http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2008/11/13/a_couple_more_perspectives_on Comments On: A Couple More Perspectives on the GM Bailout by Erica C. Barnett en-us Copyright 2009 The Stranger. All rights reserved. This RSS file is offered to individuals, The Stranger readers, and non-commercial organizations only. Any commercial websites wishing to use this RSS file, please contact The Stranger. webmaster@thestranger.com (The Stranger Webmaster) Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:01 -0800 Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:15:00 -0800 Foundation http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss volvo parts - that people wanted to buy.


Posted by petty]]> Wed, 01 Apr 2009 00:44:54 -0700 The Stranger
Posted by Oshawamom]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2008 17:30:54 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Kevin]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 22:03:21 -0800 The Stranger
Politicians, ARE YOU LISTENING !
Posted by BULL]]> Fri, 14 Nov 2008 13:17:49 -0800 The Stranger
You don't give a dog a bone for destroying your favorite pillow do you?

Give a man a fish you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish and you have fed him for a lifetime.

Well, great, we have given fish to the banks and automakers with failed business plans (and no reward for the ones that didn't fail I might add). I can't wait until next month when GM needs their next fish installment.

Let's see if we can find some more failed businesses to give handouts to, that way there will be no reason in any business to bother trying to be profitable - just fail and wait for handouts.


Posted by Kurt]]> Fri, 14 Nov 2008 10:41:47 -0800 The Stranger
Obama campaigned heavily on energy independence, protecting US jobs, and "American ingenuity". Using the taxpayers' dime to outsource the next generation automobile to a foreign company, even if they are employing Americans, wouldn't go over well.
Posted by Mahtli69]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:58:11 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Bellevue Ave]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:06:17 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Jesse]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:59:32 -0800 The Stranger Posted by elenchos]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:24:59 -0800 The Stranger

Posted by Mahtli69]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:58:16 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Jennifer]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:44:59 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Fnarf]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:26:55 -0800 The Stranger
My experiences driving GM's are usually rentals, and there have been many. All of them drive like shit, handle like shit, and look like shit. From the response of the automatic transmission (yes, I just accelerated; no, I didn't want to downshift to 2nd at 65mph), to the spongy suspension (yes, I want to change lanes; no, I don't want to roll over), to that god-awful interior (why does the dashboard look like a giant marshmallow, and why is the windshield 6 feet in front of me?). Even the stereo sucks (I am listening to music in a car and not a giant bathtub, right?)

One time I rented a car and got a Chevy Malibu. It had a sun roof, which would be great, except it was over the back seat. Who the fuck puts a sunroof over the BACK seat? GM, that's who.

Remember, this is the same company that marketed the Chevy Nova in Mexico without realizing that "No va" means "No go" in Spanish.

It's a dysfunctional company from top to bottom. If they were a horse, they'd be taken out and shot.


Posted by Mahtli69]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:01:12 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Will in Seattle]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:53:08 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Andy Niable]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:29:50 -0800 The Stranger
GM does some things about cars very very well...
and some not so well and some, well, badly.

With the possible exception of the 4 cylinder aluminum block Vega they have never made the worst cars in the world. (remaining Vega owners: joke).

GM transmissions were (are?) used by Rolls-Royce.

GM engines, for the most part, will take quite a bit of abuse (reference: Mythbusters).

Production line work was (don't know if it still
is) soul-sapping in a way that makes being a convenience store clerk seem inspiring.

GM is a long long way from the worst in the world although I sometimes thought a few 70's models were trying mighty hard for that title.
Posted by David]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:17:38 -0800 The Stranger
The problem with this "50 MPG" condition is that, if it is not applied to the other car companies, GM will die just as fast as they would without a bailout. Everyone will just buy 30 MPG Toyotas, like they already do, only more so. A 50 MPG car is a niche product, even in the places that have them now.

The long-term problem with GM is not the unions. That's causing cash-flow problems that are making it difficult to finance corporate change, but it didn't cause the problems that got them into this bind. That problem is purely corporate: GM designs shitty cars, period. And not just shitty, but shittily aligned with the market. This is not unique to GM; there is essentially NOTHING that a Ford or Chrysler offers either that Hyundai doesn't do better and cheaper. American cars are suffering from an intellectual failure, which has led to a failure of branding. It's almost impossible to imagine what could possibly make an American car cool again. Cadillac did it, but that's the wrong direction: huge gas guzzlers. The trucks did it to some extent, but that's also the wrong direction.
Posted by Fnarf]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:07:01 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Bellevue Ave]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:06:55 -0800 The Stranger
The predictions of 2-3 million unemployed are exaggerated, incidentally: those predictions come from GM itself or its lackeys.
Posted by Simac]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:59:46 -0800 The Stranger Posted by crazycatguy]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:49:37 -0800 The Stranger
It's really just a fake side issue to try to avoid talking about health care in America.

Want to solve GM's problems? Instead of bailing them out with cash they'll just spend on current and former CEOs and execs and on dividends, PREPAY for all the NEW CARS and TRUCKS - high-mpg ones or plug-in hybrids - that we need for the US government including military.

Then you create jobs, force them to retool, give them volume so the price to manufacture drops, and the money goes back into the economy.

Damned Socialist Republicans and their Socialist Bailout lies ...
Posted by Will in Seattle]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:44:43 -0800 The Stranger
The GM problems start at the top and work their way down. compensation is a red herring. Capping executive compensation wont make companies more financially healthy and wont improve the future outlook of these companies. any attempt to do so is based on emotional distress, not rational thought.
Posted by Bellevue Ave]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:36:34 -0800 The Stranger Posted by StC]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:34:47 -0800 The Stranger Posted by elenchos]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:34:01 -0800 The Stranger If you own 49% of a big mortgage outfit today you are in financial pain no matter how good the
cars are.

GM has been called an investment/retirement/insurance firm that makes cars on the side and that's not entirely wrong.

There are a lot of innovative, smart people at GM and I hope they get their chance now that the not-so-innovative have had their go.

Posted by David]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:25:55 -0800 The Stranger