Robotaxis? This Happened Before.Hey dummy.You think robotaxis can’t work? That they’re a joke? That they’ll never replace human drivers?This. Happened. Before.In 1870, the U.S. had 8.6 million horses and zero cars. People genuinely believed horses were irreplaceable.
By 1929, there were 23 million cars and only 17 million horses — 1 car for every 5 people — and horse poop was no longer the country’s biggest infrastructure problem.Now read what the loudest “experts” said back then — and try not to pull a hamstring backpedaling.⸻Notable Dummies Throughout History1896
“You’re crazy if you think this fool contraption you’ve been wasting your time on will ever displace the horse.”
— A bank president to Alexander Winton
Source1899
“The ordinary ‘horseless carriage’ is at present a luxury for the wealthy; and although its price will probably fall in the future, it will never, of course, come into as common use as the bicycle.”
— The Literary Digest
Source1901
“No doubt the horse is here to stay.”
— The Youth’s Companion, praising anti-car rants from Londoners
Source1902
“The prices of automobiles will never be sufficiently low to make them as widely popular as were bicycles.”
— The New York Times
Source1903
“The horse is here to stay, but the automobile is only a novelty – a fad.”
— President of the Michigan Savings Bank, advising against investing in Ford
Source1913
“For short hauls or trips in which many stops must be made the gas wagon can never displace the horse.”
— The Country Gentleman
Source⸻CongratsIf you’ve made it this far without realizing you might be today’s version of a horse truther…Get a buggy, bro.