OpEdNews » Let dinosaurs Die

Why should we support companies that choose not to move forward with the times? These car companies have continued to make cars with outdated technology for which there is rapidly declining demand. By bailing out these car makers, we say, as a nation, that we will continue to support our fossil fuel addiction and continue our dependence on dead dinosaurs. Not a positive step!

One option would be that we could take the same money and give it to car makers that are building energy efficient vehicles, enable them to bring us into the clean energy clean transportation age on a larger scale then they have been able to. The job losses at old factories will lrad to new jobs at new factories. These technologies are not new, they have been suppressed and ignored and these "big three" automakers chose to do so. Its time for the old to die and the new to take over.

Why should we bail them out with our tax dollars, only to have to pay them again for new gas guzzler that we already paid for through our tax-funded bailout. How much do these companies want-- tens of billions of TAX PAYER money? These are companies that have been trying to get tax breaks so they can pay their top execs more, and cut jobs. I can't remember the last time I heard that GM, Ford, or Chrysler were opening new factories to create jobs. That money will go to lining their greedy pockets.

Call me a socialist but why not spend three hundred billion dollars on a government program that uses our tax dollars to convert old car engines that run on gas into hybrids, or fully electric, or solar, or hydrogen, or compressed air, or ethanol, or we could just start building new cars as well. Recycle what we already have, give a tax break to people who do it. That would be $300,000,000,000 going into American Tax payers hands creating new jobs, breaking through with new clean technology and if done right offering affordable vehicles that meet standards that we the people vote to pass.

The US Department of transportation reported in 2006 that 7.7 million units were sold domestic and foreign. How 'bout we do these manufacturers a favor and lighten their load? They can use the money that they have to focus on the wealthy, because wealthy people will continue to want their gluttonous vehicles, or not. Who cares? A new, more efficient vehicle will be available. And the government doesn't need to corner the market, just make affordable, energy efficient cars. We can leave the high end/luxury vehicles for the rich to continue to buy from the big three.

· Hey big auto, you need a handout, lots of tax payer money, to build cars no one is buying. I have an answer. No, but we will recognize your problem, and take our own action. The government will build and sell cars, creating a program that is available for qualified tax payers for affordable new cars. Government JOBS for those who worked at all of the closing Big three factories, cheap cars for those who previously couldn’t afford new clean cars, and the beginning of a energy revolution standardizing clean energy technology as a model for the rest of the world. And hey, with nation wide production we could even export the cars, become a Powerful exporting nation again.

Lets get it right and use the government the way that we should. To work for the people, helping the masses not the rich.

	Contact Author
	Contact Editor
	View Other Articles by Author

Bookmark this page: (what's this?)

(More...)

Comments: Expand Shrink Hide

8 comments

I am retired from business and being forced back to work. I am a vet, (Vietnam era), extremely disappointed with the aggressive, imperialistic direction this country has taken in Iraq, to control and usurp it's oil, and the extent to which BOTH parties are complicit.
Nick van NesI am retired from business and being forced back to work. I am a vet, (Vietnam era), extremely disappointed with the aggressive, imperialistic direction this country has taken in Iraq, to control and usurp it's oil, and the extent to which BOTH parties are complicit.

I'm with you, Ben

This bailout amounts to the very rich and powerful helping the very rich and powerful. It rewards failure. This entire bailout was probably planned amongst them years ago. Sure there might be some repercussions, a little pain maybe a lot, but that's better than giving it all back to the rich cats that could care less about competing with Toyota and other manufacturers which addressed fuel consumption and competition.

by Nick van Nes (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 285 comments) on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 6:56:04 PM

Brett Paatsch is an Australian born secular humanist with degrees in management and science and an interest in politics. He is a former pro-American that wishes to be pro-American again and thinks the impeachment and repudiation of President George W Bush for the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 is necessary to reestablish trust in American signatures on international treaties and confidence in the global rule of law.
Brett PaatschBrett Paatsch is an Australian born secular humanist with degrees in management and science and an interest in politics. He is a former pro-American that wishes to be pro-American again and thinks the impeachment and repudiation of President George W Bush for the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 is necessary to reestablish trust in American signatures on international treaties and confidence in the global rule of law.

Why not? Timing and the lack of operational detail

why not spend three hundred billion dollars on a government program that uses our tax dollars to convert old car engines that run on gas into hybrids, or fully electric, or solar, or hydrogen, or compressed air, or ethanol, or we could just start building new cars as well.

All large scale economic changes take time to implement and existing stakeholders all want to see the detail to see if they will lose out in the transition. A reason for shoring up existing companies is not to praise existing companies but to try and stop the follow on consequences of their failure. Stupid management isn't the same as useless skills in the workforce. If one adopts a policy of proping up major employers one might be doing it to give the workers jobs (if they have to find others all at once they will not be able to do so quickly because of the state of the macroeconomy) not the owners any breaks.

