http://www.statenews.com As Michigan’s economy falters toward disaster, policy-makers are working to both stabilize the auto industry and reduce the state’s dependence on it. en-us Gryphon 2.2.3b-tsn (woodward)/Foundry5 Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:11:43 -0500 webmaster@statenews.com http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28088 A line worker at GM will make over 100,000 a year with no college degree. The union made one generation rich by raising benefits and salaries and made the next generations poor by being greedy. There is nothing left for future generations. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 07:51:52 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28088 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28091 MarshaF , Very very well put. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 10:39:18 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28091 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28092 MarshaF You are so correct. Unions got greedy, there is no way an uneducated person should be making 75 dollars an hour hanging wipers on a line. Unions used to be a good idea…now they have become corrupt and greedy and could care less about the average worker. All they care about is union dues…. You have to know when to say enough….just keep pace with inflation with raises. sooner or later it will fall apart.. I saw this coming years ago. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 10:41:44 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28092 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28106 Also let’s not forget the massive bonuses paid to executives for no apparent reason other the for “retention.” Why would you want to keep someone who is driving your company into the hole? Let’s not just pick on unions when passing out blame. The greed is thick throughout the entire industry. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 11:57:43 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28106 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28117 Personally I say let the Big 3 go bust. I know they tie in to an estimated 2.5 million jobs via suppliers etc, but just let it happen. Again going with the idea that nobody should be too big to fail. They advertised SUVs in the 1990s when gas was cheap, even after the 1970s and 1980s. I read an article that talked about smaller divisions of GM being their own entities…Chevy, Pontiac and Cadillac. Also, squash the unions and retrain and retool the employees to build Wind Turbines, Solar Panels and other alternative energy and demand a mandate for 100 MPG vesicles for financial support…it may take time but we could get that. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 13:13:21 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28117 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28121 Someone introduce me to an uneducated person making $100k on a line please? Fri, 14 Nov 2008 14:09:49 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28121 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28122 Unions are a large part, and deserve a good amount of blame. Thats not to say execs shouldnt get their fair share, but unions lobby for the democrats that created our wilting economy. The Right to Work initiative would have greatly helped combat unions, but the unions fought against it an won. While I hate to think its the taxpayers responsibility to fund a bailout, at any level, I do fear what would happen if the “big 3” went under. The repercussions would be the final blow to Michigan. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 14:10:55 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28122 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28130 As much as I agree about unions driving up the costs as previously mentioned AND the idea of free market enterprise, the last thing this country should be doing is allowing manufacturing institutions such as GM go belly up. The long term ramifications would be DEVASTATING to this country. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 15:08:22 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28130 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28131 Layneh: Please explain further how the party not in control for the past 8 years is responsible for the economic collapse. Please leave out the BS from the republicans as most people no longer buy it. Sorta like a kid who breaks a window with a baseball, runs away and then blames another kid when he gets caught. I think it’s called taking responsibility, but for the far right that means only when you get caught red handed. You guys had your run. Things have collapsed on the economic front, foreign affairs are in a shambles, joblessness is at an all time high. Businesses are failing, the stock market is totaled. Good job, now shut up and let’s see if any of this mess created by republicans get be cleared up. Fri, 14 Nov 2008 15:46:35 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28131 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28134 Granholm did a damn good job with the Michigan economy – let’s send her to Washington, D.C, so that the rest of the country can “benefit” from her!! Fri, 14 Nov 2008 16:03:54 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28134 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28150 Extreme, if they did you wouldn’t be here at this very Liberal Campus you would be standing cooking at Mc Donalds. Because your Mommy and Daddy could not affort the OVER High Price College Education here at Liberal Michigan State. The Libreals On the Broad of Trustee’s like Liberal (Nut-case) Freguson, increasing a no experience Liberal President Simon pay with 120K in her first two years on the Job. Before you blame anyone lets