</a>’s massive brand relaunch continues, one company exec is speaking out against the “intolerance” from the public. 
Managing director Rawdon Glover said in a recent <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/e164df19-54e2-48d8-b07c-50687813bf56">interview</a> with the Financial Times that the campaign messaging was drowned out in “a blaze of intolerance” on social media. Glover also claimed that the colorful new ad was not meant to be “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/woke">woke</a>.”
“If we play in the same way that everybody else does, we’ll just get drowned out. So we shouldn’t turn up like an auto brand,” Glover told the outlet.
“We need to re-establish our brand and at a completely different price point so we need to act differently. We wanted to move away from traditional automotive stereotypes.”
The Jaguar exec said there have been “very positive” reactions to the campaign but that he’s been dismayed by “the level of vile hatred and intolerance” to the viral ad.
Glover added that the rebrand was done in part to attract new customers. “This is not a depiction of how we think our future customers are,” he said. “We don’t want to necessarily leave all of our customers behind. But we do need to attract a new customer base.”
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A senior advertising executive who previously worked with the brand agreed with the criticism, telling the outlet, “You can destroy a brand in 30 seconds that took a lifetime to build. Strong brands reinvent themselves but always remain true to the core of their DNA. For luxury brands in particular, authenticity is key and this fails the test.”
The new ad campaign includes a commercial of people dressed in vibrant, outlandish outfits. The characters can be seen grabbing sledgehammers, painting over the camera lens, and striking poses as the music plays. It also debuts the new logo, which strips away personality and removes the iconic jaguar graphic.
The entire campaign has been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woke-is-dead-jaguar-gets-mocked-for-colorful-car-free-brand-re-launch" target="_blank" rel="noopener">derided and mocked</a> on social media, especially since the commercial does not feature vehicles. 
Tesla founder Elon Musk responded to the ad by writing, “Do you sell cars?”
The official webpage says the brand will now be built upon “exuberant modernism.” A new concept car will debut at Miami Art Week the week of December 2.

Jaguar

Jaguar Exec Whines About ‘Vile Hatred And Intolerance’ Over Woke Rebrand

Jaguar Exec Whines About 'Vile Hatred And Intolerance' Over Woke Rebrand

A rebrand for the luxury car brand <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cars">Jaguar</a> has inspired an avalanche of criticism online.
The newly released ad campaign includes a colorful commercial of people dressed in vibrant, outlandish outfits. The characters can be seen grabbing sledgehammers, painting over the camera lens, and striking poses as the music plays. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Copy nothing. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Jaguar?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Jaguar</a> <a href="https://t.co/BfVhc3l09B">pic.twitter.com/BfVhc3l09B</a>
&mdash; Jaguar (@Jaguar) <a href="https://twitter.com/Jaguar/status/1858800846646948155?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
One of the chief criticisms viewers have is that the ad doesn’t have any cars in it.
Instead, disjointed phrases such as “create exuberant,” “live vivid,” “delete ordinary,” “break molds,” and “copy nothing” appear on the screen.
Tesla founder Elon Musk responded to the ad, writing, “Do you sell cars?”
The official Jaguar X account replied with, “Yes. We&#8217;d love to show you. Join us for a cuppa in Miami on 2nd December? Warmest regards, Jaguar.”
The social media account replied to many comments questioning the ad, saying things like, “The story is unfolding. Stay tuned,” “We’re shifting gears, not our purpose,” and “Consider this the first brushstroke.”
Most commenters assumed that the ad signified Jaguar marketing moving in a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/woke">woke</a> direction. 
“Bye Jaguar, it was nice knowing you, to think, you were once the pinnacle of British motor engineering,” one person <a href="https://x.com/DMBritain/status/1858806449301815598">wrote</a>.
“I’m not sure you all heard, but we aren’t doing that liberal artsy bullsh** anymore. Read the room,” a second person <a href="https://x.com/WarClandestine/status/1858896224385921278">agreed</a>.
Another reply said, “Didn&#8217;t you get the memo? Woke is dead. (And so is Jaguar, by the look of this turd).”
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl%3D1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1731788460608000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2J6FP5xFjcYYu1LwRGUFj3">MATT WALSH&#8217;S &#8216;AM I RACIST?&#8217; NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
The ad is part of a huge brand overhaul, which has been described as going in a new EV-only direction.
“Exuberant use of color is a cornerstone of Jaguar&#8217;s new brand identity, embedded in its values and its association with art,” it says on the <a href="https://media.jaguar.com/news/2024/11/fearless-exuberant-compelling-jaguar-reimagined-0">brand page</a>. “Primary colors, born from the painter&#8217;s palette – yellow, red and blue – are the tonal building blocks, always presented with texture or movement.”
The car brand’s chief creative officer Gerry McGovern is quoted as saying, “Jaguar has its roots in originality. Sir William Lyons, our founder, believed that &#8216;a Jaguar should be a copy of nothing.&#8217; Our vision for Jaguar today is informed by this philosophy. New Jaguar is a brand built around Exuberant Modernism.”
He continued, “It is imaginative, bold and artistic at every touchpoint. It is unique and fearless. We are creating Jaguar for the future, restoring its status as a brand that enriches the lives of our clients and the Jaguar community.”
The page also notes that a new concept car will be revealed at Miami Art Week on the week of December 2.

