Election Issues Today

When we discuss the AIG situation and comments that they are “too big to fail” I just have to ask: how big do you have to be in order to rate a government bailout?

General Motors has been around for a long time. Are we now in the situation where the American car industry will not only take a back seat to European and Asian car manufacturers, but simply leave the American market for them to enjoy?

I know that many foreign car manufacturers are now producing automobiles in the United States with U.S. labor, but those company profits go to overseas owners, primarily. And I understand that automobile parts for virtually ALL automobiles in the World are usually produced somewhere other than where the auto assembly plants are located. But I think American workers, labor unions, stock holders and loyal CUSTOMERS deserve just as much consideration as some financial services giant or bank.

Is it time for the USA to become more socialist? Should the U.S. government become the de facto owner of the means of production? If the alternative is turning over our industries to foreign ownership and foreign investment (more than we currently have), I think that U.S. government ownership, partial ownership at least, will give the government more muscle in directing these industries.

Socialism works in Europe and Great Britain and Australia, to some extent. I think we need to separate ourselves from the notion that Socialism equates to Communism. Perhaps what the American public needs is a better understanding of world economic systems, but I doubt that most Americans would be willing to listen and learn about things that go against the conservatism, protectionism, and isolationism that talk-show hosts pander for hours on end.

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