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Small Protest Outside Tesla Plant Calls For Arrest of Elon Musk (ktvu.com) 137

Posted by EditorDavid from the bashing-billionaires dept.
A small group of protesters "rallied outside Tesla's Fremont manufacturing plant Saturday, calling for CEO Elon Musk to be arrested and jailed," reports a local Bay Area news site: Carlos Gabriel is an employee, and has refused to return to work. "I'm worried for my health," said Gabriel. Gabriel is worried about the spread of COVID-19 and the difficulty of social distancing in the workplace. "I'm very disappointed in the leadership. I'm very disappointed in Elon Musk putting profits over the health of his workers," said Gabriel.

Activist groups United Public Workers for Action and Workers Solidarity Action Network organized the rally outside the plant. "What is going on here today is a travesty," said Steve Zeltzer with Public Workers for Action Advocacy. They accuse Musk of putting workers in harms way by sending them back to work during the pandemic. Zeltzer said, "Elon Musk who is a billionaire has said he is above the law...."

"I think there's obviously a lot of tension between employees and the management there," said Michael Coates, editor of Clean Fleet Report.
One local TV news crew has footage of the small protest. They also quote Tesla as saying they're taking steps to keep workers safe, including providing hand sanitizer, cleaning, and enforcing social distancing.
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Small Protest Outside Tesla Plant Calls For Arrest of Elon Musk More

Small Protest Outside Tesla Plant Calls For Arrest of Elon Musk

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  • So, unions? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by NateFromMich ( 6359610 ) on Sunday May 17, 2020 @10:07PM (#60072208)
    This just looks like some union organizers are taking the opportunity to complain about something.
    They mention a small protest. I have to wonder how many of the Tesla workers really want to continue sitting it out at home.
    • Not many. Most of the ones who aren't at work are busy crowding the beaches.

      • Re: So, unions? (Score:5, Insightful)

        by saloomy ( 2817221 ) on Monday May 18, 2020 @02:38AM (#60072762)
        Tesla forced no one to return to work. "Gabriel" should stay home if he is concerned for his health, which is exactly what management told him to do.

        • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

          by AleRunner ( 4556245 )
          Most of us aren't that concerned for our own health; the worry is infected workers infecting our parents, grandparents and less healthy friends. It doesn't really do any good for us to stay home. The risky people are the ones who go out needlessly and then walk around without masks close to other people. That really should be a self defence issue in the USA.

          • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

            by AleRunner ( 4556245 )

            So, -1 troll mod but no comment to justify it. ust because you disagree doesn't justify modding something "troll". That's a clear sign that you have lost the argument. I think we can see why - nobody wants answer this because they know it's true. Probably they are normally a gun nut, but feel they should be "free" to stand where they want and do what they want and nobody should interfere. They understand clearly that they are putting others lives at risk and they don't like the implication of their stance.

    • Who is paying Slashdot for this? (Score:4, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 17, 2020 @10:25PM (#60072248)
      Otherwise unnoticed handful of stoners whines in front of building. Let's turn this into a HEADLINE!

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Rei ( 128717 )

        But there's - from a the look at the footage - five to ten of them! Clearly this is international news.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Just lazy fucks who want a handout for doing nothing. If they don't like where they work, then they can find other jobs or start their own businesses.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by fermion ( 181285 )
      Elon Musk has been judges of multiple violations. He has a record. He had to pay 20 million in security fraud. He has been convicted in court of violating national labor laws. Now he is violated due process by ignoring local ordinances. Just imagine how mad you would be if he moved in next door and started playing loud music, saying that he did not have to obey local sound ordinances because he had enough money to tie you up in court forever People can wait for their Tesla’s. People can file for unemp

      • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

        by Anonymous Coward

        When the law becomes so dishonest that it outlaws jobs, only the outlaws will be able to put honest food on the table.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by dcw3 ( 649211 )

        Yeah, I'm no Musk fan, in fact I think he's an ass, but your statement isn't as heinous as you make it out. His securitys fraud was over tweets that the SEC said could affect the stock price, which is a no-no, and he was fined for it.../yawn. Lots of companies have done the same, and the same with labor laws...virtually every F-500 company has been in trouble for that at some point...they're not simple to follow.

