got a 90 stang

[RBatson]

Jim, I'm going to make this last post on this subject then I have nothing further to say. I don't know why you like defending the corporate crooks in America and want the hard working "Americans" to share the blame for a failing company. Toyota makes vehicles in the USA and rewards their workers comparable wages and benefits. Its corporate greed that is ruining American companies, by cutting back on quality in favor of better profit margins, that is to blame. All the while they reward themselves more and more. http://baltimorechronicle.com/2005/1...yStudies.shtml You want the American workers to share in the blame for a failing American company while praising the quality of Japan's product which is very possibly built by some of the very same people, that's not a logical argument. Neither is loathing Clinton's accent and finding GW's acceptable, even if it is littered with broken english. You can't have it both ways, it just shows how strong your conviction is to your political views. If Clinton couldn't form a complete sentence then I wouldn't have thought he was presidential material either. Back to the subject, Its been said that China is the #1 capitalist country in the world with the USA being second at this point. India and Japan are loving capitialism, as well. They are offering a good product for a fair price. I guess the recent admissions, from board members, to buying the foreign companies products is a testament to that. They are beating us at our own game. Meanwhile, the more Americans that buy foreign products the less Americans are employed and in turn the less that can afford to buy them. Make sense? It does, trust me.

Do you still feel the price of fuel is acceptable? I doubt you would find many that agree with you, if you do. http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/060416/exxon_pay.html?.v=6 Meanwhile you find alternative energy(enthanol, wind and solar power) "devoid of reality" even when presented with a link to a town that is powered by wind power or the fact that a country is practically energy independent by producing and using ethanol. "Devoid of reality" when presented with pictures(I took personally) of huge windmills on a farm in Minnesota. *Sigh* There is no argument, just trendy words like "hyperbole" and phrases like "looney left wing" that prove absolutely nothing but your dismay for anyone that opposes your political views. Here is another little link for you.. http://www.admworld.com/naen/mainstory.asp make that two.. http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/060417/inves...anol.html?.v=2 It's going to happen whether you choose to believe it or not, kinda like when I said(before the election) that if GW was re-elected the price of gas would hit $5 by the end of his tenure. It's on its way. We have two individuals with a strong history in the oil industry yet you can't make a connection between them being in office and the surge in petro. Oil companies contributed big to Bush's campaign but that has nothing to do with the price of fuel? Its no accident that Exxon's(XOM) market cap surpassed General Electric's(GE) making it the highest valued company in the world. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washing...w_x.htm?csp=34 BTW, You say Bush is worth $26 million.. I'm going to assume you know what you're talking about.. $26 million isn't alot of money to people in his position. Heck, we had CEOs pulling down as much as $244 million last year.

Another thing, Bush did lie. I saw it myself. When trying to rally support for the Iraq war he said he had proof that Iraq had weapons, recently he admitted he didn't. I didn't realize it until after the war had started but he also broke the treaty his father signed with Iraq. We were not to invade Iraq unless the UN inspectors said they could confirm that Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, they never did say that but in-fact said they didn't. When I realized that I felt betrayed. Something that apparently a majority of the 62 million Americans that voted for him are beginning to feel, judging by his job approval ratings. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/...n1350874.shtml

The ones that think things are going great just haven't been affected yet. I suspect this summer, with the rising price of gas, that many more will be affected. Maybe when those with decent jobs can't afford to fill their tanks it will begin to sink in. Maybe those tax cuts will help.. Those making over $26mil a year will save approx. $500,000 while those making less than $50k a year will save around $10. Hmm... maybe not.

[Mr 5 0]

Originally Posted by RBatson

Jim, I'm going to make this last post on this subject then I have nothing further to say. I don't know why you like defending the corporate crooks in America and want the hard working "Americans" to share the blame for a failing company. Toyota makes vehicles in the USA and rewards their workers comparable wages and benefits. Its corporate greed that is ruining American companies, by cutting back on quality in favor of better profit margins, that is to blame. All the while they reward themselves more and more.

Rick, I made it quite clear that I 'blame' both executives and workers for the U.S. auto industry's failures. Why do you insist on seeing only what you want to see in my comments?

General Motors is financially sinking and some of the debt is from the high retirement and benefit packages they are obligated to pay retired employees...people who no longer work at GM but, as retirees, draw money from the company, often at a fairly high rate, including ample benefits. I think that a relative handful of high executive salaries hardly makes a dent in a billion-dollar business but thousands of highly paid retirees who now contribute nothing to the company does.

You want the American workers to share in the blame for a failing American company while praising the quality of Japan's product which is very possibly built by some of the very same people, that's not a logical argument.

