Okay, if you're against the GM plan, what would you have done better?

[eeyore]

Seriously. Give me a better plan.

I don't want to hear about different standards for Wall Street vs Main Street. I want to hear an alternative plan.

What would you do to save the auto industry?

Seriously.

[zipplewrath]

1. Healthcare

Arrange a program to take the healthcare benefits off of GM (for a fee) for the retirees. It becomes a great pilot program for offering it to a whole host of industries and moves us towards some variation of single payer or centralized healthcare.

[Uzybone]

4. How does that help them sell cars?

How long will it take to get this healthcare program started? Will the admin do it by themselves or will congress have to vote for it?

[zipplewrath]

7. Reduces costs

The usual problem quoted is that it cost them $5000 per car for retiree healthcare benefits.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

61. Get rid of the retiree benefits.

Problem solved.

[notadmblnd]

12. If I'm not mistaken the UAW has already taken the burden of retirees health care off GM

My BCBS card says UAW not GM.

[zipplewrath]

28. They still pay

What the UAW did was to take over responsibility for administering it. GM still pays money to the UAW. It does allow GM to change the way that the accounting is done in terms of future obligations. Basically, it limits their exposed liability.

[Winterblues]

34. You mean the Union which is you guys have taken on that tremendous burdon?

And people still want you to take a pay cut so the company can survive? If the government took over Health Care Costs then there would be no need for pay cuts and in fact pay increases would seem to be in order. People being payed more means people can spend more which means more cars being bought which means company does better. National health Care is indeed the solution. There is no foreign company that has to shoulder the same burdon as American companies when it come to health care. If our government assumed that obligation then american business would be much more competetive world wide in the Global economy which again means higher pay for American workers and more employment. Health Care is the single biggest stumbling block to Profitability.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

64. Of course not.

In most countries with government-sponsored healtchare, the burden is carried exclusively by the taxpayer. Why do you think so many large corporations are so interested in health care reform?

[MercutioATC]

2. Let 'em fail. Break 'em up. Sell 'em off.

Yes, it'd be painful...but ANY solution is going to be painful.

[Uzybone]

5. and break up the UAW?

[MercutioATC]

8. There's still Ford...

...and maybe Chrysler.

I don't like it any better than anybody else, but GM is a failed business...and not just because of the economy. We simply can't afford to keep pouring cash into GM.

[ogneopasno]

14. Once the GM and Chrysler contracts are broken (and they will be once the companies declare

bankruptcy), you really think Ford is going to sit around and be fine paying the highest tier of a multi-tier system?

[MercutioATC]

20. Union and non-union automaker labor costs aren't drastically different.

Legacy costs are the problem, not actual labor costs.

[JDPriestly]

29. The so-called "legacy costs" are actually deferred income

that the retired employees earned years ago. They deferred taking the income that was due them then in order to help the company grow. The legacy costs are not negotiable.

Once an employee retires, an employer cannot go back and take back the money that the employer put in the employee's 401(K). The "legacy costs" are like 401(K) money. They belong to the retired employees.

The retired employees fully performed their part of the contracts under which they received the benefits we are now calling legacy costs. Those are not negotiable.

The Wall Street bonus clauses are far more negotiable, far more vulnerable to renegotiation or repudiation than these legacy costs that are part of contracts that one of the parties to the contract has already completely executed.

Let's say you paid off your mortgage. Your lender can't come back and change the terms of that mortgage that you paid off. No way. The legacy costs are a done deal.

[MercutioATC]

32. That's the way it SHOULD be, not the way it is.

Mandating that pensions be fully-funded would solve the problem.

[me b zola]

50. IMO, legacy costs aren't a problem

I remember when people were able to retire on their pensions, back before everyone was lead to believe that their retirement depended upon "investing" in wall street. Retirement should not be a gamble.

[KharmaTrain]

9. The UAW Goes Where The Jobs Are

Just because a nameplate doesn't say GM or Chrysler doesn't mean it wasn't assembled by a UAW member. It's assumed that bankruptcy means busting the union when it may just create new opportunities. Telecommunications workers didn't lose jobs when President Carter broke up AT&T in the 70's...it spawned a dozen smaller companies...and created more union jobs.

[backscatter712]

6. That seems to be close to Obama's solution.

What pisses me off is that again, auto-worker retirees are being asked to give up their pensions and health care, that they FUCKING EARNED during their working years.

