Omegalock

Sure.
Cobalt I'd put up against just about any other compact out there. It's a solid car a nice interior and while it has not proven it's long term reliability yet it hasn't had many if any of the other niggling little issues a lot of new cars have.
Ford 500 I'd put up against the Honda Accord and the Camary.
It's got a nice interior, bigger back seat, and you can get AWD. And it will be getting that 3.5 liter V6 soon.
Styling is subjective but considering both the Cobalt and the 500 look just as good as their competitors in the market offer just as much as their competitors it shows how ridiculous this whole thing has gotten. Even a comparable American made car is tossed aside simply because it is American and that's just not right. And it's not like they are competing against classically designed cars or anything. They are competing against the very definition of boring and sedate.

If it could pay dividends and help keep them in business in the end it does.


Trust me it's not xenophobia. It's common sense. The massive numbers of illegals in this country are genuine concern. Not sure if you live in the Southwest(didn't catch your location) or not but if you do you it is impossible to miss. Our schools are being unduely overburdoned,medical providers have to deal with this, etc...
Logic states if you can provide more jobs to these people in their homeland(as they AREN'T coming over here to chase the American dream put down roots and become Americans. They are over here to work and take money out of our economy and ship it back home to Mexico.)the fewer you will have needing to come over risk their lives at a shot for our money and cause a headache for our government.

A strong Mexico and a strong Canada equals a stronger America. Making Japan stronger doesn't do a dang thing for us over here for the most part.

MacOSR

Figured I would chime in on this one...

A friend and I just purchased two Toyota Sequoias. We looked at and drove EVERYTHING. Initially I wanted an Escalade and my wife wanted the Yukon Denalli. Funny thing...the Caddy dealership not deal at all on them...nor would the GM dealer. The previous year I purchased a CTS-V at the same dealership and they know I want to get a new Z06 there (that's another story) but they still would not deal.

Bottom line...

The Sequoias were a MUCH better value then the Cadillac, GMC and Chevy (Didn't really consider the Ford due to past quality/service issues). The Sequoia was more practical then the BMW X5 and the Porsche. Although the Cayanne Turbo was nice!!!

The reason that GM is loosing sales is because of product that does not compete in price/value.

For those that argue that we should "buy American" and not foriegn...

- I hope all your clothes are made in the USA
- I hope all your furniture is made in the USA
- I hope all your household goods are made in the USA
- I hope your appliances are made in the USA
- I hope your computer was made in the USA
- I hope your cell phone was made in the USA

You get the point...I garantee there is not one person here that can answer yes to everything listed above.

We are now a society (and a world) that is part of a global economy. We all purchase what we feel is a good value for a good product. It is all about competition. If GM, Ford and Chrystler are loosing market share it is not becuase the consumer is out to get them. It is because they do not produce a product that is competative. That is the BOTTOM LINE!

Caps94ZODG

thats nice and all but lets put it this way..all those things you mention..there not vital to the american dollar or economy..if GM or Ford went down you think it would matter as much as your Hains t shirt?

MacOSR

If GM or Ford go down they have no-one to blame but themselves.

There was a local mfging company here (about 5 years ago) and they needed to cut their costs to become competative with products from Mexico. They told the union that they needed to do them to do this...cut from something like $25/hour to $20/hour. The union refused. The company did it anyhow and said if they did not do this all the employees (~100) would be out of a job. The union went on strike and the company closed its doors within a couple weeks. Unions do have their place but they have way too much power now and what do they really do today?

Regarding the textile products...you may want to ask people in mill towns if the mills were critical to their economy.

You may also want to ask people in steel mill towns if loosing steel mill jobs hurt their economy.

We only have ourselves to blame. There is NO WAY IN THE WORLD that I will purchase an automobile that is around $18,000 more (Escalade vs Sequoia with similar configs) just to support the US ecomony.

Threxx

Smart man.

Oddball

On the subject of "competition", wasn't the importation of the land rovers the incentive for Ford to develop the Explorer, one of the most profitable vehicales of all-time?

grossesexy

These kind of opinions are why the future of this country is completely ****ed. Keep telling yourselves globalization works, ignore the fact it is completely unbalanced and tell yourself we will all be fine. Some of you guys are so ignorant to the truth it is disgusting. Go ahead and say that I am wrong, and a diehard whoever supporter and uneducated. The USA is getting beaten up all over the world, our economy is getting crapped on in general, and until we come up with some new product or process that revolutionizes an industry we can't compete.

