WSJ journalist pays up his bet with Elon Musk

[bananas]

http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2012/06/29/to-elon-musk-and-the-model-s-congratulations/

June 29, 2012, 2:05 PM

To Elon Musk and the Model S: Congratulations

By Dan Neil

On or about May 1, 2009, Elon Musk, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur and CEO of the electric car maker Tesla Motors, fired off an angry email to me regarding a story I had written in the pages of my then-employer.

I no longer have these emails, but as I recall, at issue was my public skepticism that a car such as the Model S could be built, within the technical specifications Mr. Musk laid out, before the end of 2012.

<snip>

Mr. Musk then bet me $1 million that he would do it and, graciously acknowledging our rather different financial situations – he’s wealthy and I’m not – said the bet would be only $1,000 to me. In either case, he wrote, the winnings would go to the charity Doctors Without Borders. Seeing this as a rare opportunity to facilitate a $1 million donation to a worthy cause, I accepted.

<snip>

This morning I made a donation of $1,000 to Doctors Without Borders.

<snip>

So, I lost, and happily so. As a proponent of electric mobility, I have said many times that I wanted to lose the bet; in other words, I wanted Tesla to succeed. As a critic, I’ll reserve judgment on the Model S until I get a chance to drive it. Regardless, Mr. Musk and Tesla’s achievement – birthing a radically different kind of car, and essentially a brand-new car company, in three years – is nothing short of astonishing. And I congratulate him.

Elon Musk responded:

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/218897974242181121

Thanks Dan, you are a good sportsman. I will still donate to DWB as though I'd lost.

7:45 PM - 29 Jun 12

[FBaggins]

1. Classy.

For both of them.

[mike_c]

2. +1

Yep.

[longship]

3. Both of them!

Plus Musk got the ISS replenished with his rocket and the vehicle on the rocket which landed perfectly, ready for reuse. Add to that that the first attempt was scrubbed a second after one of the engines failed and yet they successfully launched the mission a couple days later.

Musk and his compatriots seem to have their shit together. Kudos to all of them. This is what capitalism is supposed to do -- use their capital for the betterment of the planet.

As a confirmed socialist, this warmsy black heart.

[joshcryer]

4. Wow, Elon Musk is still going to give DWB a million bucks.

That's awesome.