Since the public eye has swung back toward the financial crisis the only thing I hear on the radio are interviews with executives from domestic automakers or the unions. On top of attempting to get government assistance, in both Canada and the U.S., they appear to be trying to make their case to the buying public. We are supposed to soften up and encourage our governments to hand over enormous amounts of "short term" cash to car manufacturers because they are the backbone of our collective economies.
For now, this is a generally true statement. But who, other than a strict conservative, wants that to continue being the case? The US has already carved out 700 billion to distribute amongst the most guilty parties responsible for this crisis. Now, other than the direct link to the oil industry, the second-most culpable group wants money to stay alive? They don't appear to be even cracking a smile when they ask. The 25 billion dollar figure that keeps floating around, by most estimates, won't even cover GM's troubles over the next two years. Forget about Chrysler and Ford. And what would they do with this infusion of cash that would help them become viable in this new world order? I don't think they have it in them to change this much. They're dinosaurs and have already been out of touch for more than twenty years. May I remind anybody "Who Killed the Electric Car?"
I've been thinking about it quite a bit, because it's unavoidable, and I am personally turning a cold shoulder to all big 3 automakers. We are trying so hard in North America to keep using the broken system because so many are plugged into it and don't know anything else. But, it's time for everyone to reclaim that pioneering spirit that we all grew up learning about in our history books and decide what the new backbone of our economies is going to be. New clean and renewable energy research and infrastructure construction alone would likely replace the jobs lost by the automakers going under. And that's only one new wave of industry (that is being blocked at every turn by the desperate bureaucrats still grasping onto their old world power).
If the governments support this buyout, who is next in line? I'm sure whoever they are, they will make a strong case about their past glories and importance to the overall economy. It's all just too absurd. Whatever happened to competition - fair and square?
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