2022's Version of "Let them Eat Cake" - "Let them Drive Teslas"
Times change, the political class of ruling elites does not.
If you paid attention in your high school history class, you might recall learning about the French Revolution. More specifically, you might recall the French monarchy playing a fundamental role in alienating citizens to the point where the possibility of revolution was inevitable. How did it get to that point? Well, primarily, through the extreme level of neglect towards the populace perfectly demonstrated through the famous words and actions of Marie Antoinette.
During the latter half of the 18th century, France was enduring a tumultuous period of chaos and conflict. Radical revolutionaries grew in power and numbers, due to the apparently callous, unconcerned monarchs sitting atop the throne. At some point in 1789, Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, upon learning that the French population was experiencing a bread shortage, retorted with “Let them eat cake!” The phrase served as a war cry for the disgruntled citizens, who reasonably felt entirely unheard during a time of immense suffering. Clearly, the French monarchy was not living in the same reality as its citizens. The actual french quote attributed to Antoinette was “Qu’ils tangent de la brioche,” or “let them eat brioche,” which is a buttery, sweet french breakfast bread that’s obviously much more expensive than a normal loaf of bread. This irreparable disconnect between the ruling class of France and French citizens was never mended; both Antoinette and her husband, King Louis XVI, were executed by guillotine shortly after.
Can it be said that the Queen’s comments were the spark that led to revolution? Not exactly. Clearly, French citizens felt extremely disenfranchised and unrepresented by the French monarchy. During times of struggle, common people tend to unite under a shared experience of suffering. As they felt the immense pain of hunger, they’d look atop the palace walls to see the royal family safe, fed, and content. This image paints a far-too-fitting analogy of how such a setting could lead the public to feel as if the monarchs viewed themselves as being “above” the commoners. Above their concerns. Above their hunger. Above their suffering.
For what it’s worth, historians debate on whether the Queen actually spoke the infamous quote. Many argue the quote should actually be attributed to Marie-Thérèse, a Spanish princess who married King Louis XIV in 1660.
Regardless of the story’s veracity, the French people, in a time of great suffering, looked to the ruling elites for some offering of hope and received nothing but the jeers and jests of a class experiencing an entirely different reality.
Which brings us to 2022. A strange time, as you’ve undoubtedly heard in recent years. But we won’t focus on the large swath of problems plaguing our nation. We’re just going to focus on the eerie similarities between the French monarchy during the beginning of the French Revolution and many of our elected leaders and talking-heads during the past year.
As I’m sure you’re well aware, gas prices are exceedingly high. The national average is currently sitting at $4.96. This can be attributed to a number of factors, both foreign and domestic. Namely, the decision to shut down the Keystone Pipeline, which was a tremendous source of domestic oil for the U.S. Now we won’t waste time pointing fingers at those who made these decisions. Instead, we’ll examine how the members of today’s political elite class have responded to the concerns and suffering of American citizens.
Life is tough for everyone - regardless of your financial means. As the old saying goes, “money can’t buy happiness.” It’s true that having inordinate sums of money doesn’t necessarily make you happy. However, in today’s state of late-stage capitalism, being wealthy surely eases the burden you may experience at any given time. The U.S. economy has been reeling in recent years and rather than displaying any shred of concern for the peoples’ suffering, our elites routinely offer nothing other than jeers and jests. Remind you of anyone yet?
As gas prices continue to skyrocket, virtually untethered from any defensive tactics deployed by the U.S. government, tensions and negative sentiment have justifiably risen. In hopes to draw attention to the growing rift between the commoners and our ruling elites, many questions have been posed to various elected officials, politicians, and late-night talkshow hosts alike. Their answers, in summary, pose as much hope as Antoinette’s quote did for the French populace in 1789.
In early 2022, the American people experienced a rapid rise in gas prices, largely spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. For many, the move was extremely uncivilized and unwarranted, especially because of the global cascade triggered by the invasion. However, fortunately for those suffering, Stephen Colbert had something to say. The CBS “Late Show” host, during a monologue, addressed the impact Russia’s invasion had on gas prices.
“Today, the average price in America hit an all-time record high of over $4 per gallon. Okay, that stings, but a clear conscience is worth a buck or two.”
Colbert, whose contract with CBS pays him an annual salary of $15 million annually, went on to deal the crushing blow.
“I’m willing to pay. I’m willing to pay $4 a gallon. Hell, I’ll pay $15 a gallon because I drive a Tesla.”
And there it is. A statement, made in jest, highlighting the elites’ level of disconnect with concerns and tribulations of the American populace. The joke, here, is that Colbert feigns patriotism and coming together in a time of hardship, because he exists in an entirely different reality than we do. As a multi-millionaire, he is seemingly unconcerned with the rising cost of gas prices. Further, he’s not concerned with gas prices in the slightest bit - he drives a Tesla. Rather than share the public’s concerns in a time of conflict and rising tensions, Colbert decides to side with “the haves” rather than “the have-nots.” Who could blame him? If only we were all able to drive Teslas, then we wouldn’t be suffering at all!
The startling showings of tone-deafness didn’t stop there, though. In fact, the same sentiment seemingly infiltrated the American ruling class, getting all the way up to the level of elected representatives and cabinet members.
Around the time Colbert climbed atop his ivory tower to speak down to the masses, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg decided to take a similar approach.
While on MSNBC’s “Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart,” Buttigieg attempted to gracefully address many Americans’ fears and concerns. As the Transportation Secretary, Buttigieg seems to be just the man for the job of extinguishing the populace’s suffering regarding gas prices, a fundamental aspect of modern “transportation.” Unfortunately for us, the Transportation Secretary chose to climb atop his ivory tower to offer “solutions” for those in suffering. His solution? More Americans should purchase electric vehicles so that they “never have to worry about gas prices again.”
