It should not be a surprise to anyone that many people in Michigan are really, and I mean really, pissed off at the GOP Senators from the South that are blocking the auto bailout package passed by the House of Representatives today. In fact, that bill is dead as of right now with no chance of passage BUT a new bill may be written tonight in the Senate which the House would have to be called back into session to pass.
What gives? I have tried to explain before how the rest of the country feels about the Detroit auto three (3), (we cannot say the auto industry bailout because it has nothing to do with the many other auto companies in this country that are also part of the auto industry and producing autos for sale here).
The GOP Senators blocking the bailout have auto companies located in their states. Some of them actually have GM plants in their states. What do they want?
They want the UAW union to be cut down to size. Specifically, they want the union to agree to get compensation equal to what union auto workers get in their Southern states. Why? So the UAW does not try to unionize Southern auto workers by promising them richer benefits on a par with what the current UAW auto workers get.
Also, the UAW has targeted certain state senate races where a Democrat had a chance to beat the GOP candidate and has put in large amounts of cash to help the Democratic candidate beat the GOP candidate.
The UAW and other unions have also made it clear that the Democrats owe them for winning the election (bullshit!) and now will demand rules and regulations that will make unionization efforts easy and practically guaranteed (Labor Free Choice Act). These new rules will enable labor to grow again into the power it once was.
You know my views on the unions and I agree that stopping the unions from regaining their political and organizational power, is of utmost importance if this nation is to come out of this financial crisis quickly and intact; the GOP Senators are basically cutting the union’s balls off.
My support for auto company bankruptcy was basically for the restructured companies to have legal means to rid themselves of the unions and transfer pension responsibilities to the federal government. Since bankruptcy seems to have been reasoned as not the best idea then marginalizing the UAW must be something the unions agree to themselves and that is what the GOP Senators are holding out for and I must say, holding out quite effectively.
To agree to a temporary bailout by granting the few billion dollars to the Detroit 3, would enable them to survive till the new Obama Congress was seated and the new, Democratic majority Congress would give the unions (supposedly) all that they want and this, in my mind, would be a disaster and only prolong the inevitable by keeping companies that are no longer viable, on life support with taxpayer dollars.
I applaud the forward thinking and the firm grasp of what is needed to bring the Detroit auto companies into long term viability by these Senators. I am not so delusional to think that they don’t have some selfish reasons for doing so but hey, what they are doing is correct in my book and in the best interest of this country.
This issue has caused many heated debates between my wife and I as well as other family members. I do not deny that unions were needed at a point in our history. I do not deny that unions created our middle class which led to widespread prosperity in this country. The well paid workers spread their money around to many supporting services and enterprises. Many say that allowing these manufacturers to close will spread the pain throughout the country.
But unionism got out of hand. Corruption was rampant. Organized crime moved in (remember Hoffa and the like). Union demands became preposterous but their ability to blackmail the auto companies with damaging strikes left the companies with no alternative but to give in.
Now the companies are no longer able to compete having the dead weight of union benefits around their necks choking them to death.
It all boils down to this; if Detroit auto companies are to survive and continue to employ thousands of people, the UAW has to die. The GOP Senators know this and anybody with half a brain knows it but cannot admit it for political or personal reasons. The GOP Senators are doing the dirty job that needs to be done to save the Detroit auto companies and the workers they employ and with that the countless other companies and their workers that depend on the auto companies for their livelihood.
This is not rocket science; the road is clear. We just need the balls to do what is right.
What gives? I have tried to explain before how the rest of the country feels about the Detroit auto three (3), (we cannot say the auto industry bailout because it has nothing to do with the many other auto companies in this country that are also part of the auto industry and producing autos for sale here).
The GOP Senators blocking the bailout have auto companies located in their states. Some of them actually have GM plants in their states. What do they want?
They want the UAW union to be cut down to size. Specifically, they want the union to agree to get compensation equal to what union auto workers get in their Southern states. Why? So the UAW does not try to unionize Southern auto workers by promising them richer benefits on a par with what the current UAW auto workers get.
Also, the UAW has targeted certain state senate races where a Democrat had a chance to beat the GOP candidate and has put in large amounts of cash to help the Democratic candidate beat the GOP candidate.
The UAW and other unions have also made it clear that the Democrats owe them for winning the election (bullshit!) and now will demand rules and regulations that will make unionization efforts easy and practically guaranteed (Labor Free Choice Act). These new rules will enable labor to grow again into the power it once was.
You know my views on the unions and I agree that stopping the unions from regaining their political and organizational power, is of utmost importance if this nation is to come out of this financial crisis quickly and intact; the GOP Senators are basically cutting the union’s balls off.
My support for auto company bankruptcy was basically for the restructured companies to have legal means to rid themselves of the unions and transfer pension responsibilities to the federal government. Since bankruptcy seems to have been reasoned as not the best idea then marginalizing the UAW must be something the unions agree to themselves and that is what the GOP Senators are holding out for and I must say, holding out quite effectively.
To agree to a temporary bailout by granting the few billion dollars to the Detroit 3, would enable them to survive till the new Obama Congress was seated and the new, Democratic majority Congress would give the unions (supposedly) all that they want and this, in my mind, would be a disaster and only prolong the inevitable by keeping companies that are no longer viable, on life support with taxpayer dollars.
I applaud the forward thinking and the firm grasp of what is needed to bring the Detroit auto companies into long term viability by these Senators. I am not so delusional to think that they don’t have some selfish reasons for doing so but hey, what they are doing is correct in my book and in the best interest of this country.
This issue has caused many heated debates between my wife and I as well as other family members. I do not deny that unions were needed at a point in our history. I do not deny that unions created our middle class which led to widespread prosperity in this country. The well paid workers spread their money around to many supporting services and enterprises. Many say that allowing these manufacturers to close will spread the pain throughout the country.
But unionism got out of hand. Corruption was rampant. Organized crime moved in (remember Hoffa and the like). Union demands became preposterous but their ability to blackmail the auto companies with damaging strikes left the companies with no alternative but to give in.
Now the companies are no longer able to compete having the dead weight of union benefits around their necks choking them to death.
It all boils down to this; if Detroit auto companies are to survive and continue to employ thousands of people, the UAW has to die. The GOP Senators know this and anybody with half a brain knows it but cannot admit it for political or personal reasons. The GOP Senators are doing the dirty job that needs to be done to save the Detroit auto companies and the workers they employ and with that the countless other companies and their workers that depend on the auto companies for their livelihood.
This is not rocket science; the road is clear. We just need the balls to do what is right.
Most people are surprised to hear the bailout's are affecting insurance rates. Insurance is changing as we know it due to the economy and bailouts. Since then the rates have drastically changed. All leading companies have changed lots of policies. When was the last time you researched insurance rates? You'd be surprised what recently changed!!!
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