If you’re Vince Vaughn, the answer to that question is an irrevocable ‘yes’. This weekend, I watched The Dilemma, a pretty awful buddy comedy starring Vaughn and Kevin James as hapless pals working in the motor industry, trying to come to terms with their respective relationship issues. In the film, they conceive a not-so-original concept that makes electric cars sound more like their petrol counterparts? Why, because of course, electric cars are gay, or so Vaughn’s character claims in the trailer.Political correctness-obsessed America swiftly ripped the trailer from national broadcasters after a news furore claiming that it was homophobic duly erupted. Questioned over this, Vaughn replied;
‘Comedy and joking about our differences breaks tension and brings us together. Drawing dividing lines over what we can and cannot joke about does exactly that; it divides us’
An admirable response from the big ‘ol schmuck, and one the certainly makes a lot sense. Referring to an object as ‘gay’ in order to position it as being lower in value or in some way inferior to its ‘non-gay’ cousins (presumably petrol cars) is clearly in opposition to the views of a largely liberal mainstream American audience and quite obviously a self-aware, tongue-in-cheek joke, nothing more.
Of course, amongst all this fuss, it seems some are missing the point. Electric cars are pretty gay... And if you’re one of the people offended by this, taking it as a derogatory term, then you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.
If you’ve ever seen an electric car in action, you’ll be aware that they are sluggish, whisper quiet, environmentally friendly, and altogether unobtrusive. This in stark contrast to say, a fire-breathing V8 muscle car, which is typical loud, brash, dirty and obnoxious, traditional alpha-male qualities, and not gay by any stretch of the imagination.
As car fanatics however, I feel it is our place to question Vaughn’s accusation. It is extremely short-sighted, and not because it violates the proverbial gagging order bought upon the media by values of political correctness, but because, if he had done his research, he would have realised that not all electric cars are as gay as he thinks.
Take the Telsa Roadster, this fully electric performance car has the grunt to challenge petrol powered equivilents like the Lotus Elise and Porsche Boxster. Equipped with a sophisticated electric motor driving the rear wheels, the Roadster develops 248bhp which propels it from 0-60 in a staggeringly quick 3.9 seconds and onto a limited top speed of 125mph.
This is no slouch, and not ‘gay’ by any stretch of the imagination. Vaughn was clearly not aware of the staggering capabilities of the Telsa when he made this sweeping statement. Had he been aware that the Telsa could embarrass many other petrol cars in the same category, he may have been a little more careful with his words.
All we can do now is attempt to educate Vaughn and his chauvinist minions about the electric revolution. Only knowledge can prevent further prejudice, and education about electric cars and their rights should be taught in school and equal values promoted in the media.
Joe is a automotive blogger, with a focus on vans, and a comedy fan. He’d like you all to know that this post is most definitely tongue in cheek!