Agree 100%.
The thing that irritates me is the elected government officials who pass all the laws that enable these actions all give themselves full-boat retirement and benefits including health insurance and medical, not to mention pay raises when no one's looking. This is one of the great scandals. I certainly don't like the idea of My-Pet-Goat getting a retirement check from my taxes, much less funding all the tax cuts and wars.
With a few exceptions almost all federal elected officials are failures that otherwise wouldn't amount to anything in daily life.
Posted by A Reader at April 5, 2006 11:16 AMIt's at this time where I have to get on my box and start screaming, "It's the DESIGN stupid!"
I'm not talking merely about aesthetics, but mostly about the engineering. It's not the workers on the assembly line that should be held responsibile or blamed for mechanical breakdowns from wear - that simply makes no sense when you think about it. Most of the car is assembled by robotics and controlled through automation.
It's the automotive engineers and designers and the management above them that make the ultimate decisions that should be held responsibile for rotten lemons.
I've never met an automotive engineer - I can't even begin to guess at wether or not these guys are chain-smoking alcoholics because of the decisions management makes for them, or if they're the blissfuly unaware bottom third of their graduating classes. If domestic (whatever that means these days) cars suck, look at the R&D and production design departments, and ask why they suck and brand T's doesn't?
disclaimer - I just bought a Scion xB. Definately a non-suck car. I wanna keep it for as long as pessimist has kept his car. I like the unusual aesthetic design and the best feature is the headroom for getting my small family in and out of the back seat. The Toyota quality sealed the deal.
Posted by idiosynchronic at April 5, 2006 11:24 AMpessimist, I saw this movie yesterday, "The Corporation", on the Sundance Channel. I would recommend it to everyone.
Scary!!
Posted by bbtb at April 5, 2006 12:10 PMSupport your independent car mechanic--buy American!
Posted by buck at April 5, 2006 12:40 PMAnd where are these managers learning their perspectives? I would contend that perhaps universities lean toward staid Cold War era business plans - just as IBM did when confronted with a fledgling Microsoft. On the otherhand, when Eric Margolis wrote the book "War at the Top of the World" (prior to 9/11) about Afghanistan he indicated that any good terrorist worth his salt always drove a Toyota cause you just couldn't kill one, even on the steppes. Our managers mirror Bush in that they lack imagination and thus the ability anymore to leap over today into tomorrow. They are caught on a reaction treadmill.
Posted by mainsailset at April 5, 2006 01:09 PMI bought a new Tahoe in 2002, after 3 months of hell, I got rid of it. Every time we get yet another recall notice, we laugh our asses off.
Posted by TIKI AL at April 5, 2006 01:31 PMbbtb, thnks s mch fr th flm hd's p. ddn't knw thng bt th wrk, bt fllwd yr lnk nd ws plsntly srprsd tht Chmsky pprd n th crdts. Chmsky hs pwrfl mnd nd gs wy bck. Hwvr, h stll hs grt dl f rlgs fth n th pssblty f tr dmcrcy. 'm nt sr wht h thnks bt th tpc t prsnt, bt bth h nd C. Wrght Mlls hd lt f ndrstndng f crrnt vnts dcds g.
B dvsd tht whn spk bt crprtns nd thr ffct pn scl nstttns, m bng mst sncr. f sw nly Mr's nm, wtht Chmsky, wld prdct tht th flm wld prsnt sprfcl fcts...bt wth Nm Chmsky, 'll hv t s th flm! f y dn't knw Chmsky, pls gggl.
[Editor: ignore=off]The Corporation is an awesome film. Not just because it exposes how and why corporations are evil but that corporations don't have to be evil. The footage of Ray Anderson, who is the CEO of a carpet company, is a testament to the fact that businesses don't have to mistreat their employees or destroy the environment to be profitable.
Posted by ann at April 5, 2006 01:56 PMOne thing we used to hear a whole lot (back when America was still the major player in manufactuing consumer goods) was "Be a good shopper."
GIVE ME A BREAK!!! That is certainly NOT something that we, as US consumers, are encouraged to do...
Not by the media, not by advertisers, not by manufacturers, and not by retailers…
Sorry, you are way out of your league on this one -- entitled to your opinion, BUT THIS ONE IS TOTALLY DEVOID OF FACTS!
Like an economy based on oligarchies actually had meaningful "free market" choices...