Attacking the retirees should be off the table.

[MercutioATC]

13. Agreed, which is why we need legislation mandating fully-funded pensions.

This type of thing will continue until we pass a law.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

65. I'm all for the government picking up the tab for existing pension and health benefits...

...but this shit can't continue indefinitely. It's not sustainable. Retirees deserve their benefits, but the entire benefits system at auto companies is completely out of whack and they have missed a huge opportunity to use their economies of scale to provide affordable (to the companies) benefits for workers.

[high density]

23. Sell to who?

Chrysler is already a gamble gone bad by Cerberus private equity.

GM's product line generally appears so intertwined that I don't know how feasible it is to split up too much of it.

[MercutioATC]

35. GL is a big company.

Their demise would reduce supply to a point that would create demand in excess of supply.

They have technology and physical assets that would be purchased by other automakers to fill that demand.

[MercutioATC]

3. Dupe

Deleted

[fumsm]

10. How about "fair trade" rules????

Only seems fair what is good for the goose is good for the gander? All the US cars you see overseas are built there. Importing is not an option due to taxes.

[eeyore]

15. Do you actually want to be forced by price to by a GM car?

No thanks. I don't purchase planned obsolescence. Chevy, Buick, Cadillac? No thanks.

[fumsm]

26. Fair is fair, or is it?

Can't compete with unfair trade rules. Get with it. And oh, my 9 year old chrysler van, 7 year old 300m and 10 yr old grand am are still with me? What is your problem again?

Maybe you should wake up and support your own country for a while, before you loose your industry next. Think it can't happen?

[eeyore]

39. Blind economic patriotism makes no sense to me

Why would I buy a product I don't want? Honestly, I have not seen an American car that I wanted in decades.

I support my country every day by purchasing local every chance I get. I support small local businesses that sell things I need, and if that's not direct economic respect for my community I don't know what is. Farmers, restaurants, artisans, and product manufacturers all get my support, and they are all in my back yard.

I have no desire for American cars. I'm not going to spend money on something I don't want.

[Fading Captain]

57. You're a corporatist.

NM

[backscatter712]

30. Error: bad framing.

What tariffs properly do is compensate being undercut by countries with nickel-per-hour wages, no workplace safety, environmental, or child-labor laws.

We want our workers to be paid a living wage, but we can't maintain it if they have to compete with people from Mexico or Southeast Asia who get paid a tenth of what we get paid.

Ideally, tariffs would be set so roughly equivalent goods made here at home and made abroad cost roughly the same. That way, domestic companies are motivated to compete, but they're not undercut by cheap imports.

[fumsm]

49. People just don't get it.

When cars are produced in cheapo labor markets, they also have cheap operating cost due to pollution and other issues they don't have to account for in these countries. One trip to a Mexican auto supplier would show this very clearly. 2-3 dollars/day wage, dirt floors, open air buildings, no pollution controls. It is quite amazing, trust me, I've been there many times.

Being as though they do not have these cost, not to mention health care and pensions, they can build a car with better components, thus more reliable, and in most cases for a cheaper sales price.

Since our trade laws allow for dumping of anything into our economy, so people can have their Walmarts and Toyota's, cost are not even par. The only way a US car maker is able to compete is to use cheaper components, which is all a car is made up of anyhow.

In addition, a US car maker cannot ship a car into Europe,or Asia or most other countries due to high tariffs. How can you call this fair?

Concerning implants. I have been to most of them. These people have no security, are paid low wages, not even enough to buy the cars they are making, and the profits are shipped overseas. In addition, the communities often foot the bill for the tax breaks given buy our repuke senators/governors to entice them to build in their states. These cost generally add up to billions and billions of US tax dollars. We are subsidizing our own demise, in broad daylight no less.

Give me a break and wake up.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

66. Uh, no.

Economic activity takes place in the location that makes the most economic sense, based on what a consumer is willing to pay for a specific product. This is why Japanese companies have moved their production of cars for the American market to America, and why GM, etc produce their European cars in Europe.

[notadmblnd]

11. Creating jobs. if someone did a study, I thik they'd find that the rise in unemployment directly

effects the numbers of new cars bought. As the jobs disappear, so do the new car buyers. My vehicle is a 2002. It's paid for. If I got a job, I'd be buying a new car and giving my old one to my son who is getting his license next week.

[Eric J in MN]

16. Limit excecutive compensation to $400,000/year. NT

NT

[eeyore]

17. Good luck with that!

Where you think you live, son? France?


:rofl:

[Deep13]

21. Minimum wage. Maximum wage.

That has a nice symmetry.

[MercutioATC]

22. That should be a shareholder issue, not a legal issue.

If the owners (shareholders) of a company believe a CEO is worth $10M/year, they should have the right to pay him that.

[JDPriestly]

33. As in Germany, workers should be represented on the boards of directors

of large, industrial companies. I don't believe they are allowed to vote on management compensation in Germany, but I could be wrong. And I think that here, where the management gets such huge salaries, employee representatives on the boards of directors should be allowed a voice and a vote on managment compensation.

[Eric J in MN]

36. The shareholders could have been given a choice,

...get billions in government loans which don't go to huge salaries, or don't get the billions.

[MercutioATC]

54. I'm not saying that executive compensation shouldn't be a factor when deciding whether to give

taxpayer money. That would be part of the analysis of the company's business plan.

I just don't support legislation that would limit ALL executive pay...nor do I believe an arbitrary number like $400k fits all situations.

[Eric J in MN]

59. How about limiting all executive pay at bailed out corporations? NT

NT

[MercutioATC]

70. I think it should be determined on a case-by-case basis.

One size does NOT fit all.

[Bluenorthwest]

40. Yes but only if they earn that money

not if they are taking our money to cover the failures of that CEO.

[Profprileasn]

18. Perhaps the question

is not "What would you do to save the auto industry?" but "how can the auto industry save itself?" That way they will have that power and thought process in the future.

[C......N......C]

19. There are no customers. Any plan is ridiculous.

[JDPriestly]

24. Here you go.

Mega-rule. Live up to your promises to have absolutely transparent government especially with regard to deals you make with banks and private companies and with regard to not hiring lobbyists or former lobbyists. Get rid of all those people you have hired who have worked as lobbyists.

1. Require worker representation elected by the employees on the boards of directors of all companies that have more than 200 employees.

2. Require the employee representatives on boards of directors of the companies with more than 200 employees to be permitted to vote on executive compensation.

3. Make card check a law.

4. Enforce existing laws protecting unions.

5. Place all pension funds in lock box investments and do not allow pension funds to be lost in mergers and acquisitions, purchases of stock, etc.

6. Enforce discrimination laws, especially those against women and older workers.

7. Limit the amount of compensation that employees in the financial services can take in the form of commissions and bonuses.

8. Enforce unfair competition laws and laws prohibiting monopolies.

9. Break up the mega-companies in the media and entertainment businesses.

10. Completely restructure the electrical grid.

11. Require every electricity company to produce and sell a certain percentage of power that is based on sustainable resources and increase that percentage each year until it is over 80%.

12. Set cafe standards that limit emissions.

13. Increase public and rail transportation and fund the research necessary to reach the point that solar energy, bio-fuels and hydrogen fuel cells are the primary sources of energy in the country.

14. Renegotiate trade agreements to insure jobs for American workers.

15. Gradually replace a portion of the revenue earned from income taxes with value added taxes that tax imported goods on a level proportionate with domestically produce goods.

16. Enact legislation that allows any American to opt into Medicare for a reasonable monthly fee and allow the federal government to pay a portion of that fee for Americans who cannot afford the fee.

17. Pass an amendment to the Constitution that specifically defines the rights and responsibilities of corporations and states that corporations do not have rights of human beings that are not set forth in that provision.

18. Encourage the use of birth control and acknowledge the limitations of the planet's resources and the unsustainability of ever increasing human populations on the planet.

19. Increase funds for education.

20. Don't mess with Social Security or Medicare. Most senior citizens don't have much, don't ask for much and should be encouraged to live their final days and years in dignity and security.

21. Limit interest rates on student loans and do not allow interest on those loans to accrue during the years when a student is at least attending school for 1/2 of the time.

22. Tell the commanders in Iraq that they will be demoted unless they get us out of there within 16 months from last January 20.

23. No more cost plus contracts. Don't outsource to private contractors the work that our military should be doing. Pay enlistees in the military better wages and carry out promises of free education for those who serve in the military for four years or more. Increase veteran's benefits.

I could go on and on. The first step is for Obama to choose a different economic team. He is getting very bad advice. It is going to backfire.

