Nov 18 2008
Wait Until The News Media Begs For A Bailout
The idea US taxpayers, struggling to stay afloat in a damaged economy, should bail out companies and state governments is a joke. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were disastrous experiments in liberal social policies. As usual those with connections siphoned off 100’s of millions of dollars from mortgage payments for themselves, and then lined the pockets of the liberal politicians who created this golden goose egg, all in the name of trying to give people who cannot handle it the responsibility of owning a home.
Now the big three automakers – which are hamstrung by large union wages and benefit packages, excessive regulation and insane executive pay packages – are begging for help. Well the help should not come from the taxpayer, is is also teetering. Then came the states who have their own tax revenues crying that they cannot control themselves (or their spending) and the taxpayers need to bale them out as well. BS! If you want more income at the state and local levels raise your taxes and take the political heat.
Where is this heading? Well I am waiting for the liberal news media, which has tarnished its brand to the point of bankrupting its one asset (objectivity), to come to the federal trough. The news industry is being rejected for the biased, simple minded, unthoughtful products they produce. Tingly legs are not news. It is so bad the New York Times cancelled Christmas!
Only a few are smart enough to lay blame where it belongs, on the news managers who turned once respectful sources of objective information into political propaganda sites. One of those who gets it is Rupert Murdoch:
“My summary of the way some of the established media has responded to the internet is this: it’s not newspapers that might become obsolete. It’s some of the editors, reporters, and proprietors who are forgetting a newspaper’s most precious asset: the bond with its readers,” said Murdoch, the chairman and chief executive officer of News Corp.Â
The news media’s key asset is its reputation. To garner large leadership the media needs to be objective and balanced and fairly represent all views on matters. It is why Fox News is ascending and the old dinosaurs of the liberal news media sites is dying off. Fox is considered ‘right wing’ because it gives equal time and weight to conservative views. With this still a 50-50 country it is insanity to play to only a small group like liberals, who make up only about 20% of the population. But that is what the NY Times and MSNBC News Channel have done.
OK – but folks do know Darwin was right – right? Anyway, I am waiting for these failing news outlets to come begging for a bail out, after all their attempts to make money of their candidate’s election to the Presidency fail. After all, its only the government’s money – not anyone else’s.
There is a major difference between banks going bankrupt and a news organization or even a car maker going bankrupt. When a bank goes under it eliminates the seeds used to grow new business. Access to capital is cut off. People can’t get mortgages and businesses can’t get loans to expand production or develop new technology.
Practically every transportation company in this country has been through bankruptcy over the past decade. In general, it allows them to reorganize and emerge stronger and more streamlined than they were before. I am not convinced that going through bankruptcy is such a bad idea for one or two auto makers. It would probably improve things overall in the long run. To bail them out would simply delay the inevitable in some cases. Going through bankruptcy might allow some of them to eliminate the most ridiculous of their labor contracts.
Bailing out auto makers or other industries should be looked at with a very skeptical eye. And bankruptcy doesn’t mean they will close all their plants. Be wary of news media hype presenting disaster scenarios. Organized labor would be hard hit and I believe that might be the real origin of the disaster stories. A lot of union contracts would get re-negotiated at less favorable terms. It isn’t the job of government to prop up the unions but you have to remember which party these unions dump billions of dollars into.
It doesn’t help that the wife of the chairman of the House committee looking into this is the chief of PR and General Motors. As part of a growing culture of corruption in the Democratic Party, John Dingle who heads the House Energy and Commerce committee is married to a General Motors executive who is also a member of the family that founded the company (she is a Fisher).
I doubt the liberal news media will be getting any bailouts from government. At least not directly. But MSNBC did go deep into the tank for the Democrats and their parent company, GE, just got a bailout, so I guess you never know.
Yikes. I seem to vaguely remember some quote about ancient Greece, to the effect that democracy comes to an end as soon as the people discover how to raid the national treasury.
I’m sure as hell no expert, but from my seat it does look like this bailout idea is beginning to pick up speed.
“chief of PR and General Motors”
Meant “chief of PR at General Motors”
“democracy comes to an end as soon as the people discover how to raid the national treasury.”
