Don't Let Crisis Suck Down Auto Industry

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-20-2008
Don't Let Crisis Suck Down Auto Industry
136
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 10:13pm

I am focused here on just the U.S. auto industry. People are so focused on whether the companies deserve to go bankrupt. We can all debate that. That issue pales in comparison to what will happen if we let these companies go down in the midst of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. As President Kennedy once said, timing is everything. And the timing could not be worse for a massive big three US auto company bankruptcy.

"U.S. auto companies employ nearly a quarter-million workers, and more than 730,000 other people have jobs producing the materials and parts that go into cars. About 1 million on top of that work in dealerships nationwide. If just one of the auto giants were to go belly up, some estimates put U.S. job losses next year as high as 2.5 million.
"If GM is telling us the truth, they go into bankruptcy and you see a cascade like you have never seen," said Sen. George V. Voinovich, R-Ohio, who was working on one rescue plan Wednesday. "If people want to go home and not do anything, I think that they're going to have that on their hands.""

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iOTm71rXkkZaLSOWaaIM11o06mNQD94IAPNG0

These millions of Americans are the families behind all those mortgages, all those CDOs, and the banking crisis. These are millions of the people who can't pay their bills. Stop the paychecks now to all these people, and you ain't seen nothing yet when it comes to America's foreclosures and this financial crisis.

Here is the link the Republicans don't get about American workers. We are they. Sell the worker out by making them lose their jobs to abused foreign labor and see what happens? We just did.

This is not the time to give the auto industry, auto executives, the auto unions, or whoever, their just due. We will cut off our noses to spite our faces.

And who are the ones who are all indignant about helping our auto industry in this time of need? The "Country First" Republican Senators of course - especially the ones in Southern States with foreign auto industry donors that stand to benefit from seeing the U.S. auto industry destroyed.

This is ridiculous. Why is anyone even listening to anything the Republicans are saying anymore in the midst of the disastrous fallout from their disastrous policies regarding . . . everything. Everything. Domestic policy. The economy. Foreign policy. The failed "war" against bin Ladin and fiasco in Iraq.

Let's save our auto industry and in the process save ourselves. The Republicans say the sky will fall if we save our the car companies, but the last time we saved Chrysler lo and behold it survived for decades. When the economy is better and not fed by fear, then if one or more of these companies goes down that's a different story. Now is not the time for that.

Let's not listen to the Republican parade of horribles. Let's not listen to the Republican fear-mongering about what will happen if we save the auto industry and the millions of jobs that it supports. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. We've got to stick together to get through this.

And when the Democrats reenter the White House and bring some competence and integrity back to our government again, we'll all be a lot better off. Then we'll get through this with hope and lots of hard work.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-24-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 6:53pm

Everyone else has explained my argument really well, so I won't go there.


But I had to laugh at your attempt again to show that anyone, including me, who knows the bailout is right must have some bias.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-13-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 7:09pm

People don't invest in it precisely because it is a vicious circle - if you buy a ng car, you cannot fill it. If you build ng stations, there are few ng cars - where to start? Who can bring all sides to this?


Hardly a wretched idea at all, but hey... are we willing to say 'we cannot do this,' or are we willing to say 'lets look for different solutions, lets look for opportunities, and make it happen.'


The fact is, we have to change. The price of gas is either temporary, or our economy has tanked for better than a decade. If the latter is not the case, then we had better seize the opportunity and get away from gasoline.


You have far more faith in private industry than I do. It is good for some things, but not so hot at other things - one is self regulating and avoiding serious downturns.


Of course you don't see investment in it, and that has no bearing on viability.


Full length fiction: worlds undone

"You have no power over my body..." ~ Anne Hutchinson

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-24-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 7:10pm

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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-25-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 7:22pm

toots... go look at the statistics...


The entire durable goods manufacturing sector of the economy accounts for less than 9% of the GDP of the United States.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-25-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 7:26pm

The other problem, of course, is that NG doesn't have the energy storage capacity of gasoline.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-13-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 7:32pm

Check out Pickens plan... he seems to think it is quite doable.

Full length fiction: http://llhaesa.org/ (pronounced la.hay.ess.sa)



Full length fiction: worlds undone

"You have no power over my body..." ~ Anne Hutchinson

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-24-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 7:45pm

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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-20-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 8:00pm

"no, no, no. my whole point is that we have opened a door with the financial sector. now we have the auto industry asking for money. what industry is next?"

The question should be in the case of each company and industry, cost/benefit, should we let the industry go down in the midst of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression?

You are arguing let's never save any company or industry because that would create a slippery slope. I am afraid your concern, while certainly valid, is more theoretical than the real threats facing America right now.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-20-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 8:02pm

"People don't invest in it precisely because it is a vicious circle - if you buy a ng car, you cannot fill it."

Yes, some Republicans are missing that taking collective action to combat our reliance on foreign oil is like defense. It is a common public good.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-13-2008
Sun, 11-23-2008 - 8:25pm

It is, like medical R&D - some companies won't do it, and the federal government funds it.


This need for auto mfg help, coupled with our national needs -affords a wonderful opportunity.

Full length fiction: http://llhaesa.org/ (pronounced la.hay.ess.sa)



Full length fiction: worlds undone

"You have no power over my body..." ~ Anne Hutchinson

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