[andrew_eit]

I agree with you actually about the Gigafactories and it won't surprise me if the Texas one finishes first.

And I also live in Germany and have worked for car companies as a contractor :) And believe me I am also quite exhausted by the slowness of so much of the industry and the old white opas running things. But at the same time I get the feeling that university-educated younger members of society really want this to change and want to participate actively in shaping their country.

I think I usually like to counter extreme positions for either approach (US-capitalist, fast moving approach vs German/European slower, more left leaning approach). I think our views might actually be quite similar, and I have actually been considering what life might be like in the US where people seem to really have no limits to their ambition and drive. I guess I just see both systems as useful in some ways and limited in others. I like the fact that in Germany, everyone has access to good education, health and a social safety net, and I am ok with that coming at the cost of maybe the country not being as disruptively innovative as it otherwise could be. On the other hand, I am extremely glad a place like the US exists, where some random south african dude can waltz into the Rocketry industry and the auto industry and simultaneously turn both on their heads in less than 2 decades.

Also what you said about Greece is pretty shocking. To be fair, it's very possible that in general the amount of people who really want to put their own blood, sweat and tears into in endeavour is actually quite small. A lot of people I know just want a contented life, which is fine, but I'd rather not have that at the expense of a meaningful, exciting career.