        If they're allowing people to stay home then what's the gripe? Other people want to, and need

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by e3m4n ( 947977 )

      ever been at an auto plant? About 23 years ago I did a brief stent working IT for Toyota in a factory. Every goddamn workstation was more than 6 feet apart. The fucking cars are more than 6ft long people! Each station was closer to 20 feet apart. Barthroom breaks, lunch, and a smoke break would be the only times you regularly interact with people inside of 10feet. Occasionally youll see your manager. Occasionally IT had to fix your touch screen or some other thing. But for the most part you cant even shoot

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Sunday May 17, 2020 @10:11PM (#60072226)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by ranton ( 36917 )

      I would have thought if that few people showed up for a protest they would all decide to cancel it so they don't show Tesla (and the local government) how little support there is for their cause.

    • They don't have to be sane about it... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Firethorn ( 177587 ) on Sunday May 17, 2020 @10:42PM (#60072280) Homepage Journal

      I remember reading about people who complain to be sensitive to Wifi signals. Complete with headaches and all that. One of the biggest "sufferers", as soon as she was leaving, stuffed a bluetooth earpiece in and proceeded to talk on her cellphone how she "showed them her suffering".

      That and, well, the number of people not bothering to wear their masks properly in the stores... Hint people, it doesn't work on your chin, on your forehead, or not covering your nose. I'll actually give people NOT wearing a mask, or having a poorly fitting improvised one, more leeway. But when you have a nice N95 mask, the thing is actually MORE comfortable worn properly.

      Basically, people aren't logical about the risks. That's part of why when I hear about the occasional protestor complaining that their work "not taking covid-19 seriously" or such, I discount them, as long as they're fairly rare, and aren't voicing specific complaints.

      Because if you get a half dozen complaining about amazon, for example, that's less than 1%. I'm sorry, but it is entirely possible that they're the types to never be satisfied, no matter how much work Amazon does, at least until Amazon has completely shut down - and I'm going to say that Amazon is actually pretty essential in all this, at least for keeping people cooped up at home safe and not rioting.

      Kind of like Anti-Vaxxors and how they make it so that no vaccine can be "safe enough", because, yeah, you can always do one more test.

      • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

        by Lost Race ( 681080 )

        Anti-Vaxxors

        Fuck the Vax. VMS made my son autistic.

      • I remember reading about people who complain to be sensitive to Wifi signals. Complete with headaches and all that. One of the biggest "sufferers", as soon as she was leaving, stuffed a bluetooth earpiece in and proceeded to talk on her cellphone how she "showed them her suffering".

        This is supposed to be a site for geeks. Mobile phone signals are not WiFi signals. Bluetooth signals are not WiFi signals. Actually, I would recommend putting the phone in your pocket and using a Bluetooth headset to anyone afraid of any radiation.

        It is entirely reasonable to believe that someone who suffers from WiFi would _not_ suffer from a mobile phone signal, and definitely not from Bluetooth.

        • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

          by Gornkleschnitzer ( 4539195 )
          Except that the WiFi sufferers also react to a router with the lights on but no functioning radio. Meanwhile, devices that are transmitting but have the lights disabled so as to appear off have no effect on them.

          To my knowledge, no double-blind test has ever confirmed that WiFi sensitivity is real.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by dcw3 ( 649211 )

          802.11b is at 2.4GHz
          Bluetooth is at 2.45 GHz

          "This is supposed to be a site for geeks."

          So, why are you here?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by e3m4n ( 947977 )

        the mask thing is rediculous. People still think it keeps them from inhaling the virus. the virus penetrates through mucous membranes like the eyes, nose, mouth, and other bodily openings. the only thing that mask is supposed to do is catch the virus as it is leaving your body. That exit point is the back of your throat, where your mouth and sinus cavity connect. When you are talking, you are shedding the virus. When you laugh, you shed the virus. When you breathe, you shed the virus.