“The people who stand to benefit most from owning an electric vehicle are often rural residents who have the most distances to drive, who burn the most gas, and underserved urban residents in areas where there are higher has prices and lower income,” Buttigieg said.
“They would gain the most by having that vehicle. These are the very residents who have to always been connected to electric vehicles that are viewed as kind of a luxury item,” he added.
Ah. Electric vehicles. Why haven’t we thought of that?! Finally, an answer to our suffering! It’s clear as day: if we all had electric vehicles, we wouldn’t be remotely worried about gas prices.
Unfortunately for Mayor Pete, as well as the American public, the average price of a new electric vehicle is roughly $56,000. As more citizens fall into financial hardship, due to a wide array of factors, such a sticker price becomes entirely unattainable. As the Transportation Secretary, Buttigieg knows this fact all too well. Rather than conduct any critical thinking or work towards a truly feasible solution for Americans in suffering, Buttigieg jeered and jested in our faces. How can “rural” or “underserved urban” residents ever be expected to just up and buy brand new electric vehicles? The only answer lies in the source of the problem: our political class of ruling elites operates in an entirely different reality than the one in which we reside, one where a problem only arises when you can’t afford the “readily available” solution.
The metaphorical “pissing on you and telling you it’s rain” didn’t stop there, however.
Earlier this month, during a Senate Finance Committee hearing, Senator Debbie Stabenow took the podium to add her thoughts on the current state of American suffering. When discussing the issue of rising gas prices, Stabenow attempted to ease the public’s concern by stating the following:
“I just have to say just on the issue of that at gas prices; after waiting for a long time to have enough chips in this country to finally get my electric vehicle, I got it and drove it from Michigan to here this last weekend and went by every single gas station. It didn’t matter how high it was.”
The Senator then added, “So I’m looking forward to the opportunity for us to move to vehicles that aren’t going to be dependent on the whims of the oil companies and the international markets.”
Consider the following numbers. As previously stated, the average cost of a new electric vehicle is roughly $56,000. The median household income in Michigan is $59,234. This cannot be interpreted as a good-faith solution offered to Americans. Rather, it’s the out-of-touch, disconnected-from-reality jests of our political ruling class. Regular Americans, as shown through the figures above, cannot feasibly be expected to purchase electric vehicles en masse. The solution of buying electric vehicles to avoid the burden imposed by high gas prices resonates with the American people as well as the Queen’s solution of eating cake resonated with the French people in 1789. What’s worse is that, in Stabenow’s remarks, she highlights the fact that she is unconcerned with gas prices. “It didn’t matter how high it was.” Bingo. Those atop our modern version of ivory towers do not concern themselves with the daily struggle experienced by regular Americans.
What do the statements of Buttigieg, Colbert, and Stabenow have in common? Well, aside from coming off as incredibly out-of-touch with regular Americans, these statements show an extreme lack of concern. They do not care about the problems we face, because they do not face these problems. Oh, the cost of renting a two-bedroom home has increased 26.8% in the past year? You should just buy a home instead! The cost of gas has skyrocketed over the past year, largely a direct result of the policies we’ve put in place? Why don’t you just buy a Tesla?
Regardless of political affiliation or beliefs you hold true, the immense degree of callousness we’re seeing from our elected leaders regarding the suffering of the American people is shocking. A government for the people, by the people cannot be expected to carelessly cast aside the innumerable pleads for help lobbed at those in charge. Who can one turn to for relief, when the only solutions offered are unattainable for Americans who don’t wield political power or hold celebrity status?
The parallels between the statements made by our political elites and those made by the French Queen are alarmingly numerous. The Queen, virtually unaware of the peoples’ current state of suffering, and lack of feasible measures to bring an end to their suffering, offered the obvious solution in her mind. The only problem with that was the crushing reality of the French populace; the ruling class of royalty would never share their experience of suffering, and could never be expected to be even remotely aware that such was the reality for the vast majority of the French people.
The same is evidenced in the present day with the American ruling class. These elected officials in positions of power rarely concern themselves with the concerns of citizens who, ironically, elected them to their positions in the first place. Once campaigning is done, they end the well-maintained facade of caring for their constituents. In times of need, when the people call for action, for an ending of the suffering that has incessantly plagued the masses, those sitting atop the ivory tower offer the only solutions they can think of. These solutions, unfortunately, are entirely out of the realm of possibilities for the vast majority of Americans.
Well, what else could be expected when those in positions of power operate in an entirely different reality than that experienced by the majority of Americans? For those unconcerned with the prospect of famine, due to the lavish banquets routinely enjoyed inside palace walls, brioche seems like the perfect solution to stave off hunger. For political elites in positions of financial freedom, enjoying the autopilot feature in their Tesla on the commute from their home state to D.C., electric vehicles are the obvious solution to the fossil-fuel dependent brutes complaining of rising gas prices.
The trend not only incites anger, it raises an important question. For those in positions of power across time, is disregarding the cries of those beneath you a prerequisite for getting the job? Or is it an emergent quality of once-common people who go on to enjoy positions of power and endless luxury? Such a disconnect rarely, if ever, produces camaraderie amongst the ruling class and its constituents. In fact, as shown through history, it’s a practically sure-fire way to incite revolutionary sentiments. Surely, in our civilized democracy, a literal revolution is far from expected. But, as tensions grow and the publics’ cries are ignored, bridging the apparent gap between the elites and regular Americans seems a remote possibility.
Times may change, but the political class of ruling elites, and their lack of regard for the suffering of its constituents, does not. Whether in regards to brioche or Teslas, this much is clear: no one is coming to save you.
This lifted my spirits :)
Good. Effaning.