If you own a car made by Chrysler or even GM, (Or Kia, don’t buy Kias,) you have good cause to doubt the soundness of it’s welds. This is one of the reasons why imports tend, on the whole, to have better crash safety ratings.

I could rant on and on about the backward state of American cars.

Technologically, cars have improved very little since the 1940′s.

OK I’m done for tonight.

It boggles my mind how flying in a complex aircraft that costs millions to buy and maintain, is somehow price competitive with a train car that, ideally should cost a fraction of that. Even busses are more mechanically complex than trains. You know, the rail freight business is doing just fine these days. (I don’t know, there may be some “opportunity cost” issues with carrying passengers as opposed to cargo.)

Of course, train companies have a long history of collusion with the government, as does the american car industry, and the banking industry. Detroit has benefited from friendly legislation and bureaucracy almost from the start, this is only the latest icing on the cake. I wish I could say different, but turning parasite seems to be a successful business model.

I can say with a bit of confidence that all GM and Chrysler’s problems, basically boil down to incompetent management. Bad management isn’t a problem that will ever fix itself. Giving these people more money is like giving more blood supply to a tumor.

Also, who’s to say that there won’t be new American car companies that spring up to fill the clearing left by GM and Chrysler? There are plenty waiting in the wings….for example, one of my favorites, Tesla Motors.

The promise that this is temporary and will eventually be profitable is supposed to ease the American people into accepting this arrangement, but it is of little comfort to those who remember similar promises when the American taxpayers bought Amtrak. After three years, government was supposed to be out of the passenger rail business. 40 years and billions of dollars later, the government is still operating Amtrak at a loss, despite the fact that they have created a monopoly by making it illegal to compete with Amtrak. Imagine what they can now do to what is left of the great American auto industry!

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=13849

“Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power.” — Benito Mussolini

I am also reminded of the origins of the VW Beetle. Hitler made it possible to give the masses a car they could afford and the Nazi Party would be the benevolent provider of this Power to the People Car.

With Government Motors, we see even more evidence of Fascism in the USA.

I agree that I am unable to figure out what extra value there is to having an auto company whose top executives live in the U.S. over a company that makes cars in the U.S. but is run by foreign executives outside the U.S. Besides that, we still have Ford as a domestic car company that is not taking government bailout money – apparently it can be done.

Can wait to read the owners manual for that one…

When Coca-Cola decided to enter the Chinese market, they had Coca-Cola rendered in Chinese characters. Regrettably, it came out as “bite the wax tadpole” or “female horse stuffed with wax”, depending on the dialect of Chinese used.

I’m still trying to figure out what the inherent value is to having an auto company whose top executives live in the US as opposed to a car company whose top executives live outside the US, but that still manufactures its vehicles in the US. So far, those companies haven’t needed bailouts, despite their market losses. Nobody is whining around about jobs lost at those US plants.

Ah yes, it’s political payoff time for favored groups that make lots of campaign donations and do a lot of lobbying.

Dear Mr. President,

Patriotic retirement:
There are about 40 million people over 50 in the work force – Pay them $1 million apiece severance with the following stipulations:

1. They retire immediately. Forty million job openings – Unemployment fixed.
2. They buy NEW American cars. Forty million cars ordered – Auto Industry fixed.
3. They either buy a house or pay off their mortgage – Housing Crisis fixed.
It can’t get any easier than that!

P.S. If more money is needed, have all members in Congress and their employees pay their taxes

This is meant as humor, but still you have to wonder if it might not be a better (and cheaper) plan than the Obamination Motors plan…

Unions (specifically the UAW).