It was a disaster, a quagmire, a nightmare, and the American government should have never gotten us involved… But, some short term goals have been met and now they’re getting ready to start pulling out, which is at least moderately good news… I speak, of course, of General Motors.
Rufus F.
Rufus is a likeable curmudgeon. He has a PhD in History, sang for a decade in a punk band, and recently moved to NYC after nearly two decades in Canada. He wrote the book "The Paris Bureau" from Dio Press (2021).
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on From The Wall Street Journal: How the White House Functioned With a Diminished Biden in ChargeHave you spent much time in blue cities? Growing up near Detroit, I can say the Dems talk a great ga…
on Youngsters Make Merry at Evanston Country Club Christmas PartyHester Walrath (1898-1971) went on to attend Northwestern University, marry a businessman, and have…
on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024So the "CR" of 1500 pages, given to members 24 hours before the vote, and which did all kinds of thi…
on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024Do you not understand the irony of speaking positively about banning political parties in the same b…
on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024I suppose we could blame the townspeople for not showing up the umpteenth time the shepherd boy crie… on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024A small backlash? If the election were held today they would be the 2nd biggest party in the Bundest…
on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024I have no idea why pointing out that Na.zis were elected legitimately is relevant to this discussion… on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024No, I'm pointing out that you find 'Trump is Hitler' more absurd than 'These people are Na.zis', so…
on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024The local paper referenced this work, partially paid for by the feds, this morning. Some of the phas… on Open Mic for the week of 12/16/2024And I will, again, point you that you are the first to mention Hitler, You sure about that? Maybe re…
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Let’s see the UAW turned their back on their brothers/sisters in the USW back in the 60-70’s when Big Auto started buying foreign steel because it was ‘cheaper.’ “The hell with American steel,” they said.
Well, guess what, the shoes on the other foot. So, it’s the “hell with the UAW,” I’ll buy Ford or foreign but I sure as hell will never buy Obama moters!Report
@Robert Cheeks, Baby steps, Bob. Governments are very seldom any good at running companies. So GM being in a hurry to rid themselves of the ‘government motors’ tag is not bad news.Report
Sorry Rufus. This does not agree with conservative talking points and fears, therefore it is not happening. And The Economist is a liberal rag. hell people probably think drudge is an asshole there so its all propaganda.Report
Hahaha so I usually try to guess the authors of “Off the Cuff” posts before I check. I had this one pegged as Kuznicki for sure.Report
Well, at least the auto bailout didn’t kill anybody, and the government withdrawal is starting a lot sooner.Report
@Katherine,
Is that really the best rational you can come up to support Obama’s UAW bailout? The gov’t will get out of GM and then the UAW can ruin the rest of the company with their wage extortion.Report
@Scott,
A truly moral UAW would donate its labor in support of the investing class that is the true backbone of America.Report
@Mike Schilling,
If you want something novel, how about letting the market determine their wages instead of letting the union extort wages for folks who at most have a high school education.Report
No, it was just an off-the-cuff comment inspired by the comparison. The best rationale I know of is the sheer scope of the number of jobs that would have been lost – not just in Detroit, but in dealerships across the country – if GM had gone under. I don’t like the auto bailout, not at all. The idea of government holding shares in a private, for-profit company that competes with other companies the government regulates disturbs me. But I think the recession would have been far worse if they hadn’t done anything. The fact that Canada’s Conservative government also helped bail out the auto companies supports this assessment.Report
@Katherine,
So the fact that the Canadian gov’t supported the bailout shows that it really was a good idea? That rationale is just as bad as your first one. Even a “conservative” Canadian gov’t is going to prop up their socialist system and not let the beloved unions suffer the fate they deserve.Report
The Conservatives don’t like the unions at all.Report