Why can't we just buy the big 3?

[Taverner]

Wouldn't that make sense?

Or nationalize them?

Honestly, giving the execs money isn't going to do anything but ensure they get golden parachutes.

And letting them die is, well, cruel.

So why don't we just fucking pull eminent domain, kick out the x-level and rebuild them as we want them.

It's clear GM can't do anything right, so why leave them in charge?

[leftofthedial]

1. we should

but then, the corporate-controlled congress would be "in charge" of deciding what to do with them

[Taverner]

2. Better than the ones running it now

Honestly, I don't mind competent CEO's running companies. Honest, I don't.

I have no problem with Steve Ballmer or Larry Ellison running a company.

[leftofthedial]

5. Have you ever met either one of those "gentlemen"?

[Taverner]

10. Yes, why yes I have

Both complete egotistical assholes

But they know how to keep a company from going bankrupt

[leftofthedial]

14. by destroying other companies

and ill-serving their customers


they are the problem, not the solution.

[Taverner]

16. Well, as bad as Ballmer and MS is...

Every company they bought, they kept most of the staff. Even with VirtualPC, which they ceremoniously killed the product, they kept the staff.

Now high-tech is walking into the monopoly trap. Soon they will be flying their corporate jets to DC to beg for money if they don't stop trying to 'own the market.'

[leftofthedial]

17. companies they bought,

not companies they ruthlessly (and sometimes illegally) put out of business.

And yes, their day is coming.

[YOY]

3. I really don't understand why newer companies can't replace them.

New companies with the future in mind. Sever old contacts/ties. Dump the execs and keep the best of the old including the labor.

But I seem to be the only one who like this idea.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

7. If things didn't suck this bad with our economy besides this, I'd agree.

We're in such poor shape right now, however, it's hard to see how any startup could thrive in this environment.

[YOY]

21. If the market is created abroad and here it could.

First mover wins the efficent/cost effective/alternative fuel lionshare.

[Romulox]

13. What's stopped these "newer companies" to this point? Oh yeah, they want to pay slave wages.

Anyone with a standard of living above that of Bumblefuck, Alabama is paid too much!

[YOY]

20. Only if you let them. And the Union does not let this happen.

Same Union. Same facilities. Federal startup money to get things moving. Bumblefuck, Alabama has no facilities. More expensive to start up. Bumblefuck remains Bumblefuck.

[Romulox]

22. I'm not sure if you've noticed, but they are breaking the UAW as we speak.

"Same Union. Same facilities. Bumblefuck, Alabama has no facilities. More expensive to start up. Bumblefuck remains Bumblefuck"

They've been shuttering plants in Michigan since I was a baby. No foreign companies have swooped them up. The thought that they'd do so today is just a balm for a guilty conscience.

[YOY]

23. Bring those jobs back as part of the federal aid deal. No return of jobs. No cash.

It's not a fantasy. It's a distinct possibility. Give the Union their strength back.

Of course it will never happen in this world...Democratic Majority or not.

[Romulox]

25. They gave Wall Street bailout money to foreign banks. It's not going to happen. nt

[YOY]

26. Of course it won't.

There's no justice in this panicked system.

Who knows maybe Obama will surpise us all with some of that leadership stuff instead of trying to pull off the same job Clinton did...well it worked for Clinton...in a recession...not a depression. Didn't really fix the big picture either.

[baldguy]

4. Yes.

Hire managers to run them who's main goals would be to increase domestic production & increase global market share.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

6. "OBAMA'S A SOCIALIST!! I"M SERIES!!!"

That's why, quite frankly.

[specimenfred1984]

24. Exactly, most Amurikkkans are that stupid

It really is that simple, a huge segment of our population has been dumbed-down so far they can't even think for themselves on a basic level.

[backscatter712]

8. I'm still a fan of forcibly breaking them up.

Instead of GM, we have Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick, Saturn, GMC. Instead of Ford, we have Ford, Mercury, Lincoln. Instead of Chrysler, we have Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep.

Break the companies into pieces, force them to compete.

[Taverner]

11. Not a bad idea either

Since their monopoly is what led to their demise in the first place

[ContinentalOp]

12. I wonder if we could break apart the engineering and r&d from the manufacturing.

Have a few big engineering firms that can compete for contracts, sell their tech to the highest bidder, and push innovation forward without the corporate meddling they have been subject to. Then have 3 big union manufacturing firms that can use their plants to produce cars they hired the engineering firms to design, or they can subcontract out their manufacturing services to foreign automakers.

This obviously won't happen and I have no idea if it could work. It's just a crazy idea that crossed my mind.

[Fleshdancer]

9. I've been wondering this too

I think letting them die is masochistic. The death of our auto industry doesn't just affect those that work directly for the big 3, it affects ALL companies that make parts for them and the dealerships that sell their vehicles. From there, it affects us all eventually.

This scenario would cause a huge jump in unemployment when we're already experiencing a recession, a sharp increase in the need to provide social services at a time when states are strapped for cash, and more uninsured families at a time when no one can afford to be sick. The retail industry is already hurting because people aren't buying. It gets worse when millions are suddenly out of work.

From my perspective, letting an entire US industry die right now is not an option.

[Romulox]

15. Here's a clue: insolvent companies generally have more LIABILITIES than ASSETS.

So $1.8 billion dollars is the price to acquire GM's debt. :hi:

[StClone]

18. Employees should own them with Gov. Assist

And in the loan stipulate that all cars made be high in U.S. made parts as well as hybrid/green dual fuel?

[99th_Monkey]

19. YES! Nationalize > conversion to > Worker ownership by UAW

Then the WORKERS HIRE MANAGEMENT, and hold their feet to the fire to do the right thing.

No CEO should be getting paid more than the President of the United States in my book.

Worker Cooperatives keep jobs and profits anchored locally. See Mondragon, Spain
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mondrag%C3%B3n_Cooperative_Corporation

[Odin2005]

27. I agree, nationalize them.

Sorry, Pukes, Big Government is back.