[C......N......C]

25. Right on, wish I could K&R a reply.

If you have a plumbing problem and you hire a siding guy to fix it, he is going to tell you how to fix it with siding. These guys live in another world. He needs to get people like we do, from our peers, not his peers. Scholars and the lot are good for the follow up details, needs someone who understands the problems.

[C......N......C]

27. Your number 7. Percentage reward in all forms should be outlawed.

[Eric J in MN]

37. Why. What is so bad about a salesman getting a percentage? NT

NT

[C......N......C]

41. What is wrong with a union contract? Have to start somehwere to fix

the country. The percentage reward concept let the bankers and wall street and lawyers take money far beyond the amount of time they put in to earn it.

[eeyore]

31. How, exactly, does this keep GM from going under right now?

You have a lot of great ideas there, many of which I'm sure Obama holds as his values as well. None, however, addresses my question.

What's your plan for saving GM? What, exactly, would you have done differently in working with GM?

You have great ideas, but they all will take time to implement. GM is failing right now.

[C......N......C]

38. No plan from these guys will help.. All car sales are down.

Give a free car with a car purchase. Give free financing to every one, subsidize a car purchase. Give tax credits for a car purchase. Anything to get them all to make more cars. This country revolves around cars. Give some billions to car programs, like public works programs. The people and plants are there. Put them to work. Make and send cars to Siberia or the Antarctica. Anything to make cars and put people back to work. A public works program.

[JDPriestly]

53. There is no quick and easy solution. Cutting the money for retired GM workers is not the answer.

This is not just a GM problem. It is a national problem.

Car sales overall are down. GM's problems are: 1) the public perception that GM cars are not reliable (although my husband still drives his 1992 Saturn and it is running well) and 2) the public perception that GM's cars are not fuel efficient or stylish.

When I think of GM cars, I think heavy, big cars that use a lot of gas.

Ford did well with the Escort and the Focus and of course the Mustang was great.

GM did not get that light, young look. When I think of GM, I think of the stodgy, heavy cars and of trucks. They sold a few years back, but GM was not forward-looking about its designs and did not take into consideration things like public concern for climate change, and for higher gas prices.

So, GM needs new designs. It's probably very expensive to re-tool, and GM has always been reluctant to re-tool based on my limited experience with GM cars. For example, yesterday, my husband and I were noticing once again the horrible turning radius on his 1992 Saturn compared to my 1996 Honda. That turning radius makes it difficult to park the car and hard to turn around in a lot of situations. I suspect that GM used a chassis design from one of its larger cars or at least started from the chassis design for a larger car when making that Saturn. I like my Honda much better because it is easier to park and maneuver in tight situations.

[No.23]

63. Union reps at the White house too.

I like your suggestions a lot.

I'd also like to add one to the list.

Re. "require the employee representatives on boards of directors of the companies with more than 200 employees to be permitted to vote on executive compensation", Uncle Sam should model that practice as well.

Union reps should be part of the Administration's financial team too, and not just former execs of Wall Street.

I think that you might see more worker-directed policies, if they included union reps within their internal deliberations.

[PassingFair]

42. To START...

HUGE tax breaks for American-Made, fuel efficient cars.

The Bush Administration gave away Hummers
and other HEAVY vehicles
to businesses throughout their reign.

Switch the write-offs to gas-sippers.

Subsidize tooling American plants ONLY) for more lines.

Give Americans NATIONAL HEALTH CARE, so
that big businesses don't have to complete
with foreign entities whose governments
subsidize THEIR workforces with health care.

[C......N......C]

44. I'm for 24/7 childcare also. Working people work evenings

and weekends. That will help competing with other countries.

[eeyore]

46. I agree that Bush's tax breaks were destructive.

Your point is well taken on the tax breaks, and perhaps that's something that could be in the making. Remember, we're still in the first quarter of the first year of Obama's first term.

It could be argued, however, that Bush's subsidies just prolonged the inevitable crisis we're in right now. Perhaps subsidizing the reverse would work, or perhaps it would just be a band-aid. I really don't know the answer.

National health care is in the works, but that will take time.

[PassingFair]

47. Bush was subsidizing oil consumption.

Everything they did was about
selling energy.

Bloodsuckers.

[eeyore]

51. Agreed. It was disgusting.

I knew many white collar financial workers who took advantage of that take break. Accountants driving big ass trucks around to get the rebate. And these same people would tell me they were not sure the costs of the war were worth the gains. Fucking selfish and shortsighted idiots!

