These People Want Pity?

Did anyone not see this coming? Are our government leaders really this ignorant and naive? Anyone with the least bit of common sense would know that once billions of dollars were given to bail out the big banks, other institutions would quickly follow suit with similar requests. And now, we are subjected to hearing the major automakers whine about how much help they need to get out of their own self-made predicament.

I do have a novel idea for them, though. It would be sure to help their situation. Here it is: quit catering to the crooked unions!

Because of the influence of the sleazy unions, these companies have been forced to give their average employee upwards of $75 dollars an hour in benefits and monetary compesation. This is in stark contrast to the typical worker at any other job who makes around $25 an hour. The differences here are completely absurd. Did they really expect to stay afloat while overpaying their employees to that extent?

An employee with around 14 years of experience also gets a reported 35 vacation and holiday days a year. That's 7 whole weeks! Again...completely absurd! Your typical employee at any other place of business with comparable experience is given only 4 weeks of paid time off and nowhere near the same healthcare benefits.

Now don't get me wrong, I believe the big automakers completely have the right to do whatever they want with their money and their employees. If they decided to cater to the evil unions and suffered because of it, that is their own problem. And that is exactly it...their OWN problem! Why should we as just everyday people have to deal with all their problems? These are not our dilemmas; they are the self-inflicted problems of Ford, GM, and Chrysler. However, they have the audacity to show up on Capitol Hill and declare how deserving they are of taxpayer money to remedy their own mistakes. Is this bold or arrogant? I've decided to go with the latter. They didn't even bother to make this trip in the automobiles their own companies made!

On another note, they claim that we should be worried about the stockholders. But, why? The automakers have had these problems for years. If stockholders weren't wise enough to see them and get out while they could, why should we feel sorry for them now?

The best conclusion for this situation would be to simply let the automakers go bankrupt and cancel all their excessive contracts with their employees. They could then use these same employees and give them fair, competitive wages and benefits. Maybe, just maybe, they would then be forced to produce cars that match the quality of the prices they charge. Even if they weren't able to break down and make a better automobile, they could at least sell theirs at a lower price that more Americans could afford.

The auto industry should in no way at all get a bailout to help fund their failing business model. Their approach to business will not change and they will continue to use the same flawed stratefies as before. Unfortunately, the precedent was already set by handing out billions to the banks, so now every business in a little bit of trouble wants their share. But, who is next? Will it be the owners of professional baseball teams? I wouldn't be shocked at all.