Uppity Wisconsin

To borrow a line from Art Kumbalek of the Milwaukee Shepherd Express, "Man, oh Manishevitz, what a world we live in, ain' it?"

We the taxpayers are being called upon to socialize recapitalize, not only the financial markets, but now the auto industry, too. Who's next, the retailers?

Something has to be done to save the more than 3 million workers serving this domestic industry, something we sadly could not accomplish to keep the Janesville, Wis., plant alive.

What bothers most of the people I talk to about all this (besides the auto execs flying into D.C. on private jets to ask for taxpayer handouts), is that we taxpayers seem to be in the driver's seat since we're the ones lending the money, but our representatives don't really seem to get that. Feingold and Kohl support the auto bailout, for example, but are their calls for "guarantees for changes in fuel efficiency and requiring good management practices" an even exchange for another $25 billion from us? Did you blink and miss the $25 billion they got in September?

Seems like we could at least entertain ideas like those from, surprisingly, singer and activist Neil Young - yes I'm being serious, check this out.

 

It is time to change and our problems can facilitate our solutions. We can no longer afford to continue down Detroit's old road. The people have spoken. They do not want gas guzzlers (although they still like big cars and trucks). It is possible to build large long-range vehicles that are very efficient. People WILL buy those vehicles because they represent REAL change and a solution that we can live with.

The government must take advantage of the powerful position that exists today. The Big 3 are looking for a bailout. They should only get it if they agree to stop building autos that contribute to global warming now. The stress on the auto manufacturers today is gigantic. In order to keep people working in their jobs and keep factories open, this plan is suggested:

Read more.

UPDATE: Will U.S. taxpayer bailout money go towards helping the auto industry continue its overseas expansion? Hmmm ... GM says it won't halt output overseas.

UPDATE 2: Bail them out at any cost? Maybe so. Here's a point of view I hadn't considered.