this may seem obvious and perhaps it's simply a corollary to Occam's Razor, but things that logically should happen, almost always do happen.
when Obama said, "I believe the nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it," he was obviously wrong. as has been pointed out numerous times, it was Karl Benz of Germany who invented the internal combustion engine and built the first automobile. but more importantly, even if the US did invent the automobile, is there any reason to keep an auto industry alive in this country?
first of all, it's clear that cars as we've known them for the last 100 years will change dramatically in the next 10. the internal combustion engine will be fazed out entirely except perhaps in super large trucks.
the nation that also invented the typewriter (Christopher Sholes in 1865 in Wisconsin) walked away from it (typewriters are no longer manufactured in any quantity in the US). and we will certainly walk away from the auto industry as we know it too.
the US also invented sneakers (or at least the waffle outsole that is standard on all athletic shoes) and yet almost all of nike's factories are overseas, in particular in asia. the factories are there because it is economical to for them to be there.
if it is not economical for there to be a car factory in the US, then there will not be a car factory in the US. the US government can delay the inevitable, but things that should happen eventually do happen.
so, GM will go bankrupt. likely the company will continue to exist in some form but relatively quickly, if wages remain high the US (and i hope they do), all car manufacturing will be moved offshore.
and while we're at it, another thing that makes logical sense and so eventually will happen is GE will file chapter 11 and/or they will split the company up isolating the disastrous finance division.
having been born and raised in Dearborn, Michigan, the home of Henry Ford, I have a hard time with this one. i mean, you're comparing the invention of the typewriter and sneakers with the car? what about how the car companies perfected the assembly line, a technique that transformed manufacturing, or their impact during war time, or their influence on the structure of unions (good and bad of course)? and you speak as if these car companies are domestic only when in reality, these are global companies. the car companies are a part of american history - maybe not yours personally, but 90% of my family worked in this dying industry so show a little respect.
ReplyDeleteno disrespect intended. but if it's not economical to build cars in the US, then they won't be built in the US. GM / Chrysler / Ford will probably exist. And likely many of their more white collar jobs (like marketing, design, etc) will remain in the US. But factories will go to the cheapest places, and at least for now (and probably forever), that is not in the US. GM can go bankrupt and reorganize so it will continue to exist. for example airlines tend to go chapter 11 and reorganize every few years.
ReplyDeleteI am doing research for my university thesis, thanks for your great points, now I am acting on a sudden impulse.
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