Wednesday, December 10, 2008

The End Of The American Automobile

Today, the idiots in the US House of Representatives voted to bail out America's three automaking corporations. It'll be seen as the beginning of the end of the industry.

They didn't simply throw huge sums of money at the firms. They're all but nationalizing the industry. Like they've done with the banking industry. Like they want to do with the medical industry and the insurance industry. There seems to be a bit of hesitancy in the Senate, so while I don't think Senators are any more honest nor intelligent than Congressmen, they might have a less intrusive version. Maybe.

Adolf Hitler, from his little corner of hell, is smiling.

No, they're going to appoint a "Car Tsar" to strut about the corporate offices of the three auto building firms issuing edicts and apportioning the hard-earned spoils stolen from productive Americans to the ceo's according to how well they lick his jackboots. It'll be appropriate to envision a pompous preening rooster strutting about the halls of General Motors in shiny leather leggings and a faux Ike jacket, complete with epaulets and rows of medals, pacing back and forth in the boardroom, slapping his leggings with a riding crop, smiling smugly as the board members bow and scrape.

Look for a failed ceo from an unrelated firm to play the part of Cuffy Meigs in this farce.

Look for more Yugos driving at forty-five mph on our freeways. Look for electric cars stalled in lanes, their batteries having depleted their charge unexpectedly, blocking the Slauson offramp.

One of the biggest problems with the auto industry (and many other industries) is that its run by executives who are not car builders.They are either lawyers (for making compromises with EPA thugs, etc) or marketers (who attempt to sell whatever crap the lawyers and EPA thugs throw together). Hence, the quality individual conveyances as were being built prior to this Mordorian alliance are either nonexistent in today's market, or too expensive for the average individual to afford.

The statist's desire is and has always been to get the individual out of his individual conveyance and into public transportation to more easily control his choices of destinations, and to keep track of his movements.

Think not otherwise: at some point, the government's plan is to have every individual insert his id card into a slot on every bus, plane, passenger train or taxi to record his comings and goings. Private cars, should they still manage to exist, will (many already do) have gps locators on board to keep track that way, and ignition cutoffs should one wander off in an unauthorized direction.

All in the name of Homeland Security.

They've killed Freedom! Those bastards,

Warm regards,

Col. Hogan
Stalag California

7 comments:

T. F. Stern said...

Yuk, none of this sounds like it will taste very good.

Anonymous said...

I thought the bail-out fell in a heap, at least that's what i heard last.

"The statist's desire is and has always been to get the individual out of his individual conveyance and into public transportation to more easily control his choices of destinations, and to keep track of his movements."

And everywhere you turn in the western world they are making war on the car, from taxes on them, to tolls and outright refusal to build more roads for us and pushing for all us sheep to be on buses and other such crapboxes.

Anonymous said...

When I heard them talking obout the Chevy Volt being the car of the future and the car of choice for the proles by the bourgeoisie. Stop & think, a Volt will only go about 45mi on a chrge. That means to work & back home. In some cases to work, charge it & back home.

Lets say you want a vacation to the Grand Canyon or somewhere special. They will have charging stations that they can turn on & off at will or you will join the rest of the great unwashed, not on an aeroplane, but on the bus. The airways will be reserved for the bourgeoisie, not the peons that they look down on. At all checkpoints, the brownshirts will be checking your passport type papers and demanding to know why you have left your area.

Being a former trucker, I'm wondering how this will play out for the trucking industry. Some of the things I did in the 60s & 70s will get you thrown in jail today. In the future will they be shot on the spot? Little clips of "Mad Max, Beyond the Thunderdome" Keep running through my mind.

Col. Hogan said...

TF,

Forced feeding never tastes good.

Col. Hogan said...

MK,

As near as I can understand it, not having had time to read all the news this weekend, the House passed the bailout bill. The Senate balked. Then the President decided to send the automakers money taken from the financial bailout.

I suspect there will be more to this story in early 2009.

However it turns out, it will not be good for the US economy. Or for the US automobile buyer.

Col. Hogan said...

Steve,

GM made that abortive attempt to put an electric car on the road a few years ago. It didn't work out too well, so they called them back.

I keep wondering how electric cars will work at night, with headlights and windshield wipers on, etc. I keep thinking that in the real world, electric cars will never advance beyond golf cart status.

What has to happen before any alternative car gets widespread use is the infrastructure of fueling stations around the country.

The best bet at present is natural gas. I just don't know how well it works regarding range and price.

Some public agencies use it for buses, trucks and cars, but since when are they concerned about costs?

As for travel restrictions, that's coming, and it needs to be fought.

Sometimes when I think of the freedom lost just in my lifetime, I think about heading for Galt's Gulch!

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