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Elon Musk Sells $10 Million in Flamethrowers in Four Days (reuters.com)
An anonymous reader quotes Reuters:
A handful of tweets and four days later, Silicon Valley billionaire Elon Musk has closed orders for his latest novelty product, after selling 20,000 flamethrowers at $500 a piece. "Guaranteed to liven up any party!" was Musk's tagline for a sale which raised $10 million for his high-speed tunnel venture The Boring Company... "When the zombie apocalypse happens, you'll be glad you bought a flamethrower," he tweeted last Saturday. "Works against hordes of the undead or your money back!"
The fundraising comes as Tesla "struggles" meet its production commitments, notes the article, adding that analysts are wondering if the car manufacturer will eventually need billions more in funding.
By Wednesday Musk had sold out his entire suppy of flamethrowers, though "Apparently, some customs agencies are saying they won't allow shipment of anything called a 'Flamethrower'," Musk tweeted Friday night, adding "To solve this, we are renaming it 'Not a Flamethrower'."
"Or maybe 'Temperature Enhancement Device.'"
The fundraising comes as Tesla "struggles" meet its production commitments, notes the article, adding that analysts are wondering if the car manufacturer will eventually need billions more in funding.
By Wednesday Musk had sold out his entire suppy of flamethrowers, though "Apparently, some customs agencies are saying they won't allow shipment of anything called a 'Flamethrower'," Musk tweeted Friday night, adding "To solve this, we are renaming it 'Not a Flamethrower'."
"Or maybe 'Temperature Enhancement Device.'"
Hair Dryer - https://globalnews.ca/news/400...
Has a bigger tank, and only costs $30.
https://www.harborfreight.com/...
This "flamethrower" is just a weed-burning torch with a modified case to hold the tank. That's what he should call it.
https://images-na.ssl-images-a...
Flamethrowers don't kill. People do.
You are welcome on my lawn.
He's not going to sell them anywhere he's not allowed. This is a publicity stunt to get government procurement attention around the world and make a quick buck. The actual flame throwers he's selling are actually more of a blow torch... they only go 5' at most (more like 2-3') and don't have a concentrated stream/lasting liquid that continues to burn. You can already buy $900 ones that go 25' or $1600 ones that go 50' from other companies that are far more harmful. What he's done is sell something a farmer might use to clear brush, a fire department might use for controlled buns... but mostly for people to buy to make dumb youtube videos and then put it on a shelf.
You could probably do more damage with a culinary butane torch that you can pick up at your local walmart.
billionaires: we've just cornered the market on rare minerals used to design technology like cellphones and tablets in order to further our wealth and power
Elon: I made ten million dollars on novelty flame throwers branded with the name of my tunnel digging company i came up with on twitter
billionaires:...Is everything OK at home, Elon?
Good people go to bed earlier.
While I can definitely appreciate Elon's twisted sense of humor, I am concerned about liability in this latest "venture" of his. I'd assume he's had a team of lawyers cover his ass nine ways from Sunday, but all it would take is one high-visibility mishap -- say, a fatal kindergarten fire -- to spoil the fun for everybody. I'd hate to see something like that get in the way of all the other good things he's doing.
BTW, I'm bummed that I didn't order a Boring Co. hat in time. :-(
XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
You sell something as a toy, people will play with it. People play with it, they will get injured. Yes I'm sure there are parties were people play with industrial blow torches but we don't need people candy-coating them in the name of making a buck. No amount of disclaimer can cover the idiocy of putting this in the market in the first place.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
I seriously doubt he would throw razor blades in a suicide ward.
He would charge for those blades.
It's not Elon's responsibility what you do with a flame thrower after you buy it.
It's not Gillette's responsibility what you cut with a razor blade after you buy it.
It's not Ford's responsibility what you hit with a car after you buy it.
It's not John Deer's responsibility what you run over with a riding lawn mower after you buy it.
It's not Sturm, Ruger & Company's responsibility what you shoot with a gun after you buy it.
It's not Clorox's responsibility what you do with bleach after you buy it.
He knows how to charge people $400 for a weed-removal product used in landscape maintenance that you can get for $30 at Harbor Freight. Brilliant!
This guy obviously feels no responsibility for injuries caused by his products. He would throw a package of razor blades in a suicide ward.
Give me a fucking break. Big Tobacco makes Musks antics look like childs play by comparison, and I can buy shit at Wal-Mart that would make a bigger flame than his toy.
May the Schwartz Be With You!