‘Woke Is Dead’: Jaguar Gets Mocked For Colorful, Car-Free Brand Re-Launch

'Woke Is Dead': Jaguar Gets Mocked For Colorful, Car-Free Brand Re-Launch

World

Tesla CEO <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/elon-musk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elon Musk</a> announced the development of two autonomous vehicles Thursday night in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/california" target="_blank" rel="noopener">California</a>, hailing the vehicles as the future of transportation.
During an event called “We, Robot” in Burbank, Musk said that his company would be rolling out the &#8220;Robotaxi&#8221; or “Cybercab” and the “Robovan,” both of which would be fully autonomous vehicles. The Robotaxi will be a smaller vehicle with no pedals or steering wheel while the Robovan will be designed for public transportation or movement of goods.
“We&#8217;ll move from supervised Full Self-Driving to unsupervised Full Self-Driving, where you can fall asleep and wake up at your destination,&#8221; said Musk, who arrived at the event in a Robovan. &#8220;It&#8217;s going to be a glorious future.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Robotaxi &amp; Robovan <a href="https://t.co/pI2neyJBSL">pic.twitter.com/pI2neyJBSL</a>
— Tesla (@Tesla) <a href="https://twitter.com/Tesla/status/1844583703604772893?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Musk said that he had brought 50 fully autonomous vehicles to the event, which also highlighted his Tesla bot &#8220;Optimus,&#8221; which will be humanoid robots designed to help people with household chores and errands.
When available for the public, the Robotaxi would cost customers around $30,000, according to Musk, who said he hopes to start producing them by 2027, CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/10/elon-musk-hypes-a-30000-tesla-cybercab-robovan-at-robotaxi-event.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Musk said that the Robovan, which is still in development, would be able to hold up to 20 people.
“Now can you imagine going down the street and you see this coming toward you? That’d be sick,” he said. “This can carry up to 20 people and it can also transport goods so you can configure it for goods transport within a city or transport of up to 20 people at a time.”
Musk said he believed that the Robovan would increase safety and solve problems with heavy traffic in densely populated areas.
“The Robovan is what is going to solve for high density,” he said. “So if you want to take a sports team somewhere or you’re looking to really get the cost of travel down to five, 10 cents a mile, then you can use the Robovan.”
Musk said the products were part of his overall vision for innovation and technological advancement.
“One of the things we want to do, and you’ve seen this with the Cybertruck, is we want to change the look of the roads,” he <a href="https://x.com/Tesla/status/1844581432515006665">added</a>. “The future should look like the future.”

