Mexstan

There have been many threads here about unions, management (or lack thereof) politics, why the American manufactures are dying and more. Lately the news is rife with stories about the big three auto manufactures and how they are dying. Have just read a news story about GM and am posting it for your comments. Could this guy be right? If he is wrong, why?

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/ar...TICLE_ID=47857

MCMLV

Pat is right of course, but only to the extent that it is the poison that kills not the person giving it, or as some would say it is the gun not the person pulling the triger.

westcoaster

American protectionism is alive and well today, All one needs to do is look at the softwood lumber issue. America has lost appeal after appeal (Americas claim Canada is unfairly subsidising Canada's lumber industry) NAFTA has found time and time again there is no subsidy on canada's part. So America keeps the tarifs in place. This in turn adds (tens?) thousands of dollars to the cost of an american house just in the protectionist tarifs and duties alone.
One would have thought that with the latest huricanes in the gulf and the rebuilding that is going on the insurance companies and the consumer would have been lobying a lot harder to have these duties removed....

rammtuff

While shopping for furniture etc for our place you can't help but notice the junk they (retailers) try to pass off at high prices. Check where it is built. China. After some searching we found top quality US made hardwood (maple)furniture (bedroom) for about the same money (approx 3% more)
I always try to purchase high quality goods. This is getting more and more difficult. Try to get support for software. It would be nice to speak to english speaking techs.
Do you think the shareholders killed manufacturing? People always wanting high gains on their stocks and at the same time sacrificing their neighbors jobs?

HOHN

I can't tell you how many times I've found myself on the phone thinking, "I thought I pressed "One, for English".

I actually had to tell the woman to patch me to someone else, her English was so bad as to be incomprehendable.

signature600

I like it when they say their name is "John" or "Sally"

Sure it is,
Chris

grantx5

Where's the problem? Look in your garage (or in mine). That's not an American made car. What brand of TV do you watch? Who made your camera, your PC, your cell phone, etc.?

It ain't going to change until we decide to change it. Washington is not listening nor are the auto makers. It's going to take a grass roots effort to take our country back or our country will cease to exist.

When we stop buying everything from Walmart, Toyota, Honda, Sony, blah, blah, blah, maybe things will begin to change.

Contact your financial manager and invest in American companies only. Buy American, tout American, be proud of American, vote American.

...end of sermon.

P.J

I see this one getting shut down, but 'll throw in my 2 cents anyway.

I don't by the line of crap that is fed to us that breaks this nightmare down to American workers are lazy and Unions demand too high of a wage.

I don't need a $450.00 laptop, or a $99.00 digital camera. THIS is the difference between what we WERE and what we ARE today. 25 years ago there wasn't 5 televisions,2 DVD players, 3 cars, and 2 computers per household.
Where am I heading with this?
1) We are lazy to a certian extent. We would rather buy 5 throw away parts then spend the money for one quility one the first time.

2) (I know this one will go over well) It IS the CEO's and CFO's and whatever other initals you can put together that make the final decisions that end up in India and China suppling 97% of what us overweight Americans devour at our local Walmarts as fast as they can stock it.


I feel bad for any employess and thier families that are hurt in the short term by GM.
The whole idea of buying American is GONE, no pride in our products, no backing by our Government, no incentive to shop in local stores.

P.J

One more thing, then I'll zip it.

Just as some are going to say, "don't blame this all on "Big Business", cause they are all made up of us" (meaning, your son or daughter, neighbor, mother, father, freinds, etc.)
Well, keep in mind that just as that is somewhat true, the same goues for Union labor. I know there is a certian percentage that is good for nothing, but what about the guy who has showed up everyday and put his blood and sweat into the job? We are quick to dump on him aren't we? "Oh, he makes $30.00 an hour, now we can't afford to buy American made cars anymore"

BULL!

DF5152

GM is feeling the effects of a company that has been in business for almost if not 100 years. With people living longer the money's they are paying out in retirment benefits and health care cause them to price there cars beyond what the average person wants to pay. and the quality is just not always there. then what ever nuckle head came up with some of the styles should have been fired years ago!!! They show us prototypes that everyone drewels over then when it hits the market it looks and performes nothing like the prototype. Gm is relying on its brand loyal customers to keep them in business and they are running out of those. Although the workforce now employed by GM is nothing compared to what it was years ago the trickle down affect coulde be a major disaster. What once were foriegn auto makes are now assembled in the US so Are not 100% foriegn leading to our global economy and lessening the tarriffs paid. Unions and child labor laws where made year ago to help better work places and stop the exploitations of children and workers. now we out source to other countries and say were are helping there economy but exploit there workers who make pennies on the dollar compared to American workers and use children. There is no longer a need for a TV repair man just throw it away and buy new, thats what really annoys me. We have become a disposable society. Supply and demand are artificially controlled by alot of the manufactures, if you think the gas and fuel are not you are just kidding yourself, and there is no real competition anymore. The government allows monopolies which keeps quality down and price up and its only gonna get worse....remember it all comes down to this $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

dezeldog

I would have to agree with all of you but I think grantex5 hit right on the head.

Jim

DieselDaze

Yes, these kinds of threads have a tendancy to get ugly. However, the fate of these threads are always up to the members. As long as everyone stays civil, the thread stay open.

Rich

supr

Interesting editorial in our Sunday paper. The readers digest, after 1948, demad for cars was high, so big 3 & unions stuck to us, because they could. Big benefits. Jobs for life. High wages.
1980- Toyota & Japs limited by Reagan. Make huge profits on what they do sell. Make enough money to start building plants here. Toyota now has 7 assembly, 3 motor plants in US now.
1975- Emissions- US cars go down hill for 15 more years. Quality reaches new low.
Big 3 start losing market share every year.
Toyota now makes as many cars as Chrysler in this contry & will soon overtake Ford. They sell their vehicles for $1500-$2000 more than big 3, because of quality, better manufaturing efficiency and they do not pay the same high scales to parts suppliers. They do pay benefits similar to big 3 to plant workers, but no long term contract to do so.
The moral: Big 3 have a big hole to get out of. It will take better managment as well as better contracts to get there. If things don't change quickly, they will be gone. What is so pitiful, GM does not even act like it has a problem. Ford wants to blame the Japense Govt., which has not helped anybody in 15 years, because their economy sucks. Ford needs to look in the mirror, or perhaps no further than their new diesel motor than seems to have lots of issues.

pmtg

American's are only concerned with the bottom dollar (a generality, not so much respresentative of this site). whether it be the CEO of a company or the shopper at walmart. we want to save as much as we can or make as much as we can. and many times what one can afford at the moment is the cheaper item and it will have to suffice.

usually we dont need it, we just want it.

but the items we need, we only make this mistake a few times. if the quality, craftsmanship, efficiency, objectives, value, etc cannot be met with the cheaper product, it has just become a loss to the individual that purchased it and they will look elsewhere for a better product. not to jump on the Ford bandwagon, but with the 6.0 motor having endless problems and being used by many for their jobs, it becomes a liability. and if the American automobile manufacturers cant produce a quality product, the purchaser will look elsewhere.

for America to grow financially and politically, we need to grab the international markets. we want other countries to buy our products, and we want to buy their products. its a game. by saying we want to keep everything American, they could very well do the same. lose our international markets and we'd be hurting.

my 2 yen