        A couple times I went t

    • Makes you wonder why this is even news.

      Or tech news.

    • WOW! 5 Whole people!

      What. Stop lying you Elon shill! Stop fake newsing the entire thing. I count at least 9 people, maybe 10.

  • It's about slowing the spread so we don't overwhelm our healthcare system. Screaming out your window every night doesn't help. Putting a sign on your lawn doesn't help. Gathering in protest is the opposite of helping. Stay home when you can. Be quiet so you're not disturbing your neighbors who may be sick and need rest. Leave your fireplace unused since this is a respiratory disease.

    Don't be a virtue signalling ass hole. It's not about you.

    • Re: (Score:1, Interesting)

      by blindseer ( 891256 )

      This is what has been forgotten:

      It's about slowing the spread so we don't overwhelm our healthcare system.

      We are seeing people forget the goal of the "safer at home" orders. The goal was to SLOW the spread, not stop it. For people below something like 10 years of age the chances of getting the disease is small, as are the chances of showing symptoms or spreading it to others. What is certainly a very small risk is dying from it. That's not saying young children have not died from the Chinese flu, only that those that have died did so because they had some underlying condition

    • And if you're an asshole, do not fart since this is a respiratory disease.

  • Then don't work there! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by blindseer ( 891256 ) <blindseer@noSPAm.earthlink.net> on Sunday May 17, 2020 @10:50PM (#60072294)

    I don't do the Twitter and so I only hear about Mr. Musk's tweets when they are mentioned on one of the podcasts I listen to. From what I gathered Mr. Musk showed real data on how California has successfully "flattened the curve" and it is well beyond time to start to reopen businesses. People need to work to get paid. People will some day need new cars. If filling stations, automobile repair shops, and auto parts stores are all considered "essential services" then so are the places that make new cars.

    Here's another problem for Tesla, automobile makers in other states have been allowed to open up and if Tesla can't make cars to fulfill orders then the ability of Tesla to stay in business is at risk. People in California need jobs and Tesla is offering them. If there is an individual with a concern on their safety in working there then don't work there. As far as I can tell there is nobody at Tesla forcing people to show up for work. Everyone working there is doing so willingly.

    One podcast I've been listening to is Scott Adams and he was talking about how bicycle shops have had everything in stock sold out. People are desperate for transportation in any form. If you want a new bicycle in California then you will have to get on a waiting list that is months long. It would not be too much of a stretch to think that people wanting cars has also increased since public transportation is closed and/or allowed occupancy of trains and buses is limited.

    These "safer at home" orders can only go on for so long. At some point people will have to be allowed to go back to work. What we are seeing is a rise in demand for personal transportation such as cars, because public transportation is one means for the spread of disease and not everyone can work from home. Information workers can often make plans to work from home but if your job is to build cars then you have to go to the factory.

    Another podcaster I listened to recently was Bill Whittle and he was talking about how Elon Musk is being praised for opening Tesla factories. People want to return to work. People are tired of the nonsensical social distance orders coming from Californian politicians. Keeping people from working in a factory is just one level of nonsense. Other nonsense orders are the closing of beaches and parks. Californian politicians will have to start to open up the state or the people will open it up in defiance of their orders. Tesla is just one example of this.

    A government can only govern with the consent of the governed. People understand the need of the government to act when there is a threat of an epidemic. People also understand that it's just nonsense to wear a mask when walking on the beach. If the law does not make sense then people will not obey.

    This "protest" is just stupid. If you think working at Tesla puts your health at risk then don't work there.

    • They probably don't.

    • From what I gathered Mr. Musk showed real data on how California has successfully "flattened the curve"

      Please don't conflate multiple issues. Flattening the curve was not the end goal, it's the middle of the goal. The end goal is for the curve to taper and drop. Musk has other real data to show. Like the nearly 40 page playbook on how they will handle and manage worker safety and corona virus at their plant, something they have put more thought into than most businesses which have already opened up.

      and it is well beyond time to start to reopen businesses.

