What's Good for General Motors...

In the midst of bank takeovers and brokerage collapses and government bailouts, there is good news tonight. Lost in the shuffle of the AIG debacle was a news story that was carried by maybe one network. GM unveiled its production model of the Chevy Volt. In one fell swoop, GM is showing America a major solution to its dependence on foreign oil…an electric car that can go 40 miles on a single electric charge, enough for 75% of American commuters to get to and home from work. Can you imagine? As I understand it, it doesn’t put that much of a strain on our electric grid as most of the cars would be charged at night when the electric usage is minimal. And the media looked away.

While all of us are concerned and admittedly frightened about the Wall Street meltdown, GM is moving forward, on its own, with no government help, while dealing with its own substantial problems, to develop a car that will change our lives forever. As the government is bailing out Freddie and Fannie and Bear Stearns and AIG, GM is quietly sucking it up and showing once again that American ingenuity can prevail. Not only would such an automobile help our energy issues beyond all imagination, it would propel the American automotive industry into the forefront of world auto manufacturers.

Then why isn’t anyone looking? With so many manufacturing jobs at stake and the survival of one of our major industries hanging in the balance, the media has chosen to ignore GM’s innovative masterpiece. Not that GM isn’t trying to get the word out. It had a major event to show what the car will look like. The Atlantic Monthly did a major article on it. I am sure that you read it. Ya, right!! GM has completely opened the process of this car’s development, freely exposing the problems and challenges it faces, including the major challenges surrounding the manufacturing of the battery needed to make the car go.

What does GM have to do to make us look and listen? I know that there is lots of noise going on right now, but this is big news. Have we become so jaded that we can ignore GM’s valiant efforts to solve our energy and transportation problems? C’mon folks. There needs to be some hype here.

The Broadway show Lil Abner had a song in it entitled “What’s good for General Bullmoose, is good for the USA.” A parody of the song changed General Bullmoose to General Motors, and it stuck throughout the 1960’s. Lil Abner lampooned capitalism, and the lampooning also extended to General Motors, which to be honest, was making a really shoddy product at the time. Looking at the financial markets right now, and the remnants of the American automotive industry, perhaps GM deserved to be lampooned.

But GM is now showing capitalism at its best. It is going forward alone, with no government subsidies, with little attention from the media, to bring us a product that will change the world. So as you watch the major Wall Street financial institutions collapse and wonder if America is losing its preeminence as a world leader in manufacturing and finance, go to page 5 of the newspaper and read about General Motors and its innovative car. We still got it!!!