10 Reasons Why the Automobile Bailout is Necessary
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Almost every American has an opinion about whether the Auto Industry should receive bailout funding. No other corporations in America elicit the strong passions and opinions the three domestic auto manufacturers GM, Ford, and Chrysler produce. As an American, my reasons for why the automobile bailout is necessary are much more personal and nostalgic. Much more rooted in what it means to be an American. And much more based on national pride.
A tentative agreement reached this weekend between the White House and Congress calls for a bailout by the Bush Administration of the auto industry. Almost every American has an opinion about whether the Auto Industry should receive bailout funding. No other corporations in America elicit the strong passions and opinions the three domestic auto manufacturers GM, Ford, and Chrysler produce. Americans have been in love with their automobiles since they replaced the horse and buggy. Every red-blooded American male remembers their first automobile and driving in it to pick up his first date, the drive-in movie, the local drive-in hamburger place, and even making out with his date at the local parking spot. Yes, the automobile is so intertwined with American culture that even the brand of car you drive can provoke fights. Maybe this is why an ailing domestic auto industry interests Americans and the thought of Automobiles not manufactured by an American firm is unthinkable. It’s not even an option.
And yet, recent opinion polls conclude the majority of Americans are not in favor of bailout funding for the domestic automakers. Why? What have they done to merit such treatment? For an answer to this question we must reach deep into the psyche of car loving Americans, and when we do we find GM, Ford, and Chrysler are guilty of the unpardonable crime of not providing products with the value of Toyota and Honda. How dare the domestic auto producers betray the tremendous emotional investment and pride that all Americans feel about their automobile. The jalopy that you grew-up with or the trophy you drive to church in. The fun machine that the family goes for a drive in on a warm Sunday afternoon. The car that you used to bring your first-born child home from the hospital in.
Without exception, rational Americans agree that America cannot risk the tremendous impact that a bankrupt auto industry would have on our economy in the midst of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. But I will leave the facts and figures why to the mainstream press. As an American, my reasons for why the automobile bailout is necessary are much more personal and nostalgic. Much more rooted in what it means to be an American. And much more based on national pride.
My top ten reasons why GM, Ford, and Chrysler should be bailed out are:
1. No matter what, the American working man makes the best automobiles in the world.
2. The robin egg blue 1951 Oldsmobile that I drove in high school until we found oil in the radiator.
3. The El Camino that I would take to the local drag strip and took on all comers with.
4. The black and white Studebaker Commander that I froze in because the heater under the front seat didn’t work.
5. The huge family Buick Invicta with the 445 cubic inch V8 engine that I took my date to the junior prom in.
6. The 1971 Grey Chevrolet Malibu that I polished so much that my uncle said I would polish off the paint.
7. The 1969 dark blue Pontiac GTO that I envied so much that could get rubber in 4th gear at 60 mph.
8. The real-fine 409 the Beach Boys sang about with dual quads, positraction, and a four speed.
9. The cut outs I had installed on the El Camino to reduce back pressure and get off the line faster.
10. The drag races in July and drinking gallons of A&W root beer. I would keep the drag race class letters on the window of my car all summer long.
1 Comment
While these are all good reasons to bail out the US automakers, the new driving generation does not share all the nostalgia with their parents, and history has not been as kind to US automakers since the beginning. Just because the big 3 have survived this long does not give them a green light to eternity. Let’s look back at just the past 50 years for instance. Names like Studebaker and Nash only live on in the memories of the faithful owners. The constant distillation of American marques has been the best way for American car companies to survive.
Chrysler has been at this precipice before; look what it gave the world – a minivan – hey thanks Iacocca. America is about business, good business that is. The next generation does not care about the small block engine or the heater delete option; they want navigation and an auxiliary input for their iPod. I say give it to them not-so-big three.