I can accept that you have just posted one of the most stupid things I have ever read on a blog, but I did expect more from you...
my bad
I recently bought a Mitsubishi, because the design and quality was simply much better than any GM car. This was based on my having rented many cars of all different makes. The sad fact is that most GM models are fundamentally the same cars they've been selling for years, with minor cosmetic upgrades--even the 'all new' models use parts from earlier GM models, which gives the interiors a very cheap feel.
My new car was made in the US, which is a plus, but frankly, I think the whole 'save America, buy GM' is a cheap ploy. Japanese car makers blew by GM because of their commitment to quality in design and manufacturing, so GM has nobody to blame but themselves, imo...
Also, another interesting point--i'm currently in England on business, and have noticed innovative and stylish Ford cars that I've never seen in the US, along with other autos such as Smart Cars, which aren't sold in the US--the Mini Cooper has proven that small cars can be well-made and fun to drive, but why don't we see more of these small models in the US?
my guess: US auto execs pander to the lowest common denominator!
Posted by DW at April 5, 2006 03:43 PMOne thing we used to hear a whole lot (back when America was still the major player in manufactuing consumer goods) was "Be a good shopper."
What this meant was we should closely examine all aspects of the product we were looking into buying so that we would get the best value for our bucks.
I guess I understood what you meant pessimist.
Maybe some folks should read the entire post before commenting.
I, personally, do not believe the japanese cars are much better. Americans have deluded themselves into believing all models are superior. They compare a Lexus to a Taurus or an Infinity to any GMC mid-size car. The Japanese were clever when they first started to take over our auto business. The mfg's lost money on the car, so as to make the selling price very low and desirable to Americans. (Full Disclosure-I am retired from Ford production). I have driven and ridden in Toyotas, Lexus, BMW. I find them very plain and vanilla. You cannot beat American cars for heating and air cond. I even drove Volvos and a Land Rover. Not even close. Family and friends have Explorers, Escorts, Windstars, Crown Vics that are still running great with 180-190,000 miles on them. (My Crown vic has 180,000.) People who do not buy American, might as well spit in American auto workers faces. I will never buy Japanese. The cars are not that nice and are very expensive.
Americans are so gullible and easily fooled by advertisers. Just my observations.
DW: the Smart Cars can be bought in the US now. I was driving up I5 in Wash State last week and a little red one blasted past me like I hornet on fire (I was going 73 and on an uphill). When I got into town lo and behold there was a dealership on auto row that had a whole swarm of them, even a pickup version. They've been Elizabeth Doled so are quite a bit heavier than European versions and thus gas mileage isn't as impressive, but intriguing.
Posted by mainsailset at April 5, 2006 06:04 PMmy 1965 Dodge Dart station wagon is still beautiful and reliable / the slant six one of the best engines Detroit ever made with a transmission designed to last 250,000 miles / they dont make 'em like DreamBoat anymore
Posted by Katherine Hunter at April 5, 2006 06:24 PMKH: I had a 67 Coronet slant 6, torqueflight, you are right, bulletproof. The same tranny was in my 68 Roadrunner, never a problem, and I beat the crap out of it.
In defense of newer Fords, my 02 F-150 supercharged Lightning has been flawless despite racing (and beating) many yuppies in Beamers, who think it is a fancy farm implement.
Posted by TIKI AL at April 5, 2006 06:56 PMi know too much about the automotive industry. the name should tell you all you want to know.
in a very real sense, the problems are all at the top, at the management level. though the "spin" seems to be focusing on uaw members and their extortionate wage/benefits packages, odd isn't how the extortionate wage/benefits packages for the execs goes undiscussed.
let us consider the ceo of toyota for a moment. the last time i researched this[arguably a decade ago], his compensation was only a 20x-50x multiple of the best paid hourly toyota hand.
in the same era, the ceo's of chrysler, ford, gm were being compensated in the range of 200x-500+x the best paid hourly wage.
this compensation disequilibrium proceeds throughout the management ranks of amerikan vehicle manufactuurers.
and it is these guys who make the decisions[bad and good] that drive these companies. though the wall street journal hates to say it, the uaw doesn't run these companies.