I saw you surname and your headline. I was going to say only "you'll miss him when he's gone", but thought I should at least skim your article ;-)

by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 2 quicklinks, 22 diaries, 1175 comments) on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 8:45:08 PM

A native Californian, Jan Baumgartner is a freelance writer dividing her time between surviving in Maine and living in Mexico. Her background includes scriptwriting, comedy writing for the Northern California Emmy Awards, and travel writing for The New York Times. She has worked as a grant writer for the non-profit sector in the fields of academia, AIDS, and wildlife conservation and anti-poaching for NGO's in the U.S. and Africa. Her articles and essays have appeared in numerous online and pri...

to see more of bio, click on member name
Jan BaumgartnerA native Californian, Jan Baumgartner is a freelance writer dividing her time between surviving in Maine and living in Mexico. Her background includes scriptwriting, comedy writing for the Northern California Emmy Awards, and travel writing for The New York Times. She has worked as a grant writer for the non-profit sector in the fields of academia, AIDS, and wildlife conservation and anti-poaching for NGO's in the U.S. and Africa. Her articles and essays have appeared in numerous online and pri...

to see more of bio, click on member name

right on the money

You're right, Ben - these gas guzzlers are slowly making their way into the La Brea Tar Pits; however, the thousands of workers must somehow be provided for and my guess is that the government won't be able to fill that order.

by Jan Baumgartner (54 articles, 138 quicklinks, 10 diaries, 260 comments) on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 8:53:21 PM

Currently I am a student of the recording arts at FullSail University in Florida. I am very open minded to new philosophies and ideas about the world and life in general. I am a musician and aspiring song writer/composer. I also do digital recording and art in my freetime. myspace.com/redrumdm

Lately I have really questioned the motives of the united states government and mainstream media with in the united states. I believe that GWBush and Co. have committed crimes against humanity...

to see more of bio, click on member name
Ben KallCurrently I am a student of the recording arts at FullSail University in Florida. I am very open minded to new philosophies and ideas about the world and life in general. I am a musician and aspiring song writer/composer. I also do digital recording and art in my freetime. myspace.com/redrumdm

Lately I have really questioned the motives of the united states government and mainstream media with in the united states. I believe that GWBush and Co. have committed crimes against humanity...

to see more of bio, click on member name

The problem I see

I realize that it is the workers that we must look after but I don't think that giving the corporations money will save their jobs. They need the money to continue to buy supplies which are going to be used in the same old types of cars, and the big three will continue to lose money from the lack of car sales. There are thousands of their cars just sitting in lots, while it takes months for a car buyer to get a prius. There is a new direction people are beginning to shift which is clean energy, and gas sipping cars. A bail out may save jobs temporarily but there has been no change of ideology from the car manufacturers which must happen. People will not be buying new cars to get 25miles for $4 during this recession, especially ones that they can't afford to put gas in.

And I do realize that the price of gas has gone down. Here in florida it has dropped below $2.00. It was double that just a little over 2 months ago. Some one pulled some strings and is trying to save an industry that failed to change, or at least has gotten there to late and they won't be selling their precious oil at this price for long. Wait til we stop buying oil fromthe mideast, russia, and so on and start selling our clean technology to other nations.

One option I can see for big auto is to lay out a framework of action and show where the money will be spent dime for dime. No Executive retreats, really nothing for the execs. This woul be a bailout to save jobs. How can they do that? By changing what they are selling, by implementing new technology and dropping their alliance with big oil. Build new factories to build a new kind of car. They need to do it now. If they don't small companies will, and they will continue to fail, a slow death into the tarpit

I really wonder how much the big three had to do with the drop in gas prices

by Ben Kall (1 articles, 16 quicklinks, 5 diaries, 35 comments) on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 11:50:03 PM

Ps: Re your signature line

The United Nations doesn't have the power to remove an official of the US government - it isn't set up that way.

The President (with the knowledge if not the consent of at least the Senate and perhaps congress) appoints the US ambassador to the UN.

The highest body on the UN is the Security Council and the United States is a veto holding permanent member of that council which means that it can stop any resolution to do anything from being made. That would include resolutions aimed at punishing say George W Bush.

Obama would have to implicitly support action taken by international bodies like the UN for those bodies to have jurisdiction. And if he implicitly did it it would be all over the news so it wouldn't be something he could do subtley.

In practice because the America voter has essentially decided not to impeach Bush so have their representatives and Bush will get off scot free because the international legal framework doesn't empower everyone equally.

Iraqis that had their families killed when the US invaded might have like Saddam no more than you like Bush, but they may have been getting by as best they could. Interestingly, the illegal invasion might motivate some of the survivers to look for justice. When they see that there is no legal way to hold Bush to account I wonder if some of them will go looking for some personal payback. I suspect they will not - Bush is only a symptom of the American disease of exceptionalism - what is the point of blaming him personally. I suspect that some of those victums of American collateral damage will become the next generation of jihadis. They don't even need to be religious they only need to think that there should be justice and accountability and to see that currently there are no lawful avenues left for them.