The New York Times Hosts Its Annual DealBook Summit

Elon Musk Announces Creation Of Autonomous ‘Cybercab’ And ‘Robovan’ Vehicles

Elon Musk

Robots

Tesla

The fact that phone apps connected to new cars may permit marketers, insurers, and hackers to glean information about drivers has catalyzed concern.
“Modern cars are a privacy nightmare,” the Mozilla Foundation <a href="https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/articles/its-official-cars-are-the-worst-product-category-we-have-ever-reviewed-for-privacy/">stated</a>, adding, “Every car brand we looked at collects more personal data than necessary and uses that information for a reason other than to operate your vehicle and manage their relationship with you.”
“Many can track where you go and when, how fast you drive and how hard you brake, where you park and spend time, even what music or podcasts you listen to,” <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/stop-car-spying-on-you-415998b7?mod=hp_jr_pos2">The Wall Street Journal</a> noted. “Such information can be a gold mine for marketers and insurers—and a target for hackers.”
Car companies also have the capacity to collect a driver’s medical information and genetic information, the Mozilla Foundation concluded. Additionally, the foundation found that 84% of the car brands it researched admitted they could conceivably share the driver’s personal information with service providers, data brokers, and other businesses. 76% of the brands said they could sell the driver’s personal data.
“Car companies are becoming tech companies,” Thorin Klosowski of the Electronic Frontier Foundation said. “Self-policing hasn’t been shown in other tech industries to be a reliable way for companies to operate.”
The Federal Trade Commission<a href="https://www.ftc.gov/policy/advocacy-research/tech-at-ftc/2024/05/cars-consumer-data-unlawful-collection-use"> warned</a> in May, “Car manufacturers—and all businesses—should take note that the FTC will take action to protect consumers against the illegal collection, use, and disclosure of their personal data. Recent enforcement actions illustrate this point: Geolocation data is sensitive and subject to enhanced protections under the FTC Act.”
“Cars are much like mobile phones when it comes to revealing consumers’ persistent, precise location,” the FTC noted. “In a series of seminal cases in recent years, the Commission has established that the collection, use, and disclosure of location can be an unfair practice. In <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/01/ftc-order-prohibits-data-broker-x-mode-social-outlogic-selling-sensitive-location-data">X-Mode</a>, the FTC alleged that the data could be used to track people’s visits to sensitive locations like medical or reproductive health clinics, places of worship, or domestic abuse shelters. Similarly, in <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/01/ftc-order-will-ban-inmarket-selling-precise-consumer-location-data">InMarket, the Commission </a>alleged that the company’s internal use of sensitive data to group consumers into highly sensitive categories for advertising purposes was unlawful.”

SPAIN-TELECOM-MWC-MOBILE-WORLD-CONGRESS

Privacy At Risk: Vehicles’ Phone Apps May Expose Your Personal Info

Apps

Auto Companies

Privacy

Technology

In a shocking backtrack, New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul announced an indefinite delay on the controversial congestion pricing plan for drivers entering Manhattan&#8217;s central business district amid fears that it could affect Democrats&#8217; election chances.
On Wednesday, Hochul said she had directed the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to push back the new toll’s June 30 start date.
&#8220;After careful consideration, I have come to the difficult decision that implementing the planned congestion pricing system risked too many unintended consequences for New Yorkers at this time,&#8221; Hochul <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRVEYLjYBcg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a video announcement.
&#8220;For that reason, I have directed the MTA to indefinitely pause the program,&#8221; she said.
The governor cited the high cost of living, saying &#8220;hardworking New Yorkers are getting hammered on costs.&#8221; She added that while New York&#8217;s pandemic recovery has been faster than expected, it is &#8220;by no means complete.&#8221;
The MTA&#8217;s congestion pricing plan would charge drivers a minimum of $15 to enter Midtown Manhattan south of 60th Street. Drivers would be charged the rush hour price nearly all day every day — between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays and between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekends. Cars would be charged $3.75 during the remaining hours.
The toll is aimed at lessening peak-hour congestion in Manhattan. The around $1 billion raised from the toll is supposed to go towards upgrading subways, commuter railroads, and bus systems.
Hochul is also <a href="https://abc7ny.com/post/congestion-pricing-nyc-kathy-hochul-start-delay/14912968/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> concerned about how the expensive toll might affect local Democrats facing uphill battles in House races in the New York City suburbs. Republicans have already started attacking Democrats over the toll.
Additionally, several lawsuits have already been filed over the congestion pricing plan.
For months, critics have slammed the idea of slapping drivers with new expensive charges.
Representative Nicole Malliotakis, a Republican and vocal critic of the toll, celebrated the expected change.
“It is welcome news that Governor Hochul is considering delaying congestion pricing, scheduled to begin June 30, due to our pressure, the public‘s outcry and concerns it will impact Democrats in November’s election,” Malliotakis <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/06/05/us-news/gov-kathy-hochul-considering-delaying-congestion-pricing-report/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the New York Post.
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“I urge my fellow New Yorkers to continue calling their city, state and federal representatives because it is working. They are feeling the heat and this war-on-cars cash grab must be reversed!” she said.
Another critic of the toll, International Transport Workers president John Samuelsen, who serves on the MTA board, also sounded off on the reversal.
“I told the governor two years ago that if she imposed the congestion toll without increases in transit service it would be a political disaster,” Samuelson <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/06/05/us-news/gov-kathy-hochul-considering-delaying-congestion-pricing-report/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “It’s like taxation without representation. She let [MTA CEO] Janno Lieber lead her around like a stooge.”
The MTA is governed by 23 members, who are nominated by the governor, NYC mayor, and local officials.
New York City Democratic Mayor Eric Adams emphasized that the congestion toll should not be a &#8220;burden on everyday New Yorkers.&#8221;
&#8220;We have to get it right,&#8221; Adams said. &#8220;We have to make sure that it&#8217;s not going to impact our recovery. We got to the point of more jobs in this city than in the history of the city because of the support in the recovery effort.&#8221;

