The South rose again, and Alabama Senator Richard "Dick" Shelby waved his confederate flag and led his white hooded mafia to a rousing defeat of the American auto industry -- all based on his hatred of unions and his attempt to score points with the foreign automakers who have plants in his state.The Senate had no problem handing the financial industry all the money it needed without condition or concession to correct the economy, never mind that no evidence has presented itself that they've even tried to do so. But when the CEOs of General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford came to Washington for help, they got their noses rubbed in the carpet for flying private jets.
These cats spend taxpayer dollars on golf outings for Saudi sheiks and they're complaining about guys flying their own jets.
Bottom line is that unless billions of dollars magically show up for Detroit, the town, the State of Michigan, and several surrounding states are screwed in the short term and the U.S. in the long term. ...
Leaving A Family Legacy
Will & Jada Smith have no problems with their children following in their footsteps in Hollywood.
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Willow & Jaden have both been cast into their father's movies.
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Phillippi Sparks' son might not have carried on the family football tradition of the NFL cornerback. But his daughter found success in another field.
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Jordin Sparks, the winner of the sixth season of American Idol and sang the "National Anthem" for the Super Bowl XLII, which made he dad very proud.
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Actor Alan Thicke passed on his good looks to his son, but not the acting gene.
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While Grammy Award winning singer Robin Thicke does acting on occasion, he actually carries on the legacy of his singer mother Gloria Loring, who co-wrote the theme songs to "Diff'rent Strokes" and "The Facts of Life" with his father.
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A name as cool asCuba Gooding has to be passed down through generations. The elder Cuba Gooding, the lead singer of the soul group The Main Ingredient, has passed on his legacy of entertaining to his two sons.
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In Cuba Gooding, Jr. movie "Radio," there is a scene where he is listening to The Main Ingredient. He's pictured here with his brother Omar.
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Basil Patterson a labor lawyer and longtime political leader in New York and Harlem passed the torch to his son, the 55th Governor of New York.
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Before becoming Governor, David Patterson represented the same Harlem district in the State Senate that his father did.
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As UAW head Ron Gettlefinger pointed out at a Detroit press conference, Shelby and his cronies either do not care or are too ignorant to know how they may well have damned the U.S. economy. Truth is, most wealthy southerners cringe at the very idea of organized labor. Their idea of a good job and a living wage are the honorable duties and lofty wages of a Wal-Mart greeter.
The GOP felt that the bailout plan did not do enough to ensure that the auto companies could return to viability, but the devil is in the details. There was only one real sticking point in this whole debacle: the union. The Rebubs wanted the UAW to cut their wages and benefits down to parity with that of workers who are employed by foreign automakers, which they were willing to do by 2011 because of the complicated means of doing it and because that's when their contract expires.
Shelby and Co. wanted it done immediately and when the union said it had no more blood to give, the Senate voted the loan of $14 billion down.
This comes after weeks of conservatives who know nothing about automaking blathering on television the myth that every autoworker makes $70 and hour; that they sit in factories and do nothing all day; that Chapter 11 bankruptcy will give the companies a chance to restructure themselves and correct every problem; that the financial and credit crisis has nothing to do with poor auto sales.
Here are some facts:
_ The average autoworker wage in this country is closer to about $28 an hour. It goes up when benefits and insurance costs are factored in.
_ Auto plants are filled with people who have several responsibilities from welders, to engineers to inspectors, to linemen and women. It's tireless, stressful work and it takes teams of skilled laborers much effort to put together good cars. I should know, I was raised in a family of them.
_ Chapter 11 bankruptcy will almost certainly lead to Chapter 7 liquidation because there is not enough time to restructure the companies in a way that will allow them to become more efficient and eventually profitable. In the early 80s, Chrysler did have the time because they were given a chance by the government.
_ The economy tempest we're in is the biggest culprit of all in the suffering of the Big 3. The diminishing inability of many Americans to get loans to finance large purchases was predicted months ago to have an effect on the auto industries since, like homes, most people do not buy cars outright with cash.
Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, whose home state hosts GM's Saturn plant and other foreign automakers did try to negotiate with Gettlefinger to make some type of 11th hour deal. But Scrooge Shelby would have none of it. Essentially, the GOP's demand was that there would be no deal unless the union put the barrel of a sawed-off shotgun in its mouth and pulled the trigger.