for a moment, let us consider the integrity of automotive execs. a favorite illustration of mine is the "dandy" that was john z delorean when he was running pontiac. if you wanted to supply pontiac, it was understood that you needed to show up for your audience with z with a bespoke tailor and samples of super 100, cashmere, silk. z always dressed like a million. a different suit for every day of the year. possibly a different suit for every evening.
further to the issue of auto exec sleaziness ... perhaps you read the wsj sty on delphi that was published last friday[31/3/06] entitled SHOWDOWN ON COSTS LOOMS AS DELPHI GOES TO COURT. the most interesting graf occurs on page A18. it reads like this, "ONE BUSINESS THAT DELPHI IS LIKELY TO EXIT IS MAKING SPARK PLUGS. IT COSTS DELPHI $2.05 TO MAKE A SPARK PLUG, COMPARED WITH $1.05 IN CHINA. DELPHI SELLS SPARK PLUGS AT A LOSS TO GM FOR $1.70."
let us consider this situation. a few years ago, GM owned and operated the AC spark plug operations in flint, mi. a man with the last name of battenberg was the gm v.p. that directed those operations. if it cost AC $2.05 to manufacture a spark plug, then GM had to account for that cost in their average variable cost of producing an engine[a vehicle].
now comes the "spin-off" of the AC spark plug operations into DELPHI. who becomes the ceo of delphi, the aforementioned mr battenberg.
and apparently, one of the things that he is responsible for is making a decision to sell spark plugs to gm for less than their average variable cost.
if you are a delphi stockholder, think on that for a moment.
when gm owned and operated AC spark plug[managed by battenberg] they had a spark plug cost in their v8 vehicles of $16.40.
now, with AC spun-off into delphi, battenberg decides to reduce gm's average variable cost for the spark plugs for a v8 vehicle to $13.60.
as the result of this artificialty, delphi loses $2.80 for every v8 that gm produces.
and i am pretty certain this this scam goes much deeper and way beyond spark plugs. i am pretty certain that there are many components that gm produced prior to the delphi "spin-off" where gm had to absorb true costs.
but after the delphi spin, how many of those components became artificially repriced? delphi took a loss on spark plugs so as to artificially give gm a 17% cost reduction.
did delphi do this for every item that it supplied gm? think on all the components that gm manufactured under its structure...for which they had to bear the true cost. now, the delphi spin-off occurs and delphi reduces all of its prices to gm...sells virtually everything to gm below average variable costs.
gm's bottom line becomes artificially improved. delphi is careening towards bankruptcy.
did battenberg make these decisions to sell below his average variable cost on his own? i don't think so. i think the entirety of the dephi spin-off was a conspiracy to defraud the investors. gm shareholders. and definitely delphi shareholders.
and when you read the wall street journal damn the worker bees for these problems, know that the wall street journal has become a propaganda outlet for corrupt capitalism...a financial die sturmer.
Posted by albertchampion at April 5, 2006 07:18 PMAmerican manufactures "chose" not produce auto's with fuel economy, and reliabilty. They had the best infrastructure in the world for manufacturing and because of their greed and hubris the market is slowly eliminating them. This is a good example of capitalism working.
Posted by Bill at April 5, 2006 07:50 PMAmerican manufactures "chose" not produce auto's with fuel economy, and reliabilty. They had the best infrastructure in the world for manufacturing and because of their greed and hubris the market is slowly eliminating them. This is a good example of capitalism working.
And yet you'll hear time and time again that the unions destroyed the American auto industry. You'll hear that the unions were greedy and wanted too much from the industry. Of course, GM and Ford had no problem giving as much as possible to the CEOs who mismanaged and led these companies down the drain.
Posted by ann at April 5, 2006 08:07 PMlbrt, yr vld pnt hghlghts r SP f r crprt lrds. Ths kks mk lvng ff f thr ppl's 'trst.' Hwvr, snc thy dn't hv n shrd f frng Gd, whr's th ccntblty? Th Fds? lmst nvr, thy r ll n th crp pyrll, nlss th crp lrds nd t mplc nthr lyr f fls dcptn s n nrn, tc., f nly t mntn th rhd vtr mndst crtd by th vrg TV cmmrcl tht flsly nflts th slf-stm f th drngd lstnr, (bt dgrss, nd dn’t wnt t gv Cyt hypr-tnsn. Nvrthlss, w nt tht r rlty f vrydy lf s blt pn n llsn f trstng r ‘gds‘ nd blvng wht thy tll s…thgh th crp md!). Yr bnkrptcy pnt s bsc lvrg vr th wrkng gy: cntrl f nns. Ys, RC s nvlvd, yt vryn rprsss th bv knwldg nd rprsss fr wrs knwldg tht r crp lrds cmmt n frgn lnds. Th rprssn mchnsm rdcs th psychlgcl nmly tht cntrs th bv ‘trst’ th crp bys ndc n th vrg rhd. Crp, lk t rq. Hw fr bck n hstry d y wnt t g? sggst tht y strt n 1864.