People get utility from a car which outweigh the dangers. This is a toy for the sake of being a toy. World of difference.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
"To solve this, we are renaming it 'Not a Flamethrower'."
Won't work. The presence of the word "flamethrower" will cause problems regardless of context. A friend had the word "laser" in his company name and boxes would occasionally get held up in customs waiting for the "export paperwork". He was not selling lasers. A customs official pulled the packages due to the company name.
"Or maybe 'Temperature Enhancement Device.'"
Better.
Try starting a cigarette company in the US today, see how far you get.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
They've got all sorts of warnings/etc. on appropriate use. In the end though, what he's really sold is a very expensive weed torch.
Seriously.
It's just this sort of thing (bought at any walmart/hardware store): https://images-na.ssl-images-a...
Put into this Airsoft battle rifle: https://www.evike.com/images/l...
And yet Tide is getting the bejesus sued out of it for tide pods. You know a nice package to toss in your laundry with no liquids or powders spilled.
There are multiple lawsuits on riding lawn mowers, some have succeeded. Clorox somehow did something to the bleach to make it splash less. I think the gun makers have been sued. I think you underestimate the craziness of the US legal system.
I also wonder why no one has flagged this thing as nothing but a toy CO2 generator, from the guy who wants to save us from CO2.
Except he's caused all sorts of "officials" to take "notice" and "offense" to something that no one really cared about before. I wonder if this stunt will have the side-effect of suddenly making business much more difficult for everyone who already makes and/or owns similar devices that were previously fine.
In some ways that might not be a bad thing: http://my.lpg-apps.org/uploads...
And what Elon Musk was selling isn't a flamethrower.
Let that sink in for a minute.
I was pretty critical of this guy for a while. But this shows me he really is having fun with the tech entrepreneur life, and doesn't worry too much about all the "what if?s". I'm starting to think he is okay.
sigs are for losers (except to point out that sigs are for losers)
Exactly right - but now he's got $9 million in profits to put towards solving the Model 3 production problems or funding the research on whatever else is actually important.
Of course it will....
This will be the new "bump stock"....and I'm guessing immediately we'll have a ton of liberal's shouting for "common sense flamethrower laws".
I guess while were at it, let's ban all things that could possibly be misused and hurt people:
1. Common Sense Truck laws
2. Common Sense Pressure Cooker laws
3. Common Sense Chainsaw Laws
4. Common Sense Kitchen Knife Laws
5. Common Sense Gasoline (and other flammables) Laws
6. Common Sense Baseball Bat Laws
7. Common Sense Richard Pryor Viewing Laws (his pre-politically correct rants might seriously damage a generation of millennials).
8.Common Sense...oh well, you get the picture how ridiculous things can get.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
My answer is..."So what?"
Does everything sold these days require some form of utility use in order to be legally sold and legally used?
It's a free country, and if you WANT something, and legally use it, there should not be any limitation of you being able to possess it and legally use it.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
If that's what you think a free country is, then your country is definitely NOT free.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
The human race does not stop evolving because we protect society from dangerous toys.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
I would agree....it started out that way, and has been getting progressively less free over the years.
I'd say said loss of freedoms have escalated VERY fast since about 1968....and gotten worse and worse since then.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
> You can also buy a $10 can of compressed air and light the stream on fire with a 50 cent lighter.
An ad video of the device is at https://www.instagram.com/p/Be... . It's rifle sized, so it carrries considerably more fuel than a typical "compressed air" can, and has a much longer range and overall burning flame volume. I admit to being tempted to get one, but children sometimes visit my home. I'd want to keep it in a good gun safe with space for the device and the fuel.
I agree that it's an expensive toy with limited practical uses. That doesn't mean I don't want one.
It's a Darwin toy. We need more of this to remove fools from the gene pool.
This is not an asset so we don't have to read you your rights but can ask you questions.
customs agencies are saying they won't allow shipment of anything called a 'Flamethrower'," Musk tweeted Friday night, adding "To solve this, we are renaming it 'Not a Flamethrower'."
try that with drugs hell in some places you can sit in jail for 1-2 years before trail
As I said before, presentation and marketing is what makes this unacceptable.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
Business failures?
- He sold his first investment to Compaq for $22mil
- his second company merged with what is now known as PayPal which he made $165mil from
- SpaceX sits just above profitability on over $1 billion in revenues
- SolarCity used a capital heavy model to lease panels so they will provide ongoing tax/cash benefits to Tesla long into the future (and are now switching to a non-lease model to increase short term profitability/decrease capital outlay)
Telsa is about the only struggle going on and entirely related to the Gigafactory's inability to mass produce batteries. There's part of the process that they're having to do manually while they fix the automation problems and that's dragging things down/costing the company a lot of money.