Now, I'm not saying that the Big 3 have not made mistakes. To be honest, the seeds were sewn when Hondas and Toyotas entered the American marketplace in the 70s, giving baby boomers who couldn't afford Detroit hogs cheaper cars to drive during a double-whammy recession and oil crisis. The children of those baby boomers grew up and remembered those brands, never feeling loyal to the American companies. Instead of offering them cost-effective fuel efficient options in the 90s, they sold them SUVs that they eventually would not be able to afford when their credit went bad.
Some of the blame does go to the UAW, even though they negotiated for future wages and benefits for younger workers, they did not see the writing on the wall when it came to what U.S. trade policies would do to their employers, making them unable to stay profitable and continue with the wage and benefit structure.
Most of the blame goes to the American consumer (YES YOU), however, for demanding gas guzzlers from the Big 3 as if the 90s gravy train would never run out. Rather than demanding and purchasing well-engineered, safe autos with a high resale value, you bought those big, ugly Escalades and Yukons. That was pretty stupid, folks.
There is one last longshot, maybe (and I do mean maybe) President Bush will redeem himself for eight years of idiocy by giving money meant to bailout the finance industry to the auto companies. $14 billion does not seem like a lot when the potential cost to the U.S. could run into the trillions in unemployment payments, welfare, business bankruptcies and health care.
New Orleans had been warned for years that a storm like Hurricane Katrina would wipe the town out. Nobody listened. Nobody wanted to spend the relative pittance of federal money it would have taken to shore up the levies in that town to prevent catastrophe. The storm came. The storm destroyed an entire American city.
Once again we're facing a catastrophe that Stevie Wonder could see with clarity. If nobody acts, we can expect a slow motion Hurricane Katrina, first in Detroit, then spreading to the entire nation.
Comments: (19)
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By: B jones on 12/12/2008 5:03PM
The auto bailout did not pass. The sky did not fall. Congress go home. Bush and Paulson, let the markets alone. We are tired of all this BALOUT mess!
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By: z brown on 12/13/2008 7:03PM
Thats easy for you to say I live in MI, I my husband has been out of work for a year in January!! I work in the heathcare field and with the big 3 going down so are health insurances, so now I am worried about my job because of the ripple effect. I dont think people understand how serious and important this really is. Once the big 3 is gone in MI and surrounding areas the suppliers lose money and go out of business, the restaurants thats near these factories go out of business, no insurance cant get healthcare hospitals are laying off, no money no shopping so basically no jobs in sector!! We are watching this happen daily. I know that its tough everywhere but when the main source of jobs leaves everything else is going to follow.
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By: CatuKe on 12/13/2008 8:59PM
At first I was under the impression the auto industry bailout was merely a stab Obama's Presidency. I assumed the automakers were going to try his face since their base is Obama's home state. Try his face in a sense to see if he would bail them out biasedly or not help them stubbornly. Which would prove in that situation he would not be able to win for losing. It may not be that though since Bush is eyeballing things b4 his departure. Its going to be a hard pill to swallow which ever way this goes. Its not like we want to work for the man all our days, maybe this will bring the push alot of us need! Bright Side
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By: whatsthatmean! on 12/13/2008 9:24PM
Hello BRAND NEW JAPANESE AUTO PLANT OFF I-85 TO AUBURN. WHO PAID FOR THE CLEARANCE OF THE LAND, THE LAND ITSELF THE INCENTIVES TO COME TO ALABAMA. GREED SHELBY WANTS IT ALL TO HIMSELF.OH THE TRANSPLANTS DON'T NEED A UNION BECAUSE THEY PAY THE SAME WAGES GIVE OR TAKE A DOLLAR OR TWO. THEY DO EVERYTHING THE DETROIT 3 DOES WITHOUT A UNION. BUYOUTS THEY ARE OFFERING THEM JUST LIKE DETROIT. MONKEY SEE MONKEY DO
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By: Tychalla on 12/13/2008 10:35PM
White,Southern males won't be happy until they finish off this country.They should've never let these stump jumping inbreds back into the Union.And by the way,Iam from Mississippi.Have you noticed that these same Southern states are the last in education,standard of living, etc.But what do you expect from a bunch of rubbish that actually thought their agri based system could win a war against an industrial based system?Bottom feeders.You can put a monkey in a suit but it's still a monkey.
