Big3 Bailout? Who're they gonna sell cars to? My friend lost his job yesterday.

[TomInTib]

Vice-President, Auto Financing, Chase Bank.

He did not lose his job due to poor performance (he had been there for years), but because no one is looking for car loans.

What are Big3 plans to do with all these cars they're not going to sell? Stack them up at a railyard or something? That's precisely what is going on at Long Beach with foreign cars, right now.

Seriously, how will they induce John Q to get out of the house and onto the sales floor? I doubt that is even part of the "plan".

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Iguess the only ones buying cars will be the employees of the bailed out banks

and the auto companies.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

2. China. nt

[phantom power]

3. They won't. That's why govt spending is the only way out of this.

If the Obama admin doesn't balance all these bailouts with some demand-side stimulus, it will be for nothing.

[Pale Blue Dot]

4. No. There is NO way out of this.

We won't begin to recover until we stop deluding ourselves.

[phantom power]

5. We'll recover when we realize recovery is impossible?

[Pale Blue Dot]

7. When we admit what the problem is, we will stop making it worse.

Throwing more money at the problem when the problem is debt is only making things worse.

We are going to hurt for a long, long time and fundemental changes in how Americans think and behave are going to be needed. Until we admit that, we are only making the problem worse and the economic pain longer and deeper.

Sorry that my phrasing above was awkward.

[phantom power]

8. I think what you say is true.

When I speak of govt spending for "stimulus," I'm really thinking more in terms of "mitigation." For example, the CCC in the 1930s. It sure didn't prevent the depression, but it helped keep a lot of people employed.

Bailing out corporations, all by itself, will fail. Because demand is collapsing. Some demand-side govt spending could help soften the blow. As Paul Krugman reminds us, "the govt is the spender of last resort."

[GentryDixon]

11. My Dad worked for the CCC before we went to war.

[Jane Austin]

6. Which is why I suggested yesterday

that the Feds use the $25 billion to buy cars off the lot.

They can sell them, finance them, use them or whatever.

But it gets cash in the system with something tangible to show for it.

[sarcasmo]

9. No one has a job to secure a loan, hence no one is purchasing cars.

This is what they are not addressing during these hearings.

[tammywammy]

10. The economy will rebound at some point

It may take another year or so, but the economy will rebound again.

Allowing the Big 3 to go under you're talking about another 3 million+ people out of work. The effects of them going under will reverberate through out.

The degree to which this recession is effecting various regions of the US is different as well. For instance, north Texas is still doing well during this time.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. And, if we "loan" them $34 Billion, how, and when, are they going to pay us back?

A question nobody seems to be asking.

[Medusa]

13. A suprising number of economists are saying throwing money

at problems is exactly what we need, just pumping money into the system will help people keep their jobs and stimulate the economy. And I can assure you the impact of letting the auto makers fail will be much higher than some of you have any concept of.

[alfredo]

14. My wife said that the government should make a large fleet purchase with

certain guidelines. The most important guideline is fuel economy. They must be high gas mileage and or hybrids or electric.

[CK_John]

15. They could trade them with Cuba for some 57 chevy's. n/t

[TomInTib]

16. Now, THERE'S a plan I can live with.

Gimme some chrome, man.

[old mark]

17. People are not buying cars because they are afraid to spend the money.

You can not have all these lost jobs every month and not lose buyers for large dollar items.

Just how stupid are these executive types anyway?

mark

[screembloodymurder]

18. Why not provide a temporary $3,000 subsidy for the buyers of American cars?

We could upgrade the fleet on the road with higher mileage, new vehicles and clear the dealers lots to allow for production of even higher mileage vehicles. I'll trade in my 20 year-old, 13 mpg SUV for a new one that gets 19 mpg. That's nearly 50% better mileage and I'll be driving a cleaner running, safer auto. Everybody wins.

[K Gardner]

19. I don't understand how anyone is secure enough to commit to a 3-5 year monthly payment of $350-600/

month in this economy. I have another year left on a Honda Lease and I'll be sweating it until its paid off. Even the lease-traders aren't doing any business because people can't qualify to takeover a lease.

When this is done, I'll be buying an old used car for a few thousand dollars, then I'm done with this new car business.

[TomInTib]

20. Yep.

I have made up my mind to never again buy a new car (unless I win the California Lottery).

[leftofthedial]

21. they could give them a brazillion dollars

and I still couldn't buy a car, even though I need one.

Same with my girlfriend. My sister. Three musician friends. My stepsister. My nephew. My neighbor. Two coworkers at my part-time temporary teaching gig. My publisher. My publisher's husband. My daughter. My ex-boss. My friend who used to work for me.


...... If they don't find a way to create some jobs soon, there won't be anything left to save in this country.

[upnatom65]

22. give the money as a tax rebate

If the govt. would take the bail out money and give it to the car company's as a tax rebate to consumers, I think it would have a more effective result. If I bought an American car, the government would give me a 50% rebate on the purchase price. This would move money through the whole automobile chain up to the Big 3. It would also help move the current car supply.

The government could then take the amount of the rebate to the Big 3 and get a corresponding value in non-voting shares of the company.

Another possible addition that would make the cars and rebates available to more people, we could tack on the Obama plan to allow up to $10,000 withdrawal for 2008 & 2009 from our 401k's without penalty. This would give people a chance to buy a car without a loan. It would not create any more debt with interest for the country.