Do you have $500 lying around and want to spend it on something that will, inevitably, lead to a much costlier disaster? Elon Musk has you covered.
His Boring Company—yes, that’s the one that digs tunnels—has released a flamethrower for some reason that probably has more to do with branding than a pivot to manufacturing more kinds of destructive devices than just gigantic drills. It’s not really a flamethrower so much as a very large torch, but it’s shaped like a flamethrower and gets what looks like a few feet of range, so we’ll throw Musk a bone here.
Per TechCrunch, Musk’s flamethrower costs $500 plus taxes, shipping, and any applicable fees, and is now available to pre-order on the Boring Company website. According to the website, users will be required to sign a “terms and conditions rhyme” and additionally must certify that the flamethrower “May not be used on Boring Company decorative lacquered hay bales or Boring Company dockside munitions warehouses.”
For an extra $30, those proud new flamethrower owners can “Buy an overpriced Boring Company fire extinguisher!”
In one post, Musk noted that he wants “to be clear that a flamethrower is a super terrible idea. Definitely don’t buy one. Unless you like fun.” Then he charged at what was presumably one of his employees shooting flame, which seems like fun for Musk but maybe not all that safe for said employee.
Is this legal? Probably! It’s doubtful that Musk’s device meets the statutory requirements to be legally considered a flamethrower, and actual flamethrowers are apparently legal in 48 states and only restricted in California and Maryland, per the Washington Post. That said, it’s not hard to see how you use this particular device could easily be the dividing line between you and consequences.
Either way, it’s good to see Musk and the Boring Company are well on their way to becoming the backstory of Portal.