put the dumb animal out of its misery
Detroit automakers are having financial trouble. Again.
Why?
Because they’re Americans and Americans don’t give a damn.
I say let the dead fruit rot and fall to the ground.
If Chrysler, GM, and Ford had started making alternative energy vehicles instead of lobbying for years against raising fuel efficiency, perhaps they wouldn’t be in this mess. It’s not like they didn’t have many warnings from foreign competitors. Sales for Toyota’s Prius have skyrocketed, and last I heard waiting lists in U.S. are more than 6 months for that ugly little vehicle.
This is not the first time Detroit failed to listen to Japan’s successful trend setting. Japan entered the car market with their fuel-efficient cars, during the gas crunch of the 70’s. In the 80’s, Japanese cars got quality-conscious and started to woo the maturing hippies who’d sold out and started having families. In the 90’s came the family and luxury vehicles for that aging population. Recently we’ve seen the new divisions of the now popular Japanese car brands aimed at the children of the aging hippies that Japan coddled for a lifetime. Now the Prius and its back-ordered hybrid technology.
Is Japan on her third or fourth generation of alternative fuel vehicles? And the U.S.?! Well, the U.S. car companies are crying to the guhment to help bail them out. But who can blame them? They’re Americans and Americans do what they want, when they want. They make cars they want, regardless of logic or reason. Besides, in America this is the age of private profit and public debt. Just shift the burden to taxpayers.
Detroit has sat on its hands and played dumb so long and so well that I’m not sure it’s an act. Maybe those guys in management are just that stupid. I say it’s time to put the dumb animal out of its misery. If these 3 huge auto-making brands cannot keep themselves in business after many repeated opportunities, let them die. The Regan/Bush voters would surely not mind if market forces take their natural course.
Speaking of which, we have another example of Wall Street giving financial innovation a bad name. The troubles the U.S. “big 3” are currently facing are not entirely due to stupid American arrogance, it’s also that no one can get a loan to buy a car. The jacked-up Wall Street investments that rested on the housing market are enjoying the fruits of their self-regulated banking environment and plain old greed. Oops.
Let the dead fruit rot and fall to the ground. Put the dumb animal out of its misery. If GM, Chrysler and Ford are finally realizing their inevitable deaths, give me a dollar of the bailout money and I’ll try to care a little.