      To this part of your comment, that would be the dumbest thing to do. The end result opening the economy with an

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by dcw3 ( 649211 )

        You're likely safer working in an auto factory than at a grocery store. Positions are rarely near other workers, and you don't have random people walking by. Your belief that this is wrong flies in the face of the reality that's been going on at every grocery store, Lowe's and Home Depot since this started. Those places have been packed for the last two months and yet both the case numbers and fatality numbers have been decreasing for several weeks. Yes, I'm all for maintaining safe distance, using mask

    • I don't do the Twitter and so I only hear about Mr. Musk's tweets when they are mentioned on one of the podcasts I listen to. From what I gathered Mr. Musk showed real data on how California has successfully "flattened the curve" and it is well beyond time to start to reopen businesses.

      Actually, California's curve still seems to be on the rise [worldometers.info].

      But California is a very large state, that's why different parts of the state have different policies.

      People need to work to get paid. People will some day need new cars. If filling stations, automobile repair shops, and auto parts stores are all considered "essential services" then so are the places that make new cars.

      They're need news cars some day, but today isn't that day.

      No one is calling for car plants to be shut down permanently, just until the outbreak is over.

      Here's another problem for Tesla, automobile makers in other states have been allowed to open up and if Tesla can't make cars to fulfill orders then the ability of Tesla to stay in business is at risk.

      That is unfortunate and unfair to Tesla, but life is often unfair, and in a pandemic we're force to choose the lesser of two unfair options.

      People in California need jobs and Tesla is offering them. If there is an individual with a concern on their safety in working there then don't work there. As far as I can tell there is nobody at Tesla forcing people to show up for work. Everyone working there is doing so willingly.

      There's a couple things to unpack here.

      First, Musk has give

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by dcw3 ( 649211 )

        "Actually, California's curve still seems to be on the rise [worldometers.info]."

        I looked at both the case numbers and fatality charts and the moving average appears flat for the last five weeks. Also, please realize even the CDC has now admitted that there's up to a three week delay in reporting. Note that daily numbers are unimportant...you need to look at the trend. You'll notice when looking at these charts that there's a weekly cycle.

        • "Actually, California's curve still seems to be on the rise [worldometers.info]."

          I looked at both the case numbers and fatality charts and the moving average appears flat for the last five weeks.

          There's enough noise that I'm not sure 5 weeks is a big enough window. Even so I'd say it's still a slight incline over the last 5 weeks, certainly not a decline (though deaths do look more flat, but also more noisy).

          Now, there's certainly a second part where you need to consider how big a rate you're willing to accept.

          California is almost certainly going to see a jump in cases now that they're loosening restrictions, but they've done quite well for their size. It might be that a doubling or even tripling i

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by dcw3 ( 649211 )

            It's certainly possible, though I hope for all of us that it's not going to happen. If it is to occur, we should see it first in the locations that opened earliest. I believe Georgia was getting heat from even Trump for opening up before recommended. Let's keep an eye on it.

            • It's certainly possible, though I hope for all of us that it's not going to happen. If it is to occur, we should see it first in the locations that opened earliest.

              I'd expect so but there's also a lot of randomness factored in, super-spreaders, local culture, population density, weather, etc, etc.

              The estimated R0 of 2-3 without precautions is actually somewhat encouraging. It's quite plausible we could restart a lot of normal activity with some precautions and have an R0 I believe Georgia was getting heat from even Trump for opening up before recommended. Let's keep an eye on it.

              Only after Trump initially supported it [ctvnews.ca]. At best, it's another one of those places where

  • The Imperial Colleges Covid-19 model that was used to publish their initial predictions on the virus and helped advise governments was "totally unreliable" and a “buggy mess” . John Carmack said the code looked “like they were machine translated from Fortran”, who helped clean up the code before it was published. The Telegraph [telegraph.co.uk] none paywalled [msn.com]

    A model based on a spanish flu like virus with RACE conditions was used to predict and advise governments on COVID-19 . Took 6 weeks to publish the source code because it was a mess.

