That sure was a bad idea to bail out GM, wasn't it?

[n2doc]

:sarcasm:

GM posts $1.33B profit in sign of growing strength
From Reuters
August 12, 2010|5:55 a.m.


General Motors Co posted its biggest quarterly profit in six years on Thursday, a day ahead of an expected IPO filing that would open the gates for the U.S. government to slash its stake in the automaker.

The top U.S. automaker reported second-quarter net earnings of $1.3 billion, compared with $865 million in the first quarter. The second-quarter profit was the largest since 2004.

The results reflected a 47 percent surge in global production from the depressed levels of a year earlier when GM began operating under bankruptcy protection in a restructuring that included $50 billion in U.S. government funding.

The stronger profit also showed the gains GM has made from cost-cutting during bankruptcy and stronger sales in overseas markets led by China.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fiw-gm-earnings-20100812,0,2389126.story

[PBS Poll-435]

1. Glad they are doing better, but it comes at a cost

Wished they could turn a profit AND keep producing at NUMMI.

[mrcheerful]

2. It was not about if GM would make money or not, what the other side wanted was GM to fail which

would then force them into bankruptcy which would have done 2 things, 1) all the retirement packages would have disappeared and 2) break the hold the UAW has on GM.

[sufrommich]

10. That is exactly what the republicans wanted. Then they could

point and say "look what those nasty unions have done!" ( not that this will stop that GOP meme anyway).

[SpiralHawk]

3. "Grrrr. What sucky news. Sneer." - Republicons for FAIL

[pnorman]

5. I have just the place for that cartoon!

THANKS!

[jschurchin]

4. I, personally didn't like

the idea of bailing out any of the entities that we did. Our congress critters have established a very bad precedent here with not only GM but also, AIG, Chrysler, GE and the rest. To big to fail has no place in the market place. If you or me establish a business and we make terrible decisions, is it really the governments place to step in and cover our loses? I don't think it is.

This policy is not a recent development though, it began in the early '80's with Chrysler and the loan guarantee's. I thought it was a bad idea then, and the recent decisions have not done anything to change my mind.

Bankruptcy gives all of us, personally and corporate, the ability to restructure our situations and start anew. Granted, there is a lot of pain involved in the bankruptcy process, but, it allows the people responsible for the situation to be held somewhat accountable for their actions. By providing the funds necessary to cover your liabilities, you basically, are telling the individuals responsible that their actions are OK, the taxpayers will backstop your ineptitude.

A very bad precedent, indeed!

[david13]

6. I have to agree with that. It's all part of the 'someone else is responsible'

and not me syndrome prevalent in this country.
But I would not include the Chrysler situation in that. If you look at that, I think it was merely a forebearance, and very different from the GM et alia situation of more recent times.
I don't know if anyone wanted GM to fail.
But the GM management certainly made it seem that THEY wanted the company to fail. They continue to do the wrong things, as they have for about 30 or more years, and expect a different result?
dc

[NNN0LHI]

7. The Republicans who were pushing to let them fold up make me sick

They thought we were going to keep this economy afloat by building websites and selling imported goods.

They were wrong. I am just glad we had some people in DC who were smart enough to understand this.

Don

[B Calm]

8. Saving US manufacturing jobs is not on the republican platform.

[jpak]

9. Obama done it!!11

He done it!

:D

[Scurrilous]

11. K & R

:thumbsup: