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How the Government Should Manage GM and Chrysler

The 3 CEO's can see the benefits of bankruptcy but they also know they will likely be replaced by a disgruntled Congress and administration. That makes this a no go. Instead, they will pursue a Democrat party backstop that will last till Democrats are pushed from power party due to this specific policy in support of these unions. I can see it now. They'll see it after future elections.

$10 an Hour Pay Gap = Billions of Extra Dollars a Year

On Dec 14 08:48 AM drummerboy wrote:


> ....... you may still be in the dark ages with the mentality
> that labor is cheap, or should be cheap,hence the reason why the
> civil war was fought. show me one of these foreign car companies
> that establish themselves in a geographical area that is anywhere
> north kentucky. you won't! these car companies that come to this
> country know more about history and demographics in order to get
> the most bang for their buck. remember,it's the south who have NEVER
> had respect for the labor force, chaingangs,civil war,slave labor.
> come one folks, he who blames labor for any type of ruination in
> this country is a fool.blame a working man for working.thats insane.whats
> even more insane is the notion that its a union's fault. wake up
> america. he who has never belonged, or has never gotten their finger
> nails dirty will never understand.time to keep the eye on the real
> ball is now. southern politicians who want to protect the notion
> that labor is only worth 20k a yr., lawyers and insurance companies
> as well. get a clue

What incredible drivel. Does Detroit UAW employees represent an educated work force to anyone? Doesn't Detroit auto say somewhere that if you have a high school education that you're somehow overqualified? I mean, really!
As to the notion that the Unions caused the auto companies to blow up----well, I will heap a bit of scorn on management as well. Management didn't have to sign on to those disastrous UAW contracts starting back decades ago to the current year. I mean they really weren't looking at long-term viability of the industry. The auto industry has huge fixed expenses which they pay whether there is a strike or not and it costs millions per day to sit idle. Ultimately, I think it came down to CEO bonuses. What CEO was willing to forgo their current bonuses for the long term health of the company? Bonuses should have been structured in contract renegotiation year for this fact.
The UAW is faulted for using their considerable leverage in an industry that was beholden to supplier contracts, idled plant labor costs, gold plated healthcare plans, and intolerable work rules. The UAW plan now is to push card check, force foreign transplant employees into the UAW, raise their bottom line, send those jobs out of the country, all supported by taxpayer dollars. As for those loans, they will be either converted to stock or be forgiven.

The Case for Making Bigger Cars

So much misinformation in so many posts. I might as well add my two cents and let you all abuse me too.
Its not that Ford is in such better shape. They just have more of a financial cushion to burn through due to better timing on seeking additional financing before credit disappeared.
Another overlooked fact is that the big 3 have been manufacturing small cars overseas for those markets that have had that demand.
Here in the U.S., the demand for small cars has been dismal for years. It was only with the abrupt change in gasoline prices that demand is changing. Even more important is that because of their much more expensive legacy costs and decades of much higher wages, the big 3 wouldn't have been able to cover those expenses in cheaper economy cars. They couldn't compete in little cars here in the U.S.
Now, for the elephant in the room. They still aren't competitive manufacturing economy cars in Detroit. Nothing has changed.....well actually, nothing has changed with their expenses that will make them competitive. If we just subsidize them going forward, the automobile companies can be more competitive with the Japanese economy cars, the UAW will be happy, and the Democrats in Congress will strengthen their support among union workers. The loser is the American taxpayer. Its not about the 15B. its about the first down payment on the auto companies future heroin habit. It will never stop because they can't survive without it.

Auto Industry Rescue Delays the Inevitable

Krugman published his work 30 years ago. It isn't any new theory. Its not even clear he still believes his earlier work. Nevertheless, he isn't likely to denounce that which got him his prize now. One may wonder what took them so long. Its because his work didn't really deserve a Nobel prize. It was purely a political choice before the U.S. elections where the Nobel prize voters are a roomful of European socialists with a watchful eye on the American elections.


On Dec 10 10:33 AM Fred Banks wrote:

> ........ although he (Krugman) probably knows more than last year's prize winners, whose work was completely and totally without any scientific value, and so they needn't be questioned.

Auto Industry Rescue Delays the Inevitable

i see this car czar as a Congressional marketing ploy to hide the fact that they're totally unwilling to push the UAW to rework their contracts. Part of the congressional/UAW plan may be new expectations with the card check bill. If the UAW can infuse new union dynamics into the domestic based foreign auto manufacturers plans, they might be able to afford the UAW cost structure as it now stands. The mistake in this thinking is to assume that these foreign auto manufacturers haven't learned anything from UAW history and remain in the U.S.

Bailout Watch: Heading for a Populist Backlash?

If its courage that brought Thailand such a heritage of advanced culture and financial dominance as it now has, I vote for fear.


On Dec 09 03:28 PM bosun.j wrote:

> It's a crying shame that Americans don't have the same courage that
> Thai people have. Were that the case the situation we're now in wouldn't
> have ended up plunging the planet into cultural and financial collapse.

Should We Really Bail Out the Big Three Automakers with $73.20 Per Hour Labor?

Hey, I could use a bailout. I'm not being foreclosed on, and I'm not laying people off, which should allow me some goodwill points. Enough of these multi-billion dollar packages. How greedy!! I have to be responsible with taxpayer money. I'll go discount here. I propose $5 million. I'll even happily pay in the new higher tax bracket to show my patriotism.

Should We Really Bail Out the Big Three Automakers with $73.20 Per Hour Labor?

Its readily apparent that the big 3 will be bailed out, they will make little or no changes to their labor costs with the Obama administration in charge, and it will become necessary to infuse more and more and more and more money into these companies in what will be a failed attempt to prop up these companies. What killed these companies is the dual combination of failed engineering and labor expense containment. Ultimately, management is at fault. Therefore, they need to fail. For those that raise up financial firms and ask why we don't allow them to fail, I agree in my heart. However, my head tells me otherwise. The problem is that if we allow firms such as AIG, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch to fail, counterparty risk will bring down the entire world financial structure. Because business relies upon finance, they will all fail as well. We got a sample of what will happen when we allowed Lehman Brothers to fail. Just like a child that touches a hot griddle for the first time.