[PassingFair]

74. Hey, you must know my co-workers!

Sitting around bragging about who had the
biggest car...this in SALES, where we pay
for our own mileage!

Used to make me sick, but most of them have
gotten the picture by now.

Unfortunately the DUMB ASSES blame UNIONS
for the state of the union.

:crazy:

[Blue_Tires]

43. i know it's hindsight, but

a lot of the problems being suffered now really got their roots in the early 80s through the mid 90s...

the primary issue is product -- for too long GM built undesirable cars that were not competitive with imports in quality, reliability and performance...product is king, and never forget it

second, upper management -- GM placed too much trust in the MBA beancounters (many of whom never knew the first thing about the industry and came from such closely-related fields as Big Pharm, Insurance, Food, whatever...GM went a long time without any "car guys" in charge, and as a result, the products had no substance or soul...The beancounters also infamously shook down car designs and parts supplier for every spare quarter of a cent they could find, which even to this day gives their interiors the 'cheap, plasticky' feel...No one figured out until too late that HIGH QUALITY, while costing more initially, pays for itself in the long run and saving a shortsighted cent with low quality today will cost more in warranty claims, and eventually cost you customers...

third, company structure -- too many brands, models (the ill-fated 'badge engineering', another beancounter innovation) and dealers caused product overlap and the decent products to cannibalize their own sales...The only surviving brands in order of importance should be Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC Truck, maybe Saturn and small maybe Pontiac...And I know GM has very little to do with this and they can't watch everybody, but the dealer networks for years had been shit for service and customer satisfaction...The big bloated structure also ensures that true innovations and good ideas get lost in the bureaucracy that does everything by consensus and wants to be all things to all people...Even now when good ideas come along, the gestation process from concept sketch to production is still twice as long as more agile companies...

fourth, company philosophy -- Upper management has had a long history of sticking with what works and rarely trying anything new or having the foresight to see future marketplace demands...Over the years, GM has spent billions in lobbying, buying senators and in the courtroom fighting emission and mileage standards...If they spent one-tenth of that time, effort and money in alternative fuel designs, they would be in a different situation now... The company that killed the electric car for more SUVs during the drunken orgy days of cheap gas and long suburban commutes is reaping the whirlwind now... The company whose management smugly boasted about 'free market forces' dictating what they build is now on government life support now that the market forces have left them in the last century... The company who has sent the bulk of its manufacturing base outside of the country now wants to wave the flag and call on our patriotism to save them... The company with the biggest pension and healthcare liabilities in the world still can't be brave enough to press the government for 'socialist' healthcare (but they love their Canadian plants), and the hits keep comin'

fifth -- we, the consumers and congress share a little of the blame for enabling GM to make 20+ years of shitty decisions, which they have only recently tried to rectify...I know you wanted a rescue plan rather than a rant, so mine would be doing the OPPOSITE of points 2, 3, and 4...

[eeyore]

45. Great post!

I completely agree. I got berated up-thread for not supporting American products, the age-old cry of the American auto industry. Make something I want and I'll buy it. How hard is that?

[Trekologer]

73. You're probablly the closest to the solution

There is a lot of sentiment that the administration is supporting the financial industry but not the auto industry. I don't think that the two are as comparable as some think.

We need the banks to lend money. And the way to get them to lend money is to give them money to lend. We can discuss the banks not doing what they were supposed to do with the money (and they seem to have not). But we need them to lend to individuals and businesses (small and large) in order to get the economy moving again. We need this so that businesses start and expand to hire workers and individuals are able to obtain the financing to buy cars and houses.

GM submitted a plan to turn it around to the administration and not only was the plan rejected, they told the CEO to get out. I don't know what that plan is but clearly the administration didn't think it was a sustainable plan and that the current leadership would be able to put together a workable plan. For all we know, GM's rejected plan was along the lines of give us cash to wait out the economic problems then its back to business as usual.

I have no problem with the administration rejecting GM's (and Chrysler's) plan. This is not the same as the financial companies, whose goal is to get money back into the financial markets. Giving money to GM (and Chrysler) absent a workable plan to turn the company around is simply throwing money into a pit; it doesn't help the company, its workers, dealers, suppliers, etc for the long-term.

