Do you think the government shuld help the auto industry out with a bailout, or should they auto unions accept that times are tough, and reduce wages and bonus, etc.?

I am not saying impoverish them, or even take them down 50%. In all honesty, if everyone took a 10% to 15% reduction in wages, that would generate a whole hell of a lot fo money for the industries, and the workers would OT lose all that much money.

Tims are tough, and everyoe is going to have to make concessions before it gets better, or it will get even worse. So what would be bettr? Lose 10 - 15% of your wages, or lose your job cause the industries fail?

no no and no

there is a legal system already in place to save failing companies from going under and force crappy management to reorganize

it's called Chapter 11

Personaly NO...I beleive in the free market.Will times get bad? yes.Will they get better? yes...But since we are we really need to look at retooling what.

You know where Im going...

Ok let say our workers chose to go chapter 11, instead of taking a minimal pay cut. Thousand upon thousands of workers would lose their jobs, as part of chapter eleven would require consolidaton of factories and jobs; whereas if everyone simply took the ten percent loss, no one would lose their jobs.

Now, I am not saying ten percent is cu and dry, I have no idea what the real numbers are, but you get the idea of what I am saying. I am not asking that they give up a decent lifestyle. But I am asking that people thnk about the better good.

And keep in mind too, that chances are xtremely high that if you go chaptr eleven, consolidate and eveything, you will eventually go chapter thirteen as well cause you will no longer be producing enough to stay in the black.

This concerns me:

U.S. auto companies employ nearly a quarter-million workers, and more than 730,000 other people have jobs producing the materials and parts that go into cars. About 1 million on top of that work in dealerships nationwide. If just one of the auto giants were to go belly up, some estimates put U.S. job losses next year as high as 2.5 million.

http://www.npr.org/newsinbrief/index.html

I have post on hear what the industry did in the late 80s early 90s..It differently affects ALOT more than the manufacturers.

and look up how much they spend on retiree pensions and healthcare. They promised unsustainable salaries and benefits and now they can't pay

But Toyota and Nissan plants in America are doing fine

If the Auto Makers Go Belly up, they Will CLose on Friday and Open on Monday under a Different Name and Unfortunately Pay the Employees $18 Less an Hour. I don't think it will Be any worse than that, but what do I Know I'm just a Mingle Junkie

What will that do when its absorbed into our high cost for low cost ailment society?

CNN just said that Ford didn't need the money and wouldn't take it.

I say let GM and that other one fail.

Somehow I think the guys running those companies will figure out a way to save their company with out the bail outs because they want to keep their multi million dollar jobs.

And add to that the workers will no longer be paying in to social security, many will go on welfare. And lose their houses which will be more bad debt on the banks.

What people fail to realize is the Auto companies in the late 80s early 90s changed the way they did business. It started farming out its production to smaller less paying factories. Parts on demand...Parts from all over in all makes of cars.American made huh, it has japanese parts in it, as do the japanese cars have American parts. These smaller factories thrived then and larger ones were closed. The Auto industries affect a lot more than just the manufacturers

let them fail and so will we . jobs will be lost and the economy will get even crappier than it is . keep america strong so that we can all live free and happy..just a rant, think about it.

Agreed it effects even stores and even people who work at McDonalds

And the small business around the plants will close too - restaurants, etc. The whole community is affected.

St. Louis has already closed one of its plants - about 2,000 unemployed now. I know 2 couples that had both the husband and wife working there and they have children.

What skills do they have to do other work after many have been working there for 20 yrs.?

What about taking the trucks and retooling them for Natural gas and the infrastructure to support it over time. It would be easy using refuelers on wheels. Ween in the car later as the infrastructure accepts it.. Create jobs and end our dependence on foreign oil. With the savings alone on the trucks think where we would be at. Thoughts?

The whole situation sucks. It's such a mess.

I live in Michigan I pay a lot for natural gas to heat my home. And I am a landlord that includes utilities in their rent. My tenants couldn't afford an increase in gas prices.