be real look at Joel Freguson filling his pockets over this back room deal with the worst Governor of all time to the tude of 116 Million over 29 years. Sat, 15 Nov 2008 04:17:27 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28150 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28151 Granholm did a damn good job with the Michigan economy-Kris what are you smoking, becauses its got you tripping… Granholm is the worst Governor ever in Michigan History… Granholm filled her pockets and Joel Freguson’s (MSU TRUSTEE), Look at the deal She give Dirty Joel… 29 year No-Bid contact for 4 million a year do the math.. Granholm econaomy plan is the worst on record, the only person she helped is her friend and Re-election Manager Joel Freguson. Sat, 15 Nov 2008 04:22:40 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28151 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28163 LansingTrucker – You might want to read deeper as to what kris is trying to say before you comment. The reason all this is happening now is because the country keeps bailing out the automaker industry. In order to save the jobs that they can within the automaker industry all these years because it meant so much to the economy at that point in time, the government bailed them out. And because they chose to save those jobs, now they have to think of ways to save even more jobs. How many times do you want the government to bail inefficient and ineffective management out? These are taxpayer’s dollars! If we want the government to bail them out again, what is the difference between America and a Socialist country? The government might as well nationalize it, because they could probably do a much better job of keeping the businesses afloat! They should go bust because that is the only way that people will learn what ineffective management and demanding unions can do to the economy, the people and the nation (since people refuse to believe in economics). We may take years to rebuild the industry, but at least it saves us from having to bail them out again in the future! Sat, 15 Nov 2008 14:45:06 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28163 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28205 For all of you who drive those foreign cars…see for yourselves what happens when a country spends more for another country’s products than what it receives in return. This does not only concern the automotive industry here, but also the other businesses that used to thrive before they were outsourced by “cheaper” versions imported from the Asian region. We lost American jobs. So what happens if businesses outsource to other countries and you now have no job…they increase the price overseas because there is no COMPETITION, and therefore can suck in quality, poison your children with lead and not give a damn because you relocated the majority of the country’s wealth into their country. And you now, have no job, and there’s no way you are going to be able to afford their product, and if you do, you’d be stupid and forced to purchase it, all because you decided to not support American in the first place. You think you may be getting a better deal right now…just wait. And in terms of difference in “quality”, that’s propoganda started in the 70’s and 80’s. Also, I’ve never heard of a line worker getting over a 100K, but what kind of college education do you need for a job like that anyways? Gosh, I wish I could make it up to a salary like that before I retire! Those were the good ol’ times. The job like that one is more hands-on than… oh, let’s say knowing how to recite Shakespeare or such…it’s irrelevant to the field! They just keep on creating more requirements for jobs that once required nothing but on-the-job or vocational training. My parents had only vocational school training, and I think they’ve gone pretty far in life. I see people who are in college and don’t learn a thing. Isn’t it a shame that one has to spend thousands of dollars for general ed. classes when on-the-job/vocational training is more efficient? I understand it is their best intention to have you a well-rounded student…but, I think high school education covers the same exact thing…so why not take high school two times over? Sun, 16 Nov 2008 23:08:23 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28205 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28312 Jen, when was the last time you drove a foreign vehicle? I have to drive American crap cars for my job and can not wait till work is over to get in my Toyota a go home! most American cars are total crap! If the big 3 didn’t make boring cars with extraordinarily bland interiors maybe they wouldn’t be having these problems. And guess what? The most popular foreign cars (toyota, nissan, honda, ect.) are built here in america!!! I havent seen those workers getting laid off or those companies asking for money…. Mon, 17 Nov 2008 17:29:09 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28312 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28778 Beau- I think Layneh was refering to incumbants as pertaining to this state since we were one of the first to teeter on the brink of economic disaster long before the rest of the nation followed suit. Union boot lickers did loby for Granholm’s re-election. Don’t you think thats why she got re-elected after such a ahem..stellar..ahemm job her first four years? Michigan will be long forgotten if the chance to move on to a national level presents itself to her and her promises to this state will stagnate. Based on our present economic situation in this state, or fearless democrat leader sure has set a great example of what is to follow on a national level. Still glad you elected Barack? Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:11:43 -0500 http://www.statenews.com/index.php/comment/view/28778