Yt, y r skmmng th srfc f th prblm. Fr th rl prblm s hw r crp gds dstryd r pst scl nstttns tht wr vrtl brrr t thr lwlssnss. Frst nd frmst, tr Chrstnty. Crp, ths gys cldn’t mk dm n Sndys n th ld dys. D y s? cld g n fr hndrds f pgs hr, bt y gt th pnt. Bt lt m dd n mr tr nmly t th crp prdcd mnd-st f Zmbsm, r whtvr. Mdrn ppl r by fr rdcd n ntllgnc. 150 yrs g r crprtns wld hv fld t gt pst th stg mkng crprtns nt lv ppl, (prsn rghts ndr th lw). Nw, thy d nythng thy wnt. Wr, mrdr, rbbng th trsrs f vry stt nd cntry, dstry vry scl nstttn n thr pth, tc.
S nw r Dmcrts wnt t chng th fc f Stn n th nxt lctn. Thy wnt t pnt fngrs t th Rpblcns n ndgnnt slf-rghtsnss. Wll, bth prts r rn by th sm crprt srvnts. Wht ls s nw?
scout, you are getting tricky, not putting God in until the third line. I actually started to read your post.
Posted by TIKI AL at April 5, 2006 08:37 PMAlbertchampion knows of what he speaks. He's one of the few people in this thread who actually understand what is going on with the American auto industry. Kudos to you, albert.
The relationship between the autos and tier-one suppliers, particularly the spin-offs like Delphi and Visteon, was a scam absolutely breathtaking in its audacity.
Also, Japanese cars are more reliable, slightly, but they aren't significantly better engineered or built. European cars are actually less reliable than Japanese or American autos. Overengineered, that's the European problem. Eveybody who thinks Japanese cars are all that has just gotten lucky with their own personal car, or has no idea about what Detroit's actually making. Don't believe it? Check Consumer Reports.
It's also true that Japan dumped for years. Why America allowed this is beyond me.
Sure, go ahead, all you hatas. Root for the downfall of American industry. Those are good American jobs feeding American mouths. Don't come complaining about the Wal-Mart-ization of America, though, not while I'm around.
Whatever it's sins, the American auto industry, and specifically Henry Ford, whatever his sins, built the American middle class, flat-out. Anyone here who is making a living wage and owns a car or has received an education is in debt to what the manufacturers, the capital end of it and the labor end of it, built. If you all think it's fine to put it out of business, then you're just delusional.
Look at the track record of American industry thus far: American steel -- a shell of its former self; aerospace industry -- the companies that survived are profitable, mostly, but a single downturn in sales could take Boeing right out, not quite a shell of its former self, but hardly healthy when compared to its historical achievements; American electronics -- except for a few chip lines, a single television manufacturing plant, and some boutique stereo manufacturers, it's literally gone; computer manufacturing -- the money is still here, as are some of the designs and engineering, but the actual manufacture is almost all off-shore, how long before the design and ownership moves to China, I mean why not, that's what happened with consumer electronics and Japan; airline industry -- in about as good a shape as the auto industry; manufacturing of all sorts -- gone, so far gone that the Commerce Department wants to classify McDonalds as manufacturing.
So, yeah, let's celebrate and try to hasten the demise of one of the few actual manufacturing industries we have left. That's a real good idea -- not.
