The History of the Hummer. Blech.

It’s the symbol for everything that’s wrong in auto manufacturing in America. Big. Bloated, Pointlessly overpriced, and with a gas mileage that would make Al Gore vomit – and Salon gives us the short life of the Hummer.

May it die in pieces.

The untalked about issue with the big 3 auto: Pensions

Turns out there’s a topic that most people don’t think of with the potential of the Big 3 auto workers going under. Sure, there’s the potential of 3 million jobs lost all at once – but what about those who aren’t working? Mainly, the chance that the pensions of thousands of retired workers might go under with the auto workers going out of business.

It’s like a rotten onion – the deeper you go into the issue, the more crap you keep finding to worry about.

Why is Honda still doing so well?

Why is Honda doing so well, when so many other manufacturer’s are struggling? The answer: engineers run the company, not the financiers. In other words: the people who make stuff to sell rule, while the bean counters provide advice on how to do it.

What might GM become if it gets a lifeline

There’s some questions about whether GM’s even going to survive the next year, if not the next six months. But if it does, it might turn into a smaller, leaner, meaner company, if Joan Muller is right.

It really will be for the best, in my humble opinion. Say goodbye to Hummer for anyone non-military, to say the least.

That’s more like it – Ford CEO offers $1/year salary

Cutting down on the private jets, now Ford CEO Alan Mulally will cut bonuses for all executives, cut his own salary to $1 year, and other moves if the US offers a bailout loan to his company.

I guess we’ll see what else is going to come up at the congressional hearings today. Anyone else going to watch?

So – what’s the auto bailout plan, if there is one?

There’s plenty of talk about just what a bailout of the auto industry would look like. You’ve got President Elect Obama’s bailout plan, which focuses on having all parties – the company, the unions, the management – all agree on a common plan, and the auto industry making concessions for the kind of cars people actually want.

The bill being discussed on Congress would have oversight of the auto industry, including bans on bonuses for employees making more than $200,000 a year.

And with some wondering if a bailout is even a good idea, Jonathan Cohn of the New Republic breaks down why the country may need to save the auto industry, even if they don’t want to:

That’s why many analysts and scholars believe GM would likely end up in Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which would entail total liquidation. The company would close its doors, immediately throwing more than 100,000 people out of work. And, according to experts, the damage would spread quickly. Automobile parts suppliers in the United States rely disproportionately on GM’s business to stay afloat. If GM shut down, many if not all of the suppliers would soon follow. Without parts, Chrysler, Ford, and eventually foreign-owned factories in the United States would have to cease operations. From Toledo to Tuscaloosa, the nation’s?assembly lines could go silent, sending a chill through their local economies as the idled workers stopped spending money.

I’m still puzzling out my feelings on this. We need accountability – but it’s hard to ignore the hundreds of thousands that would suddenly find themselves out of work should the auto industry fail.

Auto makers bailout not looking likely

The big three – Chrysler, GM, and Ford, are all facing possible extinction unless there’s a government bailout. But right now, finding a bailout partner is nearly impossible. Republicans don’t like it, Bush doesn’t want to do it – but with potentially 9 million US jobs on the line, how hard will the auto and unions push to get something done?

Obama’s current focus: Auto Industry. Bush’s Focus: Uhhhhh….

Can someone seriously tell me what the Bush game plan is for the last 60 days of his administration? Hoover, before Roosevelt took charge, used his last few months in office to sit on his ass and complain that there was nothing he could do. Within the first year of Roosevelt taking office, Roosevelt started getting stuff done.

So why is Bush eager to repeat history? while President-Elect Barack Obama is interested in saving the Us auto industry and the tens of thousands of jobs that go along with it, Bush is going on about the free market:

“In no way did president the suggest that there was a quid pro quo,” said White House press secretary Dana Perino. But, she added, “he did talk about the merits of free trade.”

Bush – this is your moment! You had one at 9-11, when you stood up and proclaimed “We’re going to get bin Laden dead or alive!” Since then, you’ve, well, sucked. This is your chance to show people you really give a damn about the common guy you claim to support.

President Bush – you could be the one to save the auto industry and push through high fuel standards in return, to proclaim that you’re going to push through a spending plan that will help the faltering economy.

Instead, it’s like you’re demoralized, you’ve just given up. You had your flash of greatness back in 2001 on top of wreckage – and you’ve done nothing but sit on that wreckage since then. This would be a great time to actually make some good things happen, remove the taint of “Worst President Ever” from your name, and leave on a high note.

It’s not hard. Just tell Cheney to shut his pie-hole, and act like the President.