Photo: via Reddit
There are many ways to compensate for shortcomings. Some people exercise and work out. A few read and learn as much as they can. Some use flashy clothing. Others accept that no one is perfect and realize that inner happiness does not require the approval of others. A lot of us just drink. But there’s a select few who make it their goal in life to make other people’s lives more difficult. That’s how they feel better about themselves.
No longer content with lifting their pickup trucks, Confederate flags, super bright LED lights, or rolling coal, some truck owners have taken to what they’re calling “ICE-ing.” ICE-ing, an acronym for Internal Combustion Engine, is a protest against economic cars, particularly electric vehicles. These people (let’s face it, likely all men) take pleasure in the idea of harming the air they breathe, because only environmentalists need oxygen. They intentionally block Tesla Superchargers and other charging stations with their ridiculously impractical trucks.
Rolling Coal Evolved
Once upon a time, I lived in a rural state. The nature was beautiful. I loved knowing so many people in town, becoming friends with regulars at the local bar. The roads were windy and twisty. Driving was a hobby for me. I’d spend hours out on those back roads, appreciating the scenery and fun of those winding, hilly roads. Truly, there are things I really miss about that little rural backwoods state.
But the people aren’t one of them. Racism, sexism, and homophobia were rampant. There was a special breed of terrible person, almost exclusively male. This was the guy with the lifted pickup truck. He’d lift it to an absurd height and wouldn’t adjust his headlights, so they’d blind people in their rearview mirrors. He’d likely have a Confederate flag or obnoxious political bumper sticker on his truck. He liked to tailgate other drivers, regularly spoke about his collection of weapons, and he was “rolling coal.”
Rolling coal is the act of adjusting the air to fuel mixture in a diesel vehicle. The end result burns absurdly rich, causing it to dump uncombusted diesel fuel out of the tailpipe. Often it also involves removing emissions controls, like particulate filters or catalytic converters. This causes the vehicle to belch a dark soot, highly associated with increased lung cancer risk.
Often, those rolling coal would do so around other people. There are videos on YouTube of these guys intentionally blasting people or hybrid vehicles with the fumes. Those who perform the modification are likely harmed the most by this, even if they do it to many people, though direct inhalation could trigger a number of respiratory difficulties and dramatically increase cancer risks.
Rolling coal is illegal in the United States. Perhaps that’s why they’ve added ICE-ing to their compensation cakes.
The New Coal: ICE-ing
Photo via Reddit
I’m a car enthusiast. I love rowing my own gears, I’ve raced in SCCA autocross events, and I’ve participated in track days. I love driving, and I especially love driving fast. Because of that, part of me understands the fear of losing the internal combustion engine. Sure, electric cars are fast, but they lack the soul of a combustion engine car, the fun of shifting gears, or even manual handbrakes.
But because I don’t need to get in the way of other people’s happiness to find my own, and because I don’t need to be obnoxious like a toddler screaming for attention, I have no sympathy for ICE-ers. People who block the charging stations electric car drivers need and harass electric and hybrid car drivers are difficult to empathize with.
ICEd in Moab. My Tesla looks so small pic.twitter.com/0ITkNvXUOp
— Tesla Owner (@TeslaOwnerBlog) May 7, 2015
Fortunately, in some states, this is illegal, as is harassing or assaulting someone. Most businesses, like the Sheetz this occurred at in North Carolina, will also ask anyone blocking chargers to leave. It can be hard to find a charger, but networks are expanding, and these cars are growing in popularity due to their features, speed, low or non-existent gas requirements, and their benefit to the environment. The future is bright, green, and battery (or super capacitor) powered, and ICE-ing isn’t going to change that.
But it might make a certain type of someone feel better about their perceived inadequacies for a little bit.
Source: Graham Rapier, Business Insider