The waning days of the Bush Administration see the Federal government extending public monies to every corner of the financial "system." It's ironic, in the opinion of this Ironist, that General Motors can't get a federal penny but Citi group gets all the cash it wants. This is not to say that General Motors deserves public funds any more than Citi does, but managerial competence aside, GM makes things, Citibank doesn't.
.It has been obvious for some time that US manufacturers built large trucks and SUVs because they aren't covered by federal safety guidelines applied to passenger vehicles. Thus they were cheaper to manufacture and more profitable to sell. Never mind they did the environment no good, didn't improve the driving habits of their owners and promoted an unsustainable lifestyle. The manufacturers created demand with advertising and filled that demand.
.Now they want taxpayer funds to keep them going while they slowly turn the beast around and build fuel efficient cars. Commentators blame workers (as usual!) for management failings and charge the line workers with making $80 an hour. Indeed auto workers make $28 an hour and the other expenses are the retirees the workers support. Henry Ford said, a century ago that workers need to make enough to buy the product, a dictum that has escaped the notice of modern captains of industry.
.Citibank engaged in wild speculation with deposits and is now facing bankruptcy, however a Citi group failure they tell us would lead to systemic failure of the entire banking system so they must be "saved." Hallelujah! And our leaders, with a straight face, pledge our tax dollars to do the saving and no apologies do we get for this blatant reversal of the "free market" these same leader shave touted for as long as it was profitable for them.
.Personally I don't want to see society collapse. Those that do, tell us we shall be the better for it, less consumer driven more neighborly and more considerate. I doubt it. When the chips are down and money is tight and an entire way of life has to change all I see is massive stress. I don't see people in Iceland pulling together and recreating the disciplined good cheer of World War Two. Take away television for most people and all you are doing is detaching them from 24 hour gossip channels and resentment is bound to follow. I want things to stay the same, electricity, air conditioning, gasoline, pay days, a pension plan and dignified retirement.
.I am reluctant to let go of my middle class dreams but like the prospect of life after death I find myself ever less willing to lay bets on it. I watch the sunrise over a frost free landscape and I feel glad. I switch on the computer and I take pleasure as the screen reliably lights up and connects me with the outside world. I am angry that things have got so messed up, and at some level I guess we each of us have to take responsibility for a portion of the mess. But I'd like to think that the people at the top who fostered this global chaos take a much larger share of the blame and shoulder a much larger portion of the cost than the rest of us laboring masses.
.Fat chance.
6 comments:
I concur the setiments about the bailout of banks vs. a potential bailout of the auto industry.
However, I will disagree in the fact they are less deserving. The auto-industry MAKES TANGIBLE ASSETS as you have stated (sorry for the shouting).
Whereas the banking industry just pushes funny money around on a computerized version of a Monopoly board.
I find it ironic that there is nary a word of a plan from the Citi bank on how they plan to use the bail out, but GM has to bend over backwards to get 1/3rd of the sum (granted it is in the billions).
Likewise, least we not forget AIG, with a whooping 150B. They burned though 75B and said, we are still pooching the house, can we have more like the fabled Oliver Twist. Then GM comes and they hold the ladle and say "MORE?! MORE! There is no MORE!".
That could be the crux of it, they are Johnny come lately. I fear is no deserve or not deserve IMHO, however in the fairness of our precious tax dollar (quoted from President Elect Obama), however I feel we need to keep some manufacturing here. We cannot be all knowledge workers and we cannot outsource everything. And mind you, knowledge workers are being outsourced not just in IT, but Medical and Financial.
The later of Financial being outsourced, brought me some dark pleasure since the Financial gurus that started that trek for those of us in manuafacturing and IT, they can now eat their own dog food so to speak.
OK, I will jump from my soap box now as I plunge into my little piece of paradise and get back to work. When the day ends, I am going to give thanks that I live in a warm place, have a full (round) belly, and a decent job from home with insurance and my lovely bride to greet me each morning.
In times of change, learners inherit the Earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.
or so says Eric Hoffer
Sooooo are learners more innovative or adaptive? Which is better? To be innovative or adaptive in this world? Is it better to invent the future or adapt to what you inherit? Probably better to balance the two for the situation.
That is what it is, we need balance, or sustainability. Not constant growth. That model is flawed.
What do they call them? Localvores? People that try to consume resources only up to a 100 miles from where they reside?
I wonder how that ideals could be coupled with sustainability and sense of social responsibility? Some of the hippy ideals are not all that dirty and unwashed.
As for learning and adapting, the MBAs that are the captains of industry of world, along with the rest of us need to be held to the fire of accountability.
The perception of late is this: If you leverage the future of many and fail, it seems the many get the shaft and the MBAs go home to a nice dinner. If they win, the many might get their jobs another day and the MBAs get richer. Whether this is true or not, perception is reality and many people out of work, there is no other reality.
Note, I am an MBA, but I have not been in that space... maybe I am a closet communist? Not really, an angry republican - i.e. a Liberal.
I think All of these come down to those in higher seats of the world didn't have a sense of social responsibility for their actions. We as the people bought into the lifestyle. Now it has come home to roast for all of us.
Roost, not Roast, but some how it applies here :) Happy Thanksgiving!
None of em deserve bailing out. They should live and die by the decisions they make like all of the small businesses are forced to do. Especially that jacka$$ CEO that was on the senate hearing when asked if he'd drop his salary from $3.5 million to a dollar to get the government loan for his auto company, his response was "I think I'm ok where I am." They don't take responsibility for leading the ox in the ditch. They think they should be able to make poor decisions and the government should bail them out and they should continue to pull down million dollar salaries. BS!
This is a wide spread misguided idea that this whole country seems to be buying into that do whatever you want and someone will clean up behind you.
GM, Chrysler, and ford should suffer the financial hardships that follow their decisions just like every small business in this country is forced to deal with on a regular basis.
The more BIG government meddles, the bigger the mess it makes.
-Peace
Agreed
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