LOCAL OBSERVATION
Nikola Tesla
The Nikola Tesla museum is a creamy villa in Belgrade. I arrived in time for the short film which included a snapshot of my grandfather saying hello to Mr. Tesla. It was surreal to see my grandfather up there on the screen. I forget where I am sometimes. I never fail to recognize my grandfather and his beautiful serene face concealing who knows what thoughts. In the photos he is always perfectly composed and serious. Not at all like the warm funny man I remember from my childhood.
After the film a tiny lady with a huge engineering brain lectured us, and showed us how the machines worked with light beams and conducting electricity through people and remote control operation which in its time was considered magic mind control. And despite my minimal grasp, it was impressive.
The museum lady was so fierce, although young and sporting a plump ass, no one dared ask a single question at any point of her talk. Instead, we all just gaped in silence. When a couple of German tourists whispered to each other she admonished them, saying, “Later is a better time for you to chat.” Next, we were left alone to wander around and look at Tesla’s personal effects, his top hat, his kid gloves, his eyeglasses, a silver flask. His art collection and letters from friends. And the final room with an urn shaped like a bowl atop a marble obelisk and here are Tesla’s ashes. Before we were let loose, the museum lady gave strict instructions not to photograph or video or in any way be disrespectful to the ashes of the hero.
There’s no denying Tesla was way ahead of his time. He went to see his hero Edison in America and Edison turned on him. He conducted experiments in NYC and his laboratory was mysteriously burnt to the ground. He built a tower on Long Island and it was destroyed with TNT by the army claiming spurious reasons. When he went to Colorado Springs he was treated like a crazy man. And his great sponsor, J.P. Morgan, withdrew his sponsorship once he realized Tesla wanted to help the world, not charge the world. The capitalist mindset was horrified by Tesla’s altruism, and he equally was disappointed with their greed. He named one invention a Peace Ray and it was immediately recoined a Death Ray. If Tesla had his way the whole planet would have access to free power.
Tesla died a poor man, ridiculed and rejected. But I doubt he was himself dejected. In fact he said it himself. He said, “Today may belong to others, but the future is mine.”
Is the future here yet?
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Nice.