????上周三，特斯拉汽車(chē)公司（Tesla Motors）發(fā)布了第一季度財(cái)報(bào)，引起了不小的轟動(dòng)。不過(guò)這家豪華電動(dòng)汽車(chē)制造商正繼續(xù)遭到抨擊。

????美國(guó)政府為特斯拉汽車(chē)的買(mǎi)家提供7500美元的稅收減免，不過(guò)面對(duì)超過(guò)7萬(wàn)美元的特斯拉S型車(chē)，只有富人才享受得起這一優(yōu)惠。美國(guó)能源部還給這家位于加州帕洛阿爾托的公司4.65億美元的貸款擔(dān)保，這樣做相當(dāng)于補(bǔ)貼了富有的特斯拉車(chē)主，卻將納稅人的錢(qián)財(cái)置于危險(xiǎn)之中，也就難怪許多人對(duì)政府的“補(bǔ)貼富人購(gòu)車(chē)”政策表示憤怒。

????盡管如此，事實(shí)在于，將特斯拉賣(mài)給富人，也許是將來(lái)普及電動(dòng)汽車(chē)的最好方式，也是美國(guó)擺脫對(duì)石油依賴(lài)的最好辦法，這背后蘊(yùn)含著國(guó)家安全和經(jīng)濟(jì)利益的因素。

????國(guó)內(nèi)石油產(chǎn)量的增加，讓美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)收益頗豐。但美國(guó)耗油量太大，使得國(guó)家在原油價(jià)格面前脆弱不堪。由于生物燃料和燃料電池的發(fā)展步履蹣跚，電動(dòng)汽車(chē)也許是最好的解決方法之一。

????不過(guò)電動(dòng)汽車(chē)也面臨著大量的艱難困阻。它們?nèi)狈鹘y(tǒng)汽車(chē)擁有的規(guī)模經(jīng)濟(jì)和性能記錄，也沒(méi)有因?yàn)橐话俣嗄甑氖袌?chǎng)競(jìng)爭(zhēng)而使技術(shù)成本下降的經(jīng)驗(yàn)。盡管實(shí)驗(yàn)室里的研究人員也許能實(shí)現(xiàn)技術(shù)上的重大突破，但若想讓更多電動(dòng)汽車(chē)駛上馬路，還要解決如何高效地批量生產(chǎn)、如何拓展新的營(yíng)銷(xiāo)渠道、如何構(gòu)建充電站網(wǎng)絡(luò)以免車(chē)主燃料耗盡等關(guān)鍵問(wèn)題。

????盡管如此，這些早期的車(chē)輛將成為利基市場(chǎng)的一部分，且以高價(jià)售賣(mài)。富人們自然成為其目標(biāo)消費(fèi)群體。

????以移動(dòng)電話為例。摩托羅拉（Motorola）1982年發(fā)布的DynaTAC 8000X售價(jià)3995美元（相當(dāng)于今天的近1萬(wàn)美元）。在1987年的電影《華爾街》（Wall Street）中，手持這部巨大手機(jī)的戈登?杰科代表了手機(jī)用戶的普遍形象：富有、傲慢、無(wú)禮。到了1998年，諾基亞（Nokia）6160（20世紀(jì)90年代最流行的手機(jī)款式）價(jià)格為900美元，依然讓大多數(shù)顧客望而卻步。直到21世紀(jì)以來(lái)，手機(jī)行業(yè)實(shí)現(xiàn)了突飛猛進(jìn)的進(jìn)步，才不再被當(dāng)作奢侈品，價(jià)格便宜到能讓普通大眾接受。

????手機(jī)花了20年左右的時(shí)間，從高端產(chǎn)品市場(chǎng)來(lái)到大眾市場(chǎng)，而它本身也發(fā)生了改變。最初的摩托羅拉DynaTAC長(zhǎng)逾一英寸，重逾兩磅，電池僅能支持一個(gè)小時(shí)；而如今，你花上20美元，就能買(mǎi)到比你手掌還小、重量只有兩盎司的手機(jī)。

????Tesla Motors made news last Wednesday when it posted its first quarterly profit. But the maker of luxury electric vehicles continues to come under fire.

????The U.S. government gives a $7,500 tax credit to anyone who buys one of its cars, but at more than $70,000 for a Model S sedan, only the rich can afford to benefit. The Department of Energy has also provided the Palo Alto, Calif.-based company with a $465 million loan guarantee, which boosts returns for Tesla's wealthy owners while putting taxpayers' money at risk. No wonder many are furious with Washington for "subsidizing cools cars for rich people."

????The truth, though, is that selling Teslas (TSLA) to wealthy people today may be the best way to get electric cars to everyone tomorrow, and for the United States to eventually reduce its dependence on oil, with all the national security and economic benefits that entails.

????The U.S. economy is making big gains as domestic oil production rises, but high U.S. oil use leaves the nation vulnerable to dangerous spikes in the price of crude. With biofuels and fuel cells both faltering, electric cars may be one of the best ways out.

????But electric cars face a massive uphill battle. They lack the economies of scale and track record that traditional cars enjoy. They don't have the hundred-plus years of experience that's allowed their competitors to bring technology costs down. And while some big advances will come from people tinkering in labs, getting more electric cars onto the road is essential to figuring out how to manufacture lots of them efficiently, develop new ways to finance sales, and engineer networks of charging stations so that drivers don't run out of fuel.

????Those initial cars, though, will be part of a niche market and come at a premium price. And the wealthy are a natural target market.

????Take the cellular telephone. The Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, released in 1982, sold for $3,995 (equivalent to nearly $10,000 today). Gordon Gecko, who carried one of the behemoths around in the 1987 movie Wall Street, typified the cell phone user: rich, arrogant, brash. As late as 1998, the Nokia 6160 (the most popular cell phone model of the 1990s) sold for $900, well beyond the reach of most consumers. It was not until the 2000s that cell phones, which improved dramatically while they were considered a luxury good, became cheap enough for mass adoption.

????During the 20 or so years that it took the cell phone to move from high-end product to mass market, the phones themselves transformed too. The DynaTAC was more than a foot long, weighed over two pounds, and had a one-hour battery life; today, you can buy a two-ounce phone that's smaller than your palm for $20.