PS: You could read the whole UN Charter in about two hours if you want to. You are young enough to learn. If you know the UN Charter and the US Constitution moderately well you know the two pieces of bedrock law that underpin almost all contemporary human law. And you will also see why justice isn't blind. Not everyone gets to be a member of a UN Security Council Permenant Member nation. Not everyone gets to vote in US Presidential elections but nearly everyone cops the downstream crap when US citizens elect bad Presidents because a bad President like Bush can undermine confidence in just about all human institutions. He is not just a failure in his own right he shows that the people that put him there and don't repudiate him are like him and so there is more crap inevitably coming.

by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 2 quicklinks, 22 diaries, 1175 comments) on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 9:00:20 PM

Jet Graphics is what an IBM computer (1980 vintage) spell checker thought my name should be spelled. I am a student of the infinite, and enjoy science fiction, philosophy, history, and morality conundrums. I like music of all types, especially if it has a melody and harmony.
Love God - Love Neighbor - Forgive Trespassers - Be Happy!
Jet GraphicsJet Graphics is what an IBM computer (1980 vintage) spell checker thought my name should be spelled. I am a student of the infinite, and enjoy science fiction, philosophy, history, and morality conundrums. I like music of all types, especially if it has a melody and harmony.
Love God - Love Neighbor - Forgive Trespassers - Be Happy!

Back on Track, America!

Bailing out Big Auto in a world that cannot sustain increased petroleum consumption is unwise. Corporate "leaders" are blinded by short term profit and dividends.

Though "Green" advocates push hybrids and electric cars, they, too, are dependent upon cheap and plentiful petroleum for plastics, synthetic rubber tires, and asphalt paved streets - which all will become progressively more expensive and eventually unattainable.

America's sole viable alternative is steel wheel on steel rail - the most energy efficient land transport. And we need to electrify existing rail tracks, to reduce diesel consumption. To replace the automobile, we must build a new urban rail infrastructure to accommodate the inevitable end of the Oil Age.

Time for America to "Get Back on Track!"

by Jet Graphics (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 24 comments) on Wednesday, November 19, 2008 at 2:37:45 PM

Margaret Bassett is an 86-year old, currently living in senior housing, with a lifelong interest in political conumbrums. She hopes to hold out for one more presidential election. Bachelors from State University of Iowa (1944) and Masters from Roosevelt University (1975) help to unravel important requirements for modern communication. Early introduction to computer science (1966) trumps them. It's payback time. She's been "entitled" so long she hopes to find some good coming off the keyboa...

to see more of bio, click on member name
Margaret BassettMargaret Bassett is an 86-year old, currently living in senior housing, with a lifelong interest in political conumbrums. She hopes to hold out for one more presidential election. Bachelors from State University of Iowa (1944) and Masters from Roosevelt University (1975) help to unravel important requirements for modern communication. Early introduction to computer science (1966) trumps them. It's payback time. She's been "entitled" so long she hopes to find some good coming off the keyboa...

to see more of bio, click on member name

Ben and y'all - please read my recent article

http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-car-crazy-crowd-and-th-by-Margaret-Bassett-081119-919.html

And then we can discuss further the political split in the country (and accordingly in Congress) concerning labor law. Until that's settled we have a Mason Dixon line, economically speaking. Whatcha think?

by Margaret Bassett (38 articles, 2206 quicklinks, 30 diaries, 1501 comments) on Wednesday, November 19, 2008 at 2:49:32 PM

artist, writer
dick overfieldartist, writer

Gas guzzlers & war crimes

Welcome Ben, great to see you stand up & be counted. The American auto industry has known for decades their product was an environmental disaster. Each time they have been called on the carpet, they have blamed American consumers by claiming they are simply giving consumers what they want. It has never been true, but they always seem to get away with it. Ask one of their CEO's what happened to the electric car & you get stonewalling & gibberish. The real issue in all this is what we do about all those people & jobs. My guess is they're toast even though we have scads of alternate technologies to completely revamp transportation in this country. There is way too much money on the fossil fuels table & big bucks own our politicians.

As far as a foreign party arresting an American, both Kissinger & Rumsfeld came very, very close to being arrested for war crimes, both in France. A judge has to agree to an indictment to the effect that an international crime has been committed, lawyers & law enforcement have to be willing to carry it out. It's true the UN can't do it. Putting a person before an international court is a very complicated, time consuming process. That said, I very much agree with your sentiments & so do a lot of other people here & around the world.

by dick overfield (22 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 35 comments) on Wednesday, November 19, 2008 at 5:16:57 PM