The Boring Company/OpenAI/Neurolinks/Hyperloop are pet projects that may lead to something in the future but they're research on a small scale compared to the rest the companies he's involved with.
Seems pretty successful to me.
Those were hooked up to large propane tanks. If you look the canister that sits on top of the rifle is absent in the video and they're hiding the fact that the hoses are detached. Likely just to make it easier to shoot the advertising.
The actual canister appears to be your standard 1lbs BernzOmatic propane cylinder painted black.
Yes and look at all the gains in safety of transportation, water, and food distribution because of it. Criminals really have to work hard to swindle people too.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
Which of those things are used as a toy only?
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
And the US company vaping products are garbage compared to the European companies like Innokin, Vaporesso, etc.
The US products seem more concerned about "looking like a cigarette", than actually working decently.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
I am concerned about liability in this latest "venture" of his. I'd assume he's had a team of lawyers cover his ass nine ways from Sunday, but all it would take is one high-visibility mishap -- say, a fatal kindergarten fire -- to spoil the fun for everybody.
Do you worry about this every time someone buys a gallon of gas to use in their lawnmower? Because that, and a rag and a match and a glass bottle is every bit as dangerous to a kindergarten class as a controlled-burn tool like the ones in question. More so, really.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
The Nazis stopped using flame throwers, because they were too crazy and dangerous, and killed more of their own people than enemies.
So what you're saying is that you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. Does that physically hurt?
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
Perhaps you were answering someone else?
This comment has nothing to do with this thread of conversation, especially my post....
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
Never worries 'bout his line.
Or a doggone thing, He's just a bang beat, bell ringing
Big haul, great go, neck-or-nothing, rip roarin'
Every time a bull's eye salesman
That's Professor Elon Musk, Elon Musk
I don't know how he does it but he lives like a king
And he dallies and he gathers and he plucks and he shines
And when the man dances certainly, boys, what else?
The piper pays him!
Apologies to Meredith Wilson.
The human race does not stop evolving because we protect society from dangerous toys.
The human race will evolve a lot faster if we make it easier for stupid people to kill themselves.
Death has been proven to be 99% fatal in lab rats.
Oh goody. I like validation.
The most serious crime in my neighborhood is someone throwing a cigarette butt on the ground or parking in a handicapped zone. I'm serious. There's zero crime in my neighborhood.
You are welcome on my lawn.
It's not Elon's responsibility what you do with a flame thrower after you buy it.
Right, setting aside the promotional video that shows him holding one assault-rifle style and running toward the frickin cameraman with it flaming, tagged with "Don’t do this. Also, I want to be clear that a flamethrower is a super terrible idea. Definitely don’t buy one. Unless you like fun." This kind of mixed message doesn't even give him clear grounds to mount the (terrible under the best of circumstances) "just kidding" legal defense down the road.
I am very comfortable that any lawyer he might have ran this by would have told him he's taking on more potential liability with this than he's getting in revenue. My guess is that he's in such a cash crunch right now he can't afford to care.
Try starting a cigarette company in the US today, see how far you get.
Plenty of cigar companies have had no issues starting up in the US in recent years, and the fact that cigarettes are still a legal product you would probably have NO issues at all starting up, particularly if you were also selling nicotine-infused vaping products. Competing is another matter entirely, and has fuck-all to do with my original point. Musks antics can't hold a fucking flamthrowing candle to the shit Big Tobacco is responsible for when it comes to selling "safe" products.
The Nazis stopped using flame throwers, because they were too crazy and dangerous, and killed more of their own people than enemies.
The Nazis thought it was too crazy. ... and killed too many of their own people. ...
Let that sink in for a minute.
P.S.: CAPTCHA = madness. (I’m not kidding. That's literally the CAPTCHA right now!)
The only crazy part here is assuming what Musk is selling should be compared to a Nazi killing machine. You'll be lucky to "kill" weeds in your front yard with this toy.
The real hazard that concerns me is Elon himself, or rather his wealth and fame, both of which make him an attractive target for enterprising trial lawyers. As I said, I'm sure he made certain it's all legal, but this is essentially a toy weapon that actually works. That is skating closer to the edge than most products you can buy. And a lot of "safe" products generate lawsuits too.
In any case, bad accidents are bad PR, and Elon doesn't need more of that. So I hope nothing like that happens. That is all.
XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
Why on earth would anyone expect people to be so stupid they try to eat Tide pods? If you had told me people were that stupid, I wouldn't have believed you. It took seeing a video of it for me to grasp the immensity of human stupidity.
I don't see how Tide could have foreseen this.
George Carlin: Think for a moment about the concept of a flamethrower
No, you said we should ban all things that should be misused and hurt people. But all the things you mentioned have a practical purpose, so while you could ban them you have to consider the downside of not using it for that purpose along with the upside of removing the danger. Obviously it would be awkward for many millions of people if kitchen knives were banned, so we don't ban those. Where is the downside of banning a toy flamethrower? People might have to find something else to do?
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
So you should be able to own a nuclear weapon or sarin gas as long as you use it legally? Doesn't matter what 'accidents' could happen? Society works precisely because people can't own these things.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
Everyone knows what it is, especially Ford's, GM's and ULA's management. :-)
Ezekiel 23:20
I don't think flame throwers are the best for this, there is too much collateral damage.
I've wasted all that money on fuel when it turns out that air burns?
I should have paid more attention in science classes.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
You left out the thing that belongs to a liberal.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
You might want to take a look at the "flamethrower" he is selling. This is more like a Bunsen burner with a handle.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Man...I'd had to live in that much fear daily, I really would.
I know people around me that own 30-100+ guns, and sure...something "could" go wrong, accidentally shoot through their walls while cleaning them and bullet could travel through a couple of houses.
However, I'm not realistically worried about that. And while guns have many good uses, many out there think they serve no purposeful function...and would travel down your road of thinking.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
Ya, if the government hadn't subsidized sales of that $10M worth of flamethrowers (well, torches) he'd be out of business. Do you collect your tax refund? Unemployment when you're out of a job? Even if you don't support those things, you'd be stupid not to pick up a check when it's put in front of you. Musk has taken advantage of subsidies that already were on offer before he came along - just as anybody with a brain would. You don't have to be in favor of those subsidies to make use of them. Just as you have to pay taxes whether you support them or not, you also get the benefit of government programs, including subsidies, whether or not you think it's wise that they exist. That's all Musk has done. He doesn't deserve hate for being bright enough to take advantage of the system that was already there.
"Shoot, a fella could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff."
Well, that's fine for you. The other day, I was minding my own business, when some guy came up from behind with a flame thrower, robbed me, and before he left, he set my car on fire. I blame this on Elon. Obviously, he has inspired a flamethrower robbing epidemic! /jk
That "toy flamethrower" is basically a common propane torch, which you can buy at any Harbor Freight, packaged up all fancy. Use it to "Burn weeds, melt snow, remove paint from non-flammable surfaces and more..."
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
SpaceX was started that way, it's profitability now comes from the average $72 million dollar fee for launching a rocket (17 last year).
SolarCity started that way, it's technically losing money right now due to leasing but that is ending and going to a direct sales model so it will become profitable quickly. It also generates large amounts of cash from the leasing while providing depreciation on the panels they've leased - after about 10-12 years those leases become pure profit for them. The long term outlook is very good and free of subsidies.
You call it cronyism, I call it governments investing in the future. He's reduced the costs dramatically - on rocket launches alone he's saved the US Air Force over $325 million PER LAUNCH. That's massive. If he can do the same for boring tunnels - you're looking at cheaper subways, hyperloops, easier deployment of broadband, etc. He's done more for the public good than 99% of the cronies that look to exploit the government.
Anyone who has ever built a spud gun knows that AquaNet works much better.
He's selling a blowtorch with some plastic molding. I can go get a bigger one at Home Depot and nobody would bat an eyelash.
Custom electronics and digital signage for your business: www.evcircuits.com
If you think this is because I'm worried about these people then you haven't read correctly.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
So, if I sell aspirin and put a big label on the box, saying "this is not heroin", I could be in jail for one to two years? If that's true then the justice system is really messed up.
a,e,i,o,u and sometimes w and y (at be if of up cwm by)
So no where does it say 'have fun' which is the heart of the matter here.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
Why would I think a person is buying a gallon of gas to do something that does harm when there are so many valid uses for gas? On the other hand, I can't think of one valid use for a toy flamethrower.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
out side of the usa yes.
Better use something like this :
http://s79.photobucket.com/use...
aaaaaaa
Ba dum TIS!
I can't think of one valid use for a toy flamethrower
Unwanted hair removal?
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
This will be the new "bump stock"....and I'm guessing immediately we'll have a ton of liberal's shouting for "common sense flamethrower laws".