Posted by Brian Bell at April 5, 2006 08:42 PMalways a pleasure discovering that there are someones out there who recognize reality.
the graft and corruption at the management levels of the automotive industry defy imagination.
i have been around a long time. i know histories that you will not find in books. in fact, you will find false histories.
i am a manufacturer. i can tell you first hand how amerikan industry went south.
my favorite illustration is my cnc facility. nothing in there is made in usa. could have been, but amerikan management decided to skim their historical business instead of pursuing the future.
oh, i wanted it to be amerikan machines. but amerikan machine tool manufacturers had nothing to offer. most of the time, they refrained from quoting.
as to the dumping issue. probably correct. but it wasn't done by the price of the machine. it was done this way.
say i wanted to buy a $250,000 japanese machine tool. fuji bank would finance the deal at an interest rate of 1% total, for 5 years, when the us prime was over 8% annually.
better still, fuji never asked for my financials. nor asked for a personal guarantee.
fuji was very kind to me. they got paid. i added lots of nifty equipment to my assets.
i don't think that i can do this today. today, however, i pay cash for the machine tools. you don't want to deal with amerikan banks in this bushit era of homeland insecurity.
within months, i am selling out. leaving this country. the indispensable product that i manufacture that allows this country to function will be sold to a foreign firm. all of you who are left in conus will be targets for extortion.
and i no longer care. ignorant cows. that is what the amerikan populace has become. prepare to be as enslaved as the inhabitants of the third world, because the usa is going to become the third world.
it is what the bilderbergers decided would be the outcome.
i recommend that you find a way to escape. and find a place to escape. and find an honest banker.
when the derivatives blow-up, it will be a tsunami of financial devastation. taking those assets of yours away.
so it goes.
by the way, the funniest part of this is how i have been banned from certain blog sites for saying these things.
dailykos and eschaton to name a few.
seems that the progressive left does not want to hear reality. seems that those sites are frequented by too many who do not do, but just talk.
that is another problem with modern amerika - too many who have never made a product, never marketed a product, never travelled throughout the world.
left/right - amerika has become a bastion of ignorance.
sigh.
Posted by albertchampion at April 5, 2006 09:57 PMTk, yh…thnks fr bng thr.
Brn, ’m hppy y brght p th qlty f Frds. s vry frmr knws, y cn trst Frd. gss thy wr hvng prblms drng th 80’s, bt ’v pt n lt f dpndbl mls vr th dcds. sspct tht thr qlty my b n th hlf-tn trcks nd vns nd bggr. W’v lwys hd tw Frds; nc gt th wf n nc 4x4 Frd, sh wn’t drv nythng ls.
ls, rcll tht Hnry ws th frst plnt wnr tht nt nly fgrd t th ssmbly ln systm, bt ndrstd tht h md wrkrs hppy by pyng thm wht thy wr wrth. S, rght frm th bgnnng, h gt sm qlty.
n th thr hnd, t pprs tht Frd vhcls wtht hlf-tn frms wr t fst: xplrr, xpdtn, Nvgtr, tc., nd thr smll crs r pr. Fnlly, ftr th frst S gs pnc n bt ‘73, bght s tw nw Hnd Cvcs, ( vr-rctd). n prblm ftr th thr: cltchs, vlv gds, mnflds dng wrd thngs lk flng, tc. hd bnch f Hnd mtrs, s wll, ll wth prblms. (Ycks, mn Ymhs, lwys hd gd lck wth.)
Bt th Frds, pll nythng, d nythng, nd tk ll knds f bs, nd stll lk gd.
So, Delta is complaining that some pilots are making over $150 K a year, some up to $300 K a year.
No one begrudges M.D.s and lawyers from raking in the money. With the training pilots must go through, they are worth every penny.
Disclosure: I own NO airline stock, do not work for an airline and have flown 5 times in the last thirty plus years.
Posted by Chief at April 6, 2006 04:48 AMThere are valid points in your argument. However, as a UAW official I would like to add a few more.
1) Unfair Trade--this actually started under Bill Clinton's watch with NAFTA and expanded under Bush tremendously. North American auto companies cannot go to Japan, Korea, or China and build factories to manufacture products. However, all three of these countries can do it here. Therefore, it is a restrictive measure and does not even qualify as "free" trade.
2) Governments such as Japan, Korea and China subsidize their automotive industries and effectively block access to their markets. The United States, on the other hand, does not subsidize its' automotive industry (however, we do throw billions at oil companies who do not need it!) and does not block access to the biggest automotive market in the world.
3) Japan and China have artificially inflated the US dollar and artificially deflated their own currency.
Points #1, 2 and 3 all could be affected by US Government policy. However, our Government doesn't want to do anything about it. This begs a question as to why not? There are many possible answers, however, under the current administration the answer is probably as simple to break the union.
There are other issues, I would like to address, but I have to get going now.
