Aside #2

It's hard to fathom the amount of money GM is trying to weasel from the taxpayer. As we already know, they were given several billion dollars for what they said was to restructure plants to produce cars people would buy. That, of course, was a lie. It was used to prop up its unique health and retirement plan for the unskilled labor employees in the UAW.

Now, GM is seeking an additional $16 billion in government aid ... for now ... and this does not c

ount the $8 billion it wants to develop new fuel efficient vehicles, or another $6 billion it is trying to get from foreign governments.

The fact is, for the money that GM has already been given, and what is is asking for (and will get, thanks to the Democrats), the federal government could buy hundreds of thousands of GM vehicles and give them away to the public. 

But the real thorn in my ass with GM is the union's strangle hold on it and the outrageous retirement and health benefits these unskilled union laborers receive. 

GM has in place a retirement program that allows workers to retire with 30 years of service to the company. Not only do they get a generous retirement paycheck, they also receive fr

ee health insurance for life. No wonder American automobiles cost so damn much. A high school graduate can enter the GM workforce at 18, drive a forklift for 30 years, and start collecting retirement benefits at age 48, with free health insurance for life and regular cost of living allowances. Sounds an awful lot like the Congress retirement plan, which takes affect with only 6 years of federal service, and has a few zeros added to the amount of the monthly paycheck.

And the rest of us foot the bill.

I'm willing to bet that damn near every American taxpayer would jump at the opportunity to have the deal that the UAW worker gets. However, I couldn't do the work. I'd be bored silly and have to go find a real, stimulating job. After all, these are repetitive, mindless jobs that a monkey could do. For that matter, robots could do the exact same job for a fraction of the cost, and with less faults and lemons rolling off the lots. And we could save thousands of dollars when buying one of these better-built vehicles.

But for all the money the Democrats are throwing at GM (read UAW benefits) it is a fact that GM and Chrysler will end up in bankruptcy court within a year. And all the taxpayers' money that was thrown at them to pay back the union voting block will all have been for naught.

And to think that many Americans think the government should be running the banking industry and the health care system. Hell, they cannot even police themselves, much less run a business...their track record proves this out.