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul

NY Governor Announces Delay On Congestion Pricing Plan In Shocking Backtrack

Democrats

Transportation

New Jersey officials announced Tuesday that the state would be joining a growing list of Democrat-led states slated to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035.
New Jersey becomes at least the <a href="https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/programs/advanced-clean-cars-program/advanced-clean-cars-ii">17th state</a> to follow some or all of California’s Advanced Clean Cars II rule that was passed by a regulatory board in the summer of 2022. Democratic Governor Phil Murphy said the move will help “lower emissions and improve air quality,” claiming that the new rule will also “preserve consumer choice.” 
“The steps we take today to lower emissions will improve air quality and mitigate climate impacts for generations to come, all while increasing access to cleaner car choices,” Murphy <a href="https://nj.gov/governor/news/news/562023/approved/20231121a.shtml">said</a> in a press release. &#8220;Indeed, together with my Administration’s continuing investments in voluntary electric vehicle incentives, charging infrastructure, and the green economy, these new standards will preserve consumer choice and promote affordability for hardworking New Jerseyans across the state.”
The Garden State joins California, Vermont, Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts, Virginia, Rhode Island, Maryland, and Connecticut in committing to implement the complete ban on new gas-powered vehicles, The Hill <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/4323323-new-jersey-gas-ev/">reported</a>. The ban will not affect gas-powered vehicles already owned or the sale of used gas-powered vehicles. 
Murphy’s decision was hailed by fellow Democrats, including Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., who said the ban would help fight the “climate crisis.” 
“This rule will reduce climate pollution while also saving New Jerseyans money at the pump and spurring investments in building clean cars right here at home,” Pallone Jr. added. “Paired with the investments in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, New Jersey’s action will accelerate the process of transforming our transportation sector for the benefit of public health and the environment.”
Not everyone was pleased with the state’s adoption of the gas-powered vehicle ban, however. 
“Automotive retailers, which have already invested billions in electric vehicles … warned that a heavy-handed mandate will not work for the dealers — especially with unsold EVs piling up on lots all around the country,” said Ray Cantor of the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, which has lobbied against the rule. 
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The push for electric vehicles has also been strongly supported by the Biden administration even as manufacturers such as Ford have lost money on their EV production. Ford <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ford-gets-9-2-billion-loan-from-biden-admin-for-ev-battery-factories-biggest-check-since-2009-bailouts">received</a> a $9.2 billion loan from the Biden administration intended to help construct three electric vehicle battery plants in the U.S. The Motor company <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ford-loses-billions-on-electric-cars-embraces-hybrids">said</a> in July that it expected to lose $4.5 billion from its EVs this year.

Phil Murphy

New Jersey Joins Growing List Of States Banning Sale Of New Gas-Powered Cars

electric vehicles

New Jersey

Here’s a truly dumb take, courtesy of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/opinion/kia-hyundai-tiktok.html?searchResultPosition=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The New York Times</a>: “Kia and Hyundai Helped Enable a Crime Wave. They Should Pay for It.”
Wait, you ask: Are Kia and Hyundai hiring gangs of criminals to steal each other&#8217;s vehicles? Not exactly. Apparently, they just didn&#8217;t take enough precautions to prevent people from stealing their vehicles.
I&#8217;m not kidding.
According to the Council on Criminal Justice, the number of vehicle thefts during the first half of 2023 was 33.5% higher on average than during the same period in 2022. As data from Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Chicago, New Orleans, Buffalo and Durham, North Carolina showed, motor vehicle thefts have more than doubled this year relative to last year, according to statistics.
Why are so many cars getting stolen? Apparently it’s the fault of the car. The car wanted it. It needed to be stolen. That&#8217;s the way this works. It&#8217;s not the criminal — the car was just sitting there — and the criminal was not a criminal. It was just someone like you walking down the street like a normal human, never having stolen a car in your life, and there you saw it in the pure summer sunshine, a Kia. And you say to yourself, “Let&#8217;s do this thing. The time has come. That is the easiest car to steal.”
So, drawn like a moth to the flame, you walked over to the Kia and you said, “That might not be a very nice car, I wasn&#8217;t desperate for any of Kia&#8217;s brands, but now that I see it gleaming in the summer sunshine and I know it&#8217;s super easy to steal, I — a lifelong law-abiding citizen — have decided to steal the Kia.”
<h4><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-ben-shapiro-show" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h4>
This is the stupidest thing I&#8217;ve ever heard. Try this: There was a knife. It was sitting there in plain sight, and you were just drawn to it. You couldn&#8217;t stop yourself, so you stabbed your friend in the eyeball. You should probably sue the knife manufacturer.
Apparently, Hyundai and Kia did not equip some of their cars with electronic immobilizer devices that prevent cars from starting unless they detect a radio I.D. code associated with the car&#8217;s rightful key. A couple of years ago, videos showing how to hotwire the vulnerable cars began to pop-up online.
Hundreds of the stolen cars have been involved in numerous deadly crashes, armed robbery sprees, and other crimes around the country.
But the thieves are not to blame for this. It was the car’s fault. I simply can&#8217;t believe they programmed these cars to perform armed robbery. Did you know that if you create a product that when it&#8217;s stolen, it&#8217;s your fault? 
This is how dumb we&#8217;ve become. How about some basic level of personal responsibility? Ah, but that might require more police, more active policing, more throwing criminals in jail and leaving them in jail.
This is truly basic stuff, but not to those morons at The New York Times.
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2 Ben Shapiro Editorial Series 04 copy

