Posted by
Stefano on Friday, March 20, 2009 12:50:04 AM
Why are we continuing to spend money we don't have for a company that's alive in name only. GM is being dragged down by numerous impediments to its survival including but not limited to: union contracts, jobs banks, pensions, health benefits, massive debt of all types and shapes. Only bankruptcy can lift this burden and permit the survival of the company and the survival of the domestic automobile industry.
Nothing else will save GM. They are a zombie company. They are like a heavyweight boxer who has been slugged by Rocky Marciano and is now stumbling around the ring ready to fall with a great thud to the mat. Only a prepackaged bankruptcy can save them and it will happen sooner or later. The only question is the amount of money the U.S. Treasury will need to borrow to keep the operation going until the President and the Demo-Congress finally throw in the towel. The Dems will not throw in the towel until the American people finally scream: STOP!!! Until then, just crank up the printing presses and hold on tight to your wallet.
Check out this great piece on GM by Joseph B. White of the WSJ:
http://www.hillsdale.edu/news/imprimis.asp
He says:
"Since all of you are now part owners of this enterprise, I would urge all of you to pay close attention, since what's about to unfold has no clear precedent in our nation's economic history. The closest parallels I can see are Renault in France, Volkswagen in Germany, and the various state-controlled Chinese automakers. But none of these companies is as large as GM, and none of these companies is exactly a model for what GM should want to become.
As I have tried to suggest, it's hard enough for professional managers and technicians—who have a clear profit motive—to run an enterprise as complex as a global car company. What will be the fate of a quasi-nationalized enterprise whose "board of directors" will now include 535 members of Congress, plus various agencies of the Executive Branch? As a property owner in suburban Detroit, I can only hope for the best."
Since you can look forward to being a stockholder in GM, I would recommend the reading of the entire article at the link above.
update - GM bond holders object to White house plan for debt restructuring. Fear bankruptcy.
GM bondholder letter to White House panel (Reuters)