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By: Curt on 12/14/2008 12:00AM
This is not a Black-White, East-West, or North-South issue, but an American issue. It's an isue that affects every American. Unfortunately most American's are completely ignorant and uninformed to the ramifactions of what it would mean to each of our lives to loose what is left of our eroding manufacturing base.
On one level its obvious that the Union's are being portrayed as the boogeymen. That Union scale wages and benifits are the cause for the "Big 3's" slow decline. Hmm. Is it really, or is our home manufacturing base been the victims of nearly four-decades of unrestrained foreign imports and unfair trade policies?
The ancient Roman's, (masters of political intrigue), use to have a saying, "To understand why something has happened, look to who has the most to gain?"
Look at the big picture. Who would stand the most to gain in seeing the collapse of not only our auto-industry, but the entire structure of our manufacturing base? You figure it out.
Anyhow, it's very sad. I've lived in the Detroit-Metro area all my life, and have watched this town slowly decay. By the Senate failing to invest in the future of our auto-industry reeks of payloa and self-intrest.
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By: Mhasty910 on 12/14/2008 6:54AM
IN 1980-1995, PLANT AFTER PLANT IN MANUFACTURING CLOSED IN THE SOUTH. MANY SINGLE MOMS HAD TO RETRAIN AND FIND ANOTHER WAY TO PROVIDE FOR THEIR FAMILIES. I WAS ONE OF THEM. NO ONE BAILED US OUT. IN WILMINGTON NC ALONG, AT LEAST 10 PLANTS CLOSED. WHERE WAS OUR BAIL OUT??? HERE ARE THE FACTS: FOR THE PAST 10 YEARS OR MORE AMERICAN AUTO MAKERS MADE MONEY OFF OF SUV'S AND BIG TRUCKS, THAT WERE OVER PRICED!!! WHERE IS THE MONEY ??? NOBODY SAVED FOR A RAINEY DAY!!! GOOD CARS, THATS A JOKE. THE BEST MADE IN THE USA IS A CHEVY.I KNOW BECAUSE I DRIVE A 1998 BROUGHT BRAND NEW. RUN LIKE A TRAIN. I WILL KEEP IT UNTIL IT FALLS TO PEICES. HONDA AND TOYOTAS=LESS MAINTENACE AND MORE FUEL EFFICIENT. EXPECT SLOW MOTION, THE SUN WILL NOT SHINE IN YOUR YARD EVERYDAY!!! BREAK YOUR STANDARD OF LIVING DOWN.....
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By: Thomas Guyton on 12/14/2008 3:30PM
As a GM/UAW worker, I thank you brother for your keen insight.Our company and workers only build the products that our customers desire. What company in it's right mind would refuse to build smaller cars if that's what the market ask for. That would be suicidal.You want electric or fuel cells, those things are in the pipeline.
For those of you who say " suck it up, I had to go through it",I say to you, at one time in history, Ford,GM, and Chrysler were 3 of the top 5 largest corporations in the world, not just the U.S. If you do not understand how their downfall would effect every american citizen, then you probably don't understand the general principals of economics. It's just like the Bank bailouts, bitter pill, but necessary.
As far as saying we make too much money,I will try to keep that in mind, as I go to physical therapy for my assorted aches and pains. I will tell that to widows whose spouses died of cancer, breathing toxic fumes in these facilities.
In closing, let's get out of this crabs in a barrel mentality. Instead of knocking us and trying to bring us down to where you are, let's pray and work together to bring you up to where we are.
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By: Wanda on 12/14/2008 12:13PM
Why bail out a failed business? For the life of me, I can't fathom why. Today mother's aren't paid to stay home and have the babies who grow up and buy the gluttony of cars available..... And because manufacturing cars never stops, unneeded cars are being produced, just to continue incomes.... What named this industry immune? SOMEONE HAD TO KNOW THAT AT SOME POINT THE CARS BEING MANUFACTURED WOULD NEED TO SLOW DOWN OR GO DOWN IN PRICE.
WHY NOT END IT NOW SINCE IT'S TOO LATE TO SLOW IT DOWN?
Trillions in unemployment? (on $900 every two weeks for 6 months?????) EXCUSES EXCUSES AND EXCUSES!
Businesses fail. It should not be that someone gets to choose which we bail out........
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By: Chris on 12/14/2008 12:23PM
Your Article spreads ignorance..the Banks vs auto dealers is about basic economics...banks support things that appreciate over time and have value while cars only depreciate and there is no way tax payers can get their money back from a failed union plaqued business model like that of the big 3
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