I buy stuff from Wal Mart, but I don't kid myself about what is going on here. It isn't just the auto industry going down the tubes because of these things, and it is only going to get worse before it gets better.

jkipp84

Concur.

MacOSR

You seem to be "buying into" globalization for lower prices

It is not a matter of "telling [one's self that] globalization works"...it is a matter of realizing what is happening in our global market and adapting to remain competative as a company, corporation or even as an individual.

HuJass

So just because globalization is happening, we all need to buy into it? Is that what a few of you are saying?
Just because it's happening doesn't make it right.
I don't/won't accept something just because it's happening.

If every one jumped off a bridge, would you guys do it to?

What happens when enough people in the U.S. lose their jobs and cannot afford to buy the products that are sold here? What happens then?

What happens when China and Japan want to collect all the money that we OWE them? They'll own us.

This is the ultimate effect of globalization. Our country will go down the s**tter!

Like someone else said earlier; globalization is a great equalizer. Some will move up, others will slide down.

Why the hell should we slide down? What have these countries done for us?

I guess it doesn't matter for a lot of people that we will not be at the top of the heap. As long as they can buy cheap crap from Wal Mart, they're happy.

Threxx

A global economy even in the best of circumstances will take our economic monopoly on the world down a notch or two, but at the same time it will make our world a MUCH more integrated place in terms of international relations both on a governmental and on a citizen's level, which is something I look forward to. I know you guys are all super-pro US... call me some sort of modern day over-idealistic hippy, but I see a global economy as an inevitable thing, and while it may pull our economy down slightly at first, it will eventually boost the world's economy and modern society as a whole across the world many times faster than we could ever do as an economically cut-off nation.

We keep looking at other countries with an evil eye like they're out to take our money, but you've got to realize that we'd do the same damn thing given the choice. Fact is that we just have a lot more to be taken right now, so as the global economy progresses, there will be some economic equalization between the richer and poorer nations.

Omegalock

Yes we know we'd do the same thing. But the difference is the OTHER places likely wouldn't let us do it to them. They'd do things to keep themselves up top. If you want China to be fully on our level or above us. Fine. I'm not quite ready to be the first generation to live in a world where America isn't on top after a few decades of dominance, IF we can do something about it that is. Every dominate power declines. It's a matter of history and fact. However I think we are doing far too much to help other people get a leg up on us, under the guise of progress.

What will ultimately happen is we will falter we will take a devastating fall and then everybody will stand back and start pointing fingers, globalists included even though this is what they want, and trying to assign blame to what head of policy is to blame without once looking at themselves.

I'm 27. It will be a truly sorrowful day when I see a true symbol of America in GM or Ford go away or even worse fall under foreign control. I'd probably be suicidal when I would be forced to buy a Chrysler as the most "American" of the big three. And I'd probably just break down and cry when I saw a Mustang sharing the same platform as a Z car, or a Corvette being a rebadged Supra.

HuJass

Do we have proof that after full globalization takes place, after our inevitable fall, that the whole world will rise up and be some sort of economic utopia?
Why as an American would you want that? What good would it serve you? Or me, for that matter?

In my mind, the only people who want globalization are greedy big business types or touchy-feely do-gooder crusaders.

Our founding fathers put into place a plan that was to make our country the crown jewel of the world. And now, because of greed (mainly on the part of big business), which is really what's fueling globalization, our country stands to be knocked down a bunch of pegs? Why would you want to accept that?

Why shouldn't we be held above the rest of the world? We're Americans, damn it! All of us need to start acting like one.

muckz

muckz

Not at all.

You already have mistakenly conditioned yourself that globalization = jumping off the bridge. I am telling you, it is not as grim as you paint.

The US is moving more into a service economy rather than manufacturing economy. People will have to be retrained for other jobs. That is inevitable.

If the US (or any country) kept to its own and stopped export/import and stayed away from globalization, what makes you think it would be better off? This country would crumble in time precisely because of its unwillingness to trade at the global level.

Every country has debts, including China and Japan.

Because this country, the US, and every other country is governed by $$$. Corporations dictate what laws to pass and how to conduct trade and other business practices. And if billions of dollars are involved, corporations will choose to participate in globalization, regardless of what this will do to the rest of the country.

You are blaming a lot on consumers. But consumers are not to blame. Corporations dictate what is available to consumers and at what prices. Consumers are smart only when they shop smart. To most consumers, paying the lowest price for a comparable product is smart.