The extinction of GM may very well mark the end of the postwar supremacy

[CoffeeAnnan]

of the U.S. in economic and political matters.No longer will it be possible for the U.S. to say its way is the best way and that the world must obey its dictates.And as the U.S.,following GM, shrinks its usual role as the wolrd's premier predator nation, hopefully, the wolrd can return to some semblance of sanity.

But that poses another problem altogether.That requires men and women of vision who can see this as an opportunity to join the community of nations.We have a serious shortage of those.For sometime I thought Blair may be such a person.But his imperialist genes working on overdrive by his proximity to Bush, he looks like a lost cause.

[whistle]

1. PNAC unfulfilled!!!!!!

[HereSince1628]

2. The extinction of GM could mean that all defined benefit retirement

plans will be ruined. There are only so many failed company plans that can be carried before the whole system collapses.

[JDPriestly]

3. As General Motors Goes, So Goes the Nation

We're in trouble, guys. Big trouble. General Motors symbolizes and embodies everything that is wrong with business, government, you name it, in our country today -- top heavy salary structures, arrogant disregard for the contributions of ordinary employees, failure to acknowledge the economic needs of ordinary employees, holding on to old structures of organization that do not encourage creative contributions at all levels, autocratic structures that punish and marginalize those who speak up for their rights, the "me-first" attitude, "rank and yank" Enron employment promotion policies.

It's everywhere -- it's arrogance, corruption and idiocy at GM, at Enron (see the movie), in all the corporations big and small, in the schools, in health care, in government, in the management of the country, and in every aspect of life. And it isn't working. It stifles creativity. And the competition it engenders is sick, self-defeating, not constructive. The bullies, the sociopaths and the ass-lickers rise to the top, while the most competent. get-things-done people are crushed and fall out of the labor market or into demeaning positions.

Democracy in our society is confined to the occasional sham election in which we have to choose between candidates who have sold their souls to the system to get the money and press to run for office. Until democratic structures permeate every aspect of our society, we will not reach our potential as a nation. The old autocratic pyramid scheme business and life model has to be changed finally. It is not a matter of adopting Communism or even socialism. Those systems failed miserably because they adopted the same old autocratic governance structures that failed in traditional capitalism.

No, we need a system in which people are given the responsibility for cooperatively structuring their own companies and society as a whole. Something that is not top down, but that is bottom up. We need structures in which authority is derived from the individuals upon whom the authority is imposed or toward whom it is directed -- as Jefferson envisioned it in the Declaration of Independence. It may seem to be an entirely new concept -- but that was the original Jeffersonian ideal -- and many of us now practice it successfully in our homes where the "husband" is no longer the "boss" and we make decisions as families together. Changing this aspect of our society will difficult and involve a learning process, but, as I see it, this is the only way we will be able to sustain a sane, relatively non-violent society in the overpopulated world that we now live in.

[freethought]

4. My two cents.

On my own observation I believe that CoffeeAnnan is correct. $1500 per car health care/pension costs are only PART of the problem. Take a look at just about anything GM is putting out. For example Chevy Malibu, Chevy Impala these are incredibly uninteresting cars. Chevrolet has that retro styled pickup truck (I forget the model) but it is not a practical vehicle by any terms and has a price tag of 35-40 grand. Cadillac has a few noteworthy cars but these are expensive luxury cars and you can't bet the entire company's future on them. Everything else is forgettable.

GM seems to have some sort of aversion to real innovation. Rather than embracing it the market drags them into it kicking and screaming.
The only thing GM seems to be interested in doing is designing big!
A sad state of affairs. My father used to work at GM plant in Framingham, MA.
I also tend to think this is a symptom of American industry as a whole. Lobby and legislate out of problems forget trying to compete!

:mad:

[sweetheart]

5. Future history will not remember GM at all

The book chapter will be
26. "American history, WW2 - 911"
27. "American history 911, the corporate coup - WW3"
28. "World war 4, reconstruction of the new constitutional republic"
29. "The 2090 civil war and the breakoff of the hispanic states"
30. "Collapse of the Dixie agreement and the breakoff of the south"

... but nothing about GM.

[Old and In the Way]

6. They tied their future to Big Oil

They should have moved into hybrid technology development 30 years ago when OPEC started. Think of the edge they'd have today with a 30 year head start.