Don't forget that before that supposed statement, that Edison had put his 'money' on supplying DC power to America, with a power plant every few blocks in metro areas.
I'm waiting for Tesla's broadcast power from the Earth's magnetic field.
There were genuine friendships among Ford, Edison and Firestone. They went on annual "Nature Trips", and it would be surprising if something along these lines didn't come up.
Has sort of a PC sound today, but would have been a rather natural subject to arise between Edison and Ford.