    The code is publish here now https://github.com/ImperialCol... [github.com]
    Yes I submitted this story here https://slashdot.org/submissio... [slashdot.org] but somehow this story is more important.
    • What exactly are you saying? That the UK government locked down more than they should have because of a faulty model? Have you seen the UK numbers?

      Most countries didn't lock down until their hospitals were at risk of being overwhelmed. So I don't see why you think a different model would have made a difference.
      • The model used to generate the predictions was something that a crappy software house would have created. Not a respectable academic. It's not just flawed, it's a piece of crap that creates irreproducible results. What do we say about science that fails to make reproducible predictions?
        • It's kind of irrelevant now though, right? That's in the past.

        • What is repeatable, is you lying.

          • How this flamebait account doesn't get modded down is a mystery to me. This isn't an argument, it's an insult. Point to the sentence that was a lie.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by pjt33 ( 739471 )

          Have you ever worked with code produced by academics? It is rare for it not to be a mess.

          In one project I wrote the frontend for a forensic science application, and when it came to integrating with the backend and testing I found that given the same inputs its outputs varied randomly by an order of magnitude.

          In another project I used a library which had been supplied by a government-sponsored academia-industry collaboration, and I ended up having to decompile it, fix a major bug which invalidated all of the

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by jeremyp ( 130771 )

          The model and the code used to implement it are not the same thing. The code is exactly the kind of mess I would expect to be produced by academics without any software engineering experience. The model, on the other hand, is fine... ... oh wait, the model is not fine.

          https://necsi.edu/review-of-fe... [necsi.edu]

        • The model used to generate the predictions was something that a crappy software house would have created. Not a respectable academic. It's not just flawed, it's a piece of crap that creates irreproducible results. What do we say about science that fails to make reproducible predictions?

          If you know a bit about numerical mathematics, you know that _reproducible_ results don't mean correct or reliable results. If you run through one compiler using FMA and one not using FMA, or one compiler calculating ax + by in a different order from another, then you will get different results. And that is perfectly fine unless you are anal retentive.

    • Here is a link to the Imperial College report from 17 March that was so influential: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/med... [imperial.ac.uk]

      And a summary article on it:
      http://www.imperial.ac.uk/news... [imperial.ac.uk]

      In particular this graph:
      http://www.imperial.ac.uk/Imag... [imperial.ac.uk]

      It shows under the most stringent restrictions - including school and university closures, which is in fact what was done - critical care utilization would peak in early May at about 65% of surge capacity.

      Is this wrong? I can't find the info on critical care utili

      • If anything, the Imperial College model was too optimistic. It predicted a peak at 65% of the IC capacity if the restrictions were introduced around 15 April (the shaded area in the graph), whereas they were actually enacted around 23 March, which is about 6 exponential doublings earlier.

        The model also showed what will happen if all measures are lifted before there is herd immunity. After two weeks, IC cases start to grow exponentially again.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by bongey ( 974911 )
        Shows everything peaking at the END of May which IS INCORRECT. WRONG end of story. The problem is the code was buggy for the graph you are looking at you could run it multiple times and get a completely different graph. Does that make sense now? . Likely why some states are trying to keep closed until the end of May.

    • The Imperial Colleges Covid-19 model that was used to publish their initial predictions on the virus and helped advise governments was "totally unreliable" and a âoebuggy messâ . John Carmack said the code looked âoelike they were machine translated from Fortranâ, who helped clean up the code before it was published. The Telegraph none paywalled

      What's wrong with FORTRAN code machine translated to C? Nothing.

      Lots of scientific code looks horrible to software developers. That doesn't mean it doesn't give correct results. Or that it doesn't give the results it is supposed to give.

  • Follow the Money (Score:3, Insightful)

    by blogagog ( 1223986 ) on Sunday May 17, 2020 @10:56PM (#60072310)
    They don't want to go back to work because the way the latest stimulus was written, they get paid more to be unemployed than to work for the next four months.

  • But not scared enough to go to work and huddle together.

    Got it.

    Stay classy commiefornia.