Posted by Bill Johnson at April 6, 2006 05:18 AMI just want to say that I had a 1996 Taurus that was super dependable. Traded and bought a 2002 Mercury Sable that is now at 75,000 miles and still drives great.
Posted by weinerdog43 at April 6, 2006 05:38 AMFirst of all, Mr. Champion, if you are in fact related to those who used to make Champion spark plugs, I owe you big time - my first gig in the States was at the (now closed) Champion plant in Detroit.
Secondly, I had a Dodge Aspen with one of those slant sixes in it. Best. Engine. Ever.
Third, I have to respectfully disagree with those defending the American auto companies. The Japanese saw the looming oil shortage and started working on hybrid technology. The American companies saw the same thing and decided to work on putting TV's in the front seat headrests.
I am saying this coming from a family where over half of the wage earners work for the big three directly, and another third for their suppliers. I wish I could see a brighter future...
Posted by (: Tom :) at April 6, 2006 06:00 AMTom, you'll like this. My brother bought a Dodge 150 Van, 4-speed, slant six, about a 1980. He just donated it to one of the tax deductible guys two years ago. It had over 300,000 miles; but, get this, original engine without any work whatsoever other than plugs, pvc, filters, distributer stuff, you know. It had the original clutch! original water filter, original transmission, original rear-end, simply incredible.
One day he called me and said the unexpected happened: the old Dodge failed to start. We pulled the dog house off and one of us moved the wiring harness that laid on the valve cover. It started and ran great. The harness had worn so that it was grounding on the engine. No perks, and is probably still running no matter what some airhead may try to do to it!
Johnson, I enjoyed the info. Something else that the domestic guys couldn't figure was the horsepower demand a few years ago. Japan was making some stong little engines, but Detroit was sizing down. The market wanted strength, and Detroit missed. I would like to know if Detroit plans on during a hybred replacement engine. Any rumors?
Posted by at April 6, 2006 08:24 AMThanks, anon, for the story of your slant six. I have almost as favorable an opinion of the Ford 302 V8. Not the vehicle surrounding it, mind you, but the engine itself. My first car was a Mercury Comet with a 302 and no floor boards (really wild to watch the road literally pass under your feet. But whaddya want for a $150 car?). Ran the crap out of the car and put almost 100K miles on it myself after I got it. Then we transplanted it into a Mercury Monarch, and put another 100K miles on the engine, before that body disintegrated around the engine too.
I would like to know if Detroit plans on during a hybred replacement engine. Any rumors?
Currently, Ford is offering its' customers a hybrid option on the Escape SUV (31MPG City / 36MPG Highway). I have heard rumors that they will be exploring more vehicle platforms to get hybrid options, if they get the expected response to their initial offering.
Posted by (: Tom :) at April 6, 2006 10:01 AMFurther info on what hybrids are available now, and what is being planned for 2007 can be found here.
According to their handy-dandy chart:
Hybrid Cars available in the U.S. 2005:
Toyota Prius
Honda Insight
Honda Civic
Honda Accord
Toyota Highlander
Ford Escape
Lexus RX400
Mercury Mariner
GM Silverado
GM Sierra
Hybrid Cars available in the U.S. 2006:
Toyota Prius
Honda Insight
Honda Civic
Honda Accord
Toyota Highlander
Ford Escape
Lexus RX400
Mercury Mariner
GM Silverado
GM Sierra
Dodge Ram
Nissan Altima
Lexus GS
Saturn VUE
Disclaimer: I have a 2003 Honda Civic hybrid which I am extremely happy with, and although I get no financial benefit from increased hybrid sales, I would definitely advise others to consider them.
Posted by (: Tom :) at April 6, 2006 10:50 AM Family and friends have Explorers, Escorts, Windstars, Crown Vics that are still running great with 180-190,000 miles on them. (My Crown vic has 180,000.) People who do not buy American, might as well spit in American auto workers faces. I will never buy Japanese. The cars are not that nice and are very expensive.
Americans are so gullible and easily fooled by advertisers. Just my observations.
So it's all good that you put 180,000 miles on your gas guzzler? at 15mpg, that's a lot of extra gas you've wasted--are you supporting America or Saudi Arabia?