Which is exactly why our founders were so adamant against making this country a democracy and instead made it a republic.
There’s no time like the present for the mainstream media to go bankrupt As for the automotive industry … you didn’t see the level of government involvement and ‘cafe standards’ with any of the foreign auto makers. Sure the UAW plays a big role in the collapse of the industry … but so too the U.S. Government.
Jimmy Lewis
SCS, Michigan
Blog: http://rougerevival.blogspot.com/
Only one problem with the hypothesis. Big Brother is bailing out its friends and contributors. Other bailouts are for the purpose of nationalizing privately/publically owned companies…pure government ownership. Well, the government already OWNS the MSM. Or at least, the leftist part of govt does. So why pay even more for something you own already! If the NY Times goes under…and I have all the confidence in the world in the utter stupidity of P.S., BB will simply have acquired more office space and a hell of a lot of ink. The Official Government News Service will be born.
I’ve already cut my ties with the big media. I don’t watch their “news” shows, nor read their “news” papers or magazines (and no premium cable, either). I try not to directly contribute ** a single dime ** to either their owners or their advertisers. It’s not such a big sacrifice because, for the most part, their “product” is horrible and a total waste of time.
I for one will not lament the demise of the lame-stream media!
No Bailouts!!!! NONE… If a bank goes under, let the FDIC pay off any deposit losses to depositors. But if the bank is run so poorly it fails, let it fail..
Let the car companies bankrupt and reorganize. Get rid of all undesirable contracts. The majority of the problem with the big three auto companies are the labor contracts with unions, let them negotiate contracts they can afford. the airlines all went through it. If GM management is poor, replace them.
If news organizations don’t know how to run a business, let it fail. This is a capitalist country and should be run on a free market capitalized scheme. Quit rewarding failure with a taxpayer bailout. I pay taxes, let them go for military defense and building roads.
This whole business of banks taking in millions to pay their executives and give to crooked politicians to bail them out with taxpayer money. NO WAY.
just think, the government can attach strings to what newspapers can and can’t cover, doesn’t it sound peachy!
Speaking of bailouts … I have (what I think is) a great idea for an automotive industry “bailout”. If they want a 50 billion bailout, fine, but let the consumers decide where the money goes. Do it this way:
1. Create 5 million vouchers for $10,000 toward the cost of a car by any one of the US automakers.
2. Run a lottery. Each person between 18 and 65 would be eligible and would fill out a form that included their name, date of birth and social security number. For those 18 or over, this would also serve as registration for selective service if they have not already enrolled and social security numbers would be checked against names. DoJ would also be allowed to use the information to find fugitives. Each person would also send $1 for their chance at one of the 5 million vouchers.
3. Select 5 million names and send them their vouchers. Vouchers would be transferable to a family member. Then have consumers decide which vehicles to buy. The kinds of cars people want will get a huge boost in sales, the dogs will still be dogs. The automakers would not be getting a subsidy to continue to produce cars people don’t want. The vouchers would be good for one year from date of issue. This gives the car makers some time to adjust production rates in response to demand and give some reasonable time to fill orders for cars that might be out of stock at the time the consumer visits the dealer.
Any auto maker still not experiencing enough boost in sales after the program probably deserves to die and restructure itself.
I believe Honda and Toyota have shown that it is possible to build automobiles in the US and be profitable.
It isn’t “union busting” to be against the bailouts. The unions are “economy busting” the US. The UAW has priced itself out of the market. Honda says:
So it appears to me that while Toyota and Honda have been advancing the industry the US companies have been advancing benefits packages until it has broken them. That doesn’t do the worker any good in the long run.
$700 billion later, does anyone really believe the buck stops there?
Automakers? News media? Keep going.
Hollywood got $470m of the bailout monies. Or have we forgotten? Who else already snorted from the trough? Schwarzenegger has openly debated asking for a California bailout. Other states have likewise considered piling on the bandwagon.
Then there are the airlines, shipping, agriculture, steel, mining, construction, the arts, tourism, and restaurants. These days, who isn’t desperate? Who won’t be laying off huge nationwide swaths of workers? Who won’t be facing“catastrophic†collapse that could spill over into other industries, especially when they know a good desperation story could net them at least a few billion in “free†money?