If and when someone uses a Boring Company Flamethrower (tm) to murder dozens or hundreds of people at a time, it's very likely your prediction will come true.
Until then, probably not.
I bet the Flamethrower would work very well for burning up straw men, though.
I don't care if it's 90,000 hectares. That lake was not my doing.
I, for one, am glad he is helping out with our Alien Problem.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
http://avp.wikia.com/wiki/Flam...
Copyright infringement is not theft.
There are valid reasons for Intelectual Property Laws in capitalist societies, but the current terms are neither fair, nor up to the information age.
Ask a farmer, or a landscaper if they think it's a toy. I know, you probably think tractors are toys, too.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
He's not going to sell them anywhere he's not allowed. This is a publicity stunt to get government procurement attention around the world and make a quick buck. The actual flame throwers he's selling are actually more of a blow torch... they only go 5' at most (more like 2-3') and don't have a concentrated stream/lasting liquid that continues to burn. You can already buy $900 ones that go 25' or $1600 ones that go 50' from other companies that are far more harmful. What he's done is sell something a farmer might use to clear brush, a fire department might use for controlled buns... but mostly for people to buy to make dumb youtube videos and then put it on a shelf.
You could probably do more damage with a culinary butane torch that you can pick up at your local walmart.
ATF rules state that a flamethrower with a throw of less than 10 feet (3 metres) is A-OK.
I'm going to guess you just need some kind of permit after that.
However this was just generating publicity for Musk. In that regard, it's done quite well.
Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
I'd like to question the safety issues of storing flamethrower fuel in a gun safe. They do a very poor job of preventing fire related damage from the outside to it's contents - placing volumes of flammable chemicals in an enclosed space with no thermal protection qualities seems like you're asking for a bomb with guns and ammunition for shrapnel.
I'd say just keep the fuel where you'd keep your spare propane tanks for your grill. Kids using it to start fires is about as likely as them using a propane tank for it - it's not like it's ACTUAL flamethrower fuel (napalm infused gasoline).
And lets be honest - not referring to you specifically Antique Geekmeister, but to others trying to act like this is the next 'Streetsweeper' firearm - these aren't flamethrowers like you see in action flicks or WW2 documentaries. The ACTUAL weapons have effective ranges of around 20m and can launch ignited fuel (again, napalm infused gasoline) up to 43m away.
These toys Musk is peddling shoot out an (impressive looking) propane flame up to maybe a meter, meaning it's little more than a dressed up weed burner you could buy at Harbor Freight for $20. Yeeehaw.
Last I looked baseball bats can be used as a toy. So can flammable substances, in things like chemistry kits, toy rockets, fireworks, pop caps for toy guns... I could go on.
This thing is advertised as a toy, but it can still be used as an extremely expensive propane torch for the things one would typically use a 500,000 BTU torch for. You've already been informed of several such uses for it. I'm willing to suspect these things are exactly that, a weed burner dressed up and sold for roughly 25x as much as they normally cost.
Some danger exists yes, but the potential danger of "things you can buy for $500 or less" is ten times the size of an olympic swimming pool. Elon is just pouring a shot glass of water in it.
If one wanted to commit serious arson felonies, a trip to home depot or harbor freight would be a far easier, faster, and cheaper option to get similar results. Or just drop by the gas station on your way home and buy a canister of gas and a book of matches.
Being more worried about an over priced weed burner in comparison, is just Musk's advertising campaign succeeding. Boy look at all that free press he's gotten already.
If this were the case the cheapo version of Musks toy would have been legislated out of existence. Musk has packaged a cheap off the shelf weed burner in what looks like an airsoft rifle, and called it a 'Flamethrower' to up the price by like 25x as much.
For $500 and a bit of googling, you can put together something closer to an actual, deadly style flamethrower. I'll even save you the bandwidth of using google: For the price of this book and the materials needed (quoted as costing around $450) you could have a better flamethrower than what musk has. Shoots flames over 40ft... that's extremely close to the effective range of an American M1A1 Flamethrower, the kind used in WW2. I found it when searching for 'Home made flamethrower' on the first page of results.
I'd also go googling for homemade napalm, but I'm probably already on a list for searching for homemade flamethrowers as is. I can at least justify it as being interested in Musk's toys when the FBI party van shows up at my door.
You''re making very good sense. I don't personally have propane tanks or space for them near my home.
Oh, so that's what TED talks are about. Toasty warm lectures. But you''ll still be shamed for falling asleep because it's too warm.
Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"