David Harsanyi takes a look at U.S. Auto industry, and why the Government should stay out of it.
Yet, if you happen to listen to backers of a car bailout, you may be led to believe that the Tahoe is a pillar of American life. "It is critical that the nation understand this isn't just a Michigan problem, that one in 10 jobs in the country are impacted by the auto industry," Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm recently proclaimed in an interview.
We're still going to buy cars, Madame Governor, but perhaps we will buy them from companies that have the temerity to say "no" to unions and crushing legacy costs associated with them. These corporations may not even be headquartered in Michigan.
Nancy Pelosi is worried that if General Motors declares bankruptcy, the union will lose power and executives will make off like bandits. So she would like taxpayers to help General Motors pay for the nearly 450,000 retirees who live off extravagant pensions and free medical care.
Now, unions claim they simply want "working" families to make livable wages. But Dr. Mark J. Perry, a professor of economics and finance in the School of Management at the Flint campus of the University of Michigan, calculates the average compensation for employees of the Big Three auto companies at $73 an hour. The U.S. employees of Toyota are at $48 — a 52 percent differential.
Read the whole thing.