Whatever it's sins, the American auto industry, and specifically Henry Ford, whatever his sins, built the American middle class, flat-out. Anyone here who is making a living wage and owns a car or has received an education is in debt to what the manufacturers, the capital end of it and the labor end of it, built. If you all think it's fine to put it out of business, then you're just delusional.
Wasn't Henry Ford worshipped as a deity in 'Brave New World?' ('Ford is in his flivver and all is right in the world') What has been the cost of all of this to the environment and society? How did the auto industry support the middle class outside of Detroit--by creating lots of gas stations and car lots for people to work at?
I went 5 years without owning a car, using mass transportation and my own motive power, and it made me realize how much the auto industry has gulled America--if you say that's not practical where you live, maybe you should ask yourself why...and who's benefitting.
Posted by DW at April 6, 2006 11:21 AMundoubtedly, you were working for the champion spark plug company. by the time that you hired on, albert was long gone.
it remains one of the oddities of modern amerikan industry - the champion spark plug company prefers to relate an official history of itself that avoids mentioning albert.
just for the record, not that anyone will care, here is some salient history...
albert champion was born and raised in sevres, france before immigrating to boston. in boston he either worked in or owned a bicycle shop[much like the wrights, albert's interest in bicycles presaged intellectual curiosity].
in the early days of the spark-ignited ic engine, sparking plugs were fabricated from stacked mica wafers. a very difficult bit of manufacturing.
based on his past in the french pottery capitol, albert wondered if pottery/porcelain could be substituted.it could be. in approximately 1904, the champion co was formed. major investors were members of a lace curtain irish protestant family by the name of stranahan.
by 1910, it had become clear that the automobile industry was going to become centered in either cleveland or detroit. the champion co moved from boston to toledo. toledo was selected because it was equidistant from detroit/cleveland.
there are many versions of how the stranahans deposed albert. but steal his company they did.
billy durant recognized albert's genius, however, and financed albert's next incarnation, the champion ignition company. which had its manufacturing ops in the loft over durant's buick works in flint michigan.
in 1917, there was another champion spark plug in the market. the stranahans sued. won. albert's company was renamed the AC spark plug company.
eventually durant's company failed and became acquired by his investors. principally dupont. it was reorganized as the general motors corp. when that occurred, albert's spark plug company was acquired and became the AC spark plug division of the general motors corp.
Ransom E Olds and albert had something in common. they had products branded and universally recognised as their creations by name and initials. the oldsmobile, REO. champion, AC.
albert was a bon viveur, reportedly. loved good food, good wine. beautiful women. fast cars. his best friend was louis chevrolet.
i would have loved to have known him. my kind of guy.
the stranahans were mean, rapacious, reptillian. the last of stranahan masters of champion spark plug company[the adopted RA] conspired with joe coors and founded the heritage foundation.
when you lament the loss of the chacun a son gout world, the usa of live and let live, look to the source of the demise, R A STRANAHAN, JOE COORS, AND THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION.
on that historical note, i go to prepare a small feast.
slanz
Posted by albertchampion at April 6, 2006 07:29 PMI would like to continue on my earlier post regarding the UAW and points regarding your article. As I mentioned previously, our government is of no help whatsoever.
The media is another labor union detractor in which whatever is "wrong" or potentially "wrong" or any lawsuit against a US Automotive company is front page news, repeated on the radio and TV. However, when a foreign automaker has the same problems, it is rarely reported. This gives a false impression to the American public that 1) American quality is poor--most companies the quality is relatively similar and 2) American automotive companies don't care about the safety of the public. At the same time, since quality and safety problems with foreign automakers are rarely reported (they are there, just not often reported!) it fosters a positive impression about foreign cars and negative one about American cars.
Add onto this that Toyota and Honda don't have much legacy costs in the USA. Why is that you may ask? One answer is the companies haven't been in the USA long enough to have many retirees. Which is partially true. The other part of the answer is, since they are non-union, if you get injured on the job, the possibility of your employment continuing is very low, and many injured workers have been terminated without recourse.
Foreign automakers are playing a game which is fostered by our government. They will continue gaining market share and the autoworker unions will continue to lose power and thus ability to negotiate contracts that benefit us all. It may be 5, 10 or 20 years. But, if the unions fall, it will hurt us all. Don't expect Toyota and Honda to pay union wages and give union benefits when the threat of organizing a union is gone.
Posted by Bill Johnson at April 8, 2006 04:31 AM