"Automakers Need Bankruptcy, Not Bailout"~ Andrew M. Grossman

The U.S. auto industry is in dire need of a shakeup. All of the Big Three are beset by plummeting sales and market share, high labor costs, aging fleets, and a surfeit of innovative automobiles in the pipeline. With General Motors, and perhaps Ford after it, fac­ing looming liquidity crises, staying the course is no longer an option.

But rather than face facts, the auto industry is seek­ing yet another government lifeline: a $25 billion bailout on top of the billions in subsidized loans already approved by lawmakers. While a bailout promises continued stagnation and decline, reorgani­zation is the only chance that automakers have to rebound and survive in the global marketplace. Read it all at The Heritage Foundation.

This is a great article on the subject. Grossman makes the argument and I agree with his thoughts. he points out that

Bankruptcy is not, as some would have it, the end of the road; it is, rather, a new beginning. Under Chapter 11, it affords companies that have hit hard times a fresh start and a chance to reorga­nize to take better advantage of their assets.

I say let them file! Get their act together and sell a product the people want. Years of horrible leadership with no vision combined with labor costs ($20 to $30 more per hour on labor than their competi­tors) have killed the big three. A bailout will just extend their failure.

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