Thieves Steal Cars, Then Commit Armed Robberies, Yet It’s The Car’s Fault?

Ben Shapiro

Car Theft

Chicago

Crime

Hyundai

Philadelphia

Readers Pass

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ford-motor-co" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ford Motor Company</a> could announce new layoffs as soon as next week &#8212; its third round of layoffs within the last year.
Sources informed <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ford-prepares-new-round-of-layoffs-for-u-s-salaried-workers-a533a7a4?mod=hp_lead_pos5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Wall Street Journal</a> that this round of layoffs will primarily affect U.S. salaried workers in the gas, electric vehicle, and software divisions of the company.
The reported layoffs come after the company <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/22/ford-to-cut-3000-jobs-primarily-in-north-america.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cut 3,000 American jobs</a> last August and announced earlier this year that it would <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ford-to-cut-3-800-jobs-in-europe-in-ev-shift-e1f8f567?mod=article_inline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reduce its European workforce</a> by 3,800.
The company has struggled to curb its spending as it transitions to electric vehicles and reported a $2 billion net loss last year, all while having committed to spending $50 billion through 2026 in developing its EV unit.
The company <a href="https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2022/03/02/ford-accelerating-transformation.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">previously reported</a> that it hopes to ramp up annual EV production to two million by 2026 and expects EVs to represent half of its global volume by 2030.
CEO Jim Farley has acknowledged the company will need to spend “billions” to procure materials that would enable an increase in EV production, and the company has <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ford-ceo-jim-farley-grapples-with-problems-from-the-auto-makers-past-b098271c?mod=article_inline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">received criticism</a> from previous CEOs about its operational inefficiencies.
Farley acknowledged that the company has struggled operationally on a February earnings call.
“The strength of our products and revenue has masked this dysfunctionality for a long time. It’s not an excuse, but it’s our reality,” he said.
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The report followed an earlier <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/autos/ford/2023/06/22/doe-announces-9-2-billion-loan-plan-for-ford-sk-joint-venturefeds-announce-9-2-billion-loan-for-ford/70345917007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announcement</a> from the U.S. Department of Energy that it would loan $9.2 billion to Ford and South Korean battery maker SK &#8212; a loan that covers most of the $11.4 billion the companies had jointly pledged to spend on the venture.
The loan is the most significant financial support the federal government has given an automobile company since the Great Financial Crisis and is the biggest loan the Department of Energy has ever made.
Ford was out-earned by its rival General Motors in 2022, despite GM’s lower revenue and smaller workforce, and Ford’s annual costs are still $7 to $8 billion above where they should be relative to rivals, according to the Journal, though Ford did <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/06/20/ford-ceo-didnt-hesitate-on-the-tesla-deal-its-good-for-customers.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report above-expected revenue</a> in its most recent quarterly earnings report.
The Journal also reported that the company would work to separate its gas-engine business from its EV and software sectors. Its EV sector is predicted to lose $3 billion in operating profit this year.
A Ford spokesperson said in a statement that the layoffs are in line with the company’s future business plans.
“As we have said, part of the ongoing management of our business includes aligning our global staffing to meet future business plans, as well as staying cost competitive as our industry evolves,” he said.

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