It’s a long line before they land at Peggy Joseph’s “Free Gas, Free Mortgage†doorstep.
But long before they reach Peggy Jo, “bailouts†will give way to “infrastructure buildingâ€, and as many euphemisms for 1930s-style FDR/Keynesian government spending as Axelrod can spew before his latest euphemism wears out its media welcome.
And for all their hollering about how anti-lobbyist they are, does anyone really believe Obama and the Dems won’t be pushing the union lobbyist agenda as tit-for-tat for their bailout carrot?
The better question to ask might be why Detroit would want such a deal? Or whether they seriously believe they won’t get “collared�
Btw, in case anyone missed it during the election, Soros had nothing to do with the Obama campaign or his policy making. Never did. Never will.
Soros-Funded Democratic Idea Factory Becomes Obama Policy Font
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=aF7fB1PF0NPg&refer=home
Likewise, Ayers, Acorn, Obamaspeak, and far-left radicalism were all much ado about nothing.
No Place To Hide: The Strategy and Tactics of Terrorism (Part 1 of 6)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iP5KYQaa8vQ
Yuri Bezmenov Explains Soviet Strategy for Subversion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVZ4Lkm6JQw
Laying the foundations for the next desperation bailout case?
AMR, UAL Struggle to Sell Idle Jets as Market Slides
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aHeUB3Gsm6Dk&refer=home
“….adds to the strain on carriers with collective losses of $2.32 billion over the past four quarters, excluding special items. Writedowns for the values of some of the jets this year totaled almost $1.2 billion for Continental, American parent AMR Corp. and Chicago-based UAL Corp., owner of United.”
A few bad returns on its holiday travel numbers and say hello to another industry facing “imminent collapse” in dire need of……. Captain Bailout!
I liked Crosspatch’s idea for vouchers worth 10K if you buy a car.
Only two things wrong:
1) $10,000 isn’t enough. I need at least $75,000. Surely you’re not
asking me to own junk, are you?
2) You propose only handing out a few thousand of them. Wrong,
you haven’t realized that the Lightworker is amongst us? I say give
$75,000 vouchers to every man woman and child in America.
Heck! They’re our printing presses. We can tell them when to run
on overdrive.
New Cadillacs for everyone and that’s only the beginning.
Demand your fair share of the Revolution!
dave m, right….and let’s give everyone that same voucher to apply toward their mortgage and then let’s require every single human in the US to join a union so we get full union benefits in addition to government benefits.
Gosh, have I died and gone to heaven or what?
Let’s call a spade a spade—if the union strength/vote was not at issue the democrats would not even consider the national security aspects of this industry. The pricing in the industry has gotten completely out of hand—for the price of a new car someone can put more than a good down payment on a home—and the home won’t need to be replaced in 5 years. And I guess that word play on used cars (pre-owned) isn’t working either.
Since the unionized auto workers have bankrupcted their meal tickets with their incessant unreasonable demands for more and more, and are now demanding that the American people bail out their golden parachute pension and medical insurance plans, I have a message for them, “F— you. Learn to live on Social Security and Medicare like the rest of us.” I don’t see the American people acepting a bail out that puts these prima donnas who have price gouged us with their high priced union made clunkers for decades in a position to lord it over the rest of us who will be paying the bill. $67 million worth of Viagra for retired GM workers should be enough. Look at it this way. It was fun but it’s over.
By the way.. GM just finished a $400 million plant in Russia and they want US taxpayers to bail them out? Give me a break.
So what happens after “Obama” gives these three dinosaurs $50e9
of our money and they still go bust anyways?
They have to make a profit on each car that they sell, I saw a report
that they make a loss of about $1000 on each car.
Doh? Shouldn’t the board have realized that wasn’t a good way to
run a company?
I’m not buying one of their cars no matter what they do.
If they go bust, reorganize into smaller companies with no unions,
then they might have a chance.
But otherwise, that big bailout would be as wasted as it would be
if it was transferred to the developing world to buy carbon
“indulgences”. Actually it would be more wasted.