[Winterblues]

48. Instead of giving GM or Chrysler billions outright, provide matching funds for individuals

Make it so every American only has to pay half price when buying a new automobile. If the government were to provide equal matching funds cars would fly off the showroom floors. The money would still end up at GM and Chrysler but people would be working and consumers would get a major break and the economy would begin to hum. If the government were to do this for a two year period the costs probably would not be much more than what they will give outright to the auto makers the way they are currently doing. The difference is it is a bottom up approach instead of trickle down which these guys just can't seem to get away from.

[ContinentalOp]

69. The best solution I've heard so far.

I can't think of a reason why it wouldn't work although there is probably some logistical reason why it can't be done. For starters, only a fraction of the money would end up at GM because you would have to subtract the dealers profits, and the sales that would go to Ford or Chrysler. Still, it sounds better than just throwing cash at them.

[JANdad]

77. Good One!

Wow...had not thought of that!

[rucky]

52. Reorganize under an employee-leveraged (and taxpayer-backed) buyout.

The government *lends* the UAW the money to buy GM outright, or at least guarantees the loan. GM becomes a 100% union-owned and operated shop. Then we can test a business model that involves fair wages, insourcing, and responsible business practices. At best, it's a profitable venture. At worst, we end up where we are now.

[kiranon]

68. GM/Chrysler would be better run by the employees than it was by its management.

Perhaps the Union can buy part of GM with government backing. Saturn? Buick? Why not.

[Oregone]

55. No more bailout. PURCHASE the companies

Consolidate their pension plans in a low overhead government alternative to cut legacy costs. Then, implement Universal Healthcare to cut more worker/legacy costs (half the cost of labor immediately). Then (after retooling), develop a sustainable Green "Volkswagen" type program, where 5 to 10 proto-types are made of cars/trucks that get 35 to 70 mpg (first phase, and move standards higher after 3 years). Create these lightweight, basic models to sell from $8 to $16,000 max. Implement a full tax deduction for citizens buying these vehicles, and create pre-payment plans (like in Germany). Attempt to create a mass advertising program to deliver a vehicle to every household in America. Revitalize the entire American manufacturing sector by doing so.

[eeyore]

58. Sounds great. How long would it take to implement?

Love the ideas, but GM is about to fail, right?

What do we do right now?

[Oregone]

62. Addressing pensions and healthcare, if serious, would be a short term task,

and hell, the companies could be bought tomorrow. That alone would drastically alter the financial situation of the companies.

But, who knows on retooling & design. If we could project a reasonable amount of profit, we could keep them afloat for a year until the factories were ready to churn.

[ContinentalOp]

71. How do you buy something that's worthless?

Will you buy my credit card from me? You can take over all of my debt and in return you get a shiny plastic souvenir that you can keep in your wallet.

I kind of like your idea but you might as well build it from the ground up.

[Oregone]

72. Cheaply

:)

Their total stock value is quite affordable. And its not completely worthless, its just not profitable (due to liabilities vs revenue). They still have valuable factories, technology and equipment.

Buying ownership would be quite cheap BECAUSE their stock is worthless

Addressing pensions and healthcare reduces a lot of their liabilities

Creating sustainable green auto production at affordable prices will generate more revenue.


No, I will not buy your credit card from you, unless its made from pure plated gold and has hot hooker's phone numbers written on it (In such a case, it may have more value than its price tag).

Thats the beauty of using the market (for the banks too). You can buy ownership at a fraction of the cost of buying all their assets (and then you automatically own the assets). If you can handle the liabilities, and improve the way the company runs, you can't lose.

[Fading Captain]

56. Increase the tax incentive to buy cars assembled in America

Tax cars assembled overseas

PRESTO

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

60. How long of a time frame are we talking about?

Because this stupid shit has been going on for most of my life. Do I get to go back twenty years and make different decisions, or do I need to start only a few months ago?

[backscatter712]

67. Can't think of a good solution, but...

is there any way the .gov could do something about the retiree's pensions and health care?

Maybe if the .gov was to be spending billions, they should be spending those billions on the workers that earned those pensions and benefits.

Wait a minute, there is a good solution, not for GM - they're screwed, but as for the rest of us, how about some universal health care?

[SpartanDem]

nm

[SpartanDem]

75. Tax incentives

to buy with the biggest incentives going to cars actually made in country and fuel efficient vehicles.

The gov should agree to back pensions in case of bankruptcy as they've all ready agreed to back the warranties on cars.

[Stinky The Clown]

76. Universal . Single . Payer . Healthcare

That would save Woodward Avenue, Main Street, and Elm Street.