  • On your way to work you can die in a car accident, terrorist attack, you might get the flu or other disease, you can get struck by lightening, you could get robbed, many, many risks. COVID-19 just another risk. Those people who say they have the right to stay home but want to get paid, they want food, clothes, soap, and other products - who do they think produces all those things? Or do they believe the government should force people who make product for them to go to work, but not them?

    The sad truth is the practically everyone will be exposed to SARS-COV-2 in the next couple of years. There is no way around it. Even if we have days of no new cases, once we re-open things, new cases will show up - all it takes is one person (probably completely asymptomatic), like in South Korea where they thought they were good after days of no new cases. The whole goal here is to flatten the curve to keep the health care system from being overwhelmed. So yes, we should take pre-cautions, but there absolutely no way to guarantee that you will not get COVID-19, not even if you're Elon. The main thing individuals can do for themselves to increase their chance of survival is to get or stay healthy, for when you get it, so it doesn't kill you. Hopefully this prolonged sterilized life won't weaken people's immune systems too, so they end up dying of a common cold before they even get exposed to SARS-COV-2, because their immune system hasn't fought anything in months.

    • Re:Everyone risks their life when they go to work (Score:4, Insightful)

      by rockout ( 1039072 ) on Monday May 18, 2020 @12:32AM (#60072526)
      So tired of this car accident/terrorist attack argument.

      CAR ACCIDENTS AND TERRORIST ATTACKS do not spread from person to person.

      • CAR ACCIDENTS AND TERRORIST ATTACKS do not spread from person to person.

        Maybe: https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/... [files.ethz.ch]

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Nexion ( 1064 )

        "So tired of this car accident/terrorist attack argument. CAR ACCIDENTS AND TERRORIST ATTACKS do not spread from person to person."

        So stay at home if you are this worried about getting infected. Do what is right for you. No one is forcing you to do anything. You can live forever in your home and never leave the door if you like. Go for it, we wont stop you.

        Just don't try to force everyone else to do the same. Some of the other people in this world want to get on with their lives. It is their risk, let them

    • From a person who has a close family member just going into cancer treatment, FUCK YOU. This person is relying on EVERYONE to protect them. That's how a society is supposed to work.

    • The sad truth is the practically everyone will be exposed to SARS-COV-2 in the next couple of years. There is no way around it.

      Sigh. Yes, there is.

      Look, it's not that complicated, though a little background is needed. What matters is the replication rate, R, the average number of people infected by each person who has the infection. There is a base rate, R0, which is the replication rat when life is "normal", which depends partly on the characteristics of the virus and partly on how people interact. If R is above 1, the number of cases is growing (exponentially). If R is below 1, the number of cases is declining.

      There are lo

  • Somebody figured they could blackmail Tesla into forking over a few bucks to keep the bad press at bay.

    Nice company you got there. It'd be a shame if anything happened to it.

  • About moving out of California?

    That might be too expensive, but any new plants he makes could be in other parts of the counrty.

  • Sorry, I couldn't resist.

    • Actually where is Felon Musk? Our famous troll hasn't posted here on Slashdot for a while. I guess his shorts options vested and he can't afford to pay for internet anymore.

  • They willing to go to work to protest but not go to work to work; the intent is super obvious

  • He broke the law (Score:3)

    by fluffernutter ( 1411889 ) on Monday May 18, 2020 @09:13AM (#60073522)
    Why would they need to protest? He broke the law. Disgusting how the wealthy get away with things in your society.

    • Your society? How would they handle him in your society?
      Yes, so your argument is he broke the law.
      What next? Jail him? they're already letting people IN jail OUT because of Corona worries. As a result, prisoners in a jail in Castaic, CA recently got caught on camera trying to infect each other because they thought if they got it they'd let them go.
      Fine him? He pays the fine, tells California to suck it, and moves his factories to another state. Another state benefiting from jobs and employment in the post C

      • I don't care what they do, let it just be something that hurts him enough so that he understands. Isn't that the point of justice?

  • Carlos Gabriel is an employee, and has refused to return to work. "I'm worried for my health," said Gabriel.

    Doesn't that solve your problem of trying to keep safe? If you think your job is not safe, then don't go. I'm a little baffled as to the point of your protest.

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