Displaying some of that fine business acumen that forced them to go begging hat-in-hand before Congress for a slice of taxpayers dough, GM unveiled a new Cadillac at the Detroit Auto Show. I'm sure it's what most of what Wall Street will be spending their financial bailout on.
This highlights the out-of-touchedness of GM CEOs: while the country is in a depression, and many Americans have turned to shoplifting,they trot out a vehicle that even most people who can still afford to drive (what with oil prices sure to climb on the heels of the holocaust in Palestine) can't afford to buy.
There was a time when I supported bailing out US automakers, but as much as I would hate to see tens of thousands of autoworkers out of work, I cannot on the other hand see a continuation of a system that rewards such managerial incompetence.
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5 comments:
I've never supported any of these bailouts, Wall street or Detroit. If the Government made a special order of a highly efficient vehicles and the big three filled that order all sides would be better in the long run.
It's a tough call, whether to bail out Detroit (for the sake of thousands of workers, not the executives). But stories like this are taking away the little sympathy or empathy Americans might still have for the auto industry.
General Comment: The corporate media, which hate union autoworkers, are setting up a pair of false choices. We are not limited to giving the automakers blank checks or adding hundreds of thousands of people with decent paying jobs to the swelling ranks of the unemployed. The federal government can put whatever strings it wants on a bailout.
Frederick: What you are supporting is a bailout, just a different kind. It's an excellent idea, but it's still a bailout.
Tom Harper: Important economic decisions during a deep recession should not be based on sympathy or the lack thereof. Auto workers aren't the ones that are making the bad decisions, yet they will face the worst of the consequences for them.
I hear what you're saying, but the other thing to consider is that GM makes very little profit on small cars. They need to find a good mix of products that appeal to people at all levels of income.
One of the Detroit papers did have a flattering review of a new version of the Aveo that Chevy is unveiling later this year. Unfortunately, there will always be a market for Cadillacs and other fancy cars too. You don't think rich people would be caught dead in a compact car, do you?
Libhom is right "Auto workers aren't the ones that are making the bad decisions, yet they will face the worst of the consequences for them."
However, concerning your point about the Cadillac. For most of the history of the Cadillac marque, it has been a car that most people can't afford to buy.
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