I disagree. Everyone is familiar with the often rueful jokes about a 'lemon' Ford or Chevy that was supposedly 'built on a Friday/Monday'. Who do you think was building those 'lemons'? The executives? Hardly. However, the same executives were approving the use of shoddy materials and stinting on quality control, for years, for which they deserve the blame you are so eager to cast at them. Japanese auto manufacturers make great efforts to find out what customers want and what they like or dislike about the cars they buy, then they respond to that feedback. There is not enough of that in the U.S. car companies who still seem to think that because it says 'Chevrolet' or 'Ford', people will buy whatever they sell. As I stated previously, there is enough blame all around and no one is 'pure'.

Neither is loathing Clinton's accent and finding GW's acceptable, even if it is littered with broken english. You can't have it both ways, it just shows how strong your conviction is to your political views. If Clinton couldn't form a complete sentence then I wouldn't have thought he was presidential material either.

Oh for goodness sake, Rick. Get over it, will you, please?

George W. Bush is admittedly inarticulate - as I previously stipulated - but what you see (and hear) is what you get, unlike Bill Clinton, who was all show, including the 'good 'ol boy' accent. Talk about hyperbole...President Bush is more than capable of forming complete sentences and your absurd, cartoonish depiction of the man is simply ridiculous and obviously based on YOUR political convictions, rather than reality. His ad-lib remarks as he stood on the rubble of the Twin Towers in Manhattan on September 12, 2001 were as moving and striking as anything Boy Clinton ever uttered.

Back to the subject, Its been said that China is the #1 capitalist country in the world with the USA being second at this point. India and Japan are loving capitialism, as well. They are offering a good product for a fair price. I guess the recent admissions, from board members, to buying the foreign companies products is a testament to that. They are beating us at our own game. Meanwhile, the more Americans that buy foreign products the less Americans are employed and in turn the less that can afford to buy them. Make sense? It does, trust me.

U.S. manufacturing is alive, and doing fairly well, considering the global competition. What you and others who bemoan 'disappearing' manufacturing jobs always overlook is the fact that as equipment and worker skills improve, productivity increases and so, hours worked and in some cases, jobs 'disappear'. Also, manufacturing is extremely cyclical. You can see it drop in one quarter and then rebound in the next, as it always has. In addition, America has moved away from it's former manufacturing base and now leans more toward service industries. In any case, our economy is booming. Don't believe everything John Kerry or the DNC tell you, Rick. They lie.

Do you still feel the price of fuel is acceptable? I doubt you would find many that agree with you, if you do. Meanwhile you find alternative energy (enthanol, wind and solar power) "devoid of reality" even when presented with a link to a town that is powered by wind power or the fact that a country is practically energy independent by producing and using ethanol. "Devoid of reality" when presented with pictures(I took personally) of huge windmills on a farm in Minnesota. There is no argument, just trendy words like "hyperbole" and phrases like "looney left wing" that prove absolutely nothing but your dismay for anyone that opposes your political views.

Rick, if you truly believe that these 'alternative sources' for power you so admire are fool-proof and basically a slam dunk, then why are they not gaining popularity? I don't see anyone taking wind and solar power seriously. Why not? How come only you seem to think they are the energy source of the future? Could it be that wind and solar power is not feasible over the long run? Did you even consider that wind and solar power are simply too fragile to depend on, year-round? These easy-answer panceas are always more apparent than real but the leftwing never stops trying to sell them. Apparently, you've bought into it all. How unfortunate.

It's going to happen whether you choose to believe it or not, kinda like when I said(before the election) that if GW was re-elected the price of gas would hit $5 by the end of his tenure. It's on its way. We have two individuals with a strong history in the oil industry yet you can't make a connection between them being in office and the surge in petro. Oil companies contributed big to Bush's campaign but that has nothing to do with the price of fuel? Its no accident that Exxon's(XOM) market cap surpassed General Electric's(GE) making it the highest valued company in the world.

Sorry buddy, but that really is just left-wing, anti-Bush hyperbole and hysteria with not a sincitilla of evidence to support the accusation. Show me evidence of some dark conspiracy by Bush and Cheney and the oil companies to fleece the U.S. population and we'll talk. Until then, please give it up....and stay off those left-wing websites that feed you false and misleading information while they demonize the president and his administration 24/7.

BTW, You say Bush is worth $26 million.. I'm going to assume you know what you're talking about.. $26 million isn't alot of money to people in his position. Heck, we had CEOs pulling down as much as $244 million last year.

Your point? Is it that George W. Bush isn't rich enough for you?

Get serious. President Bush's assets - all 26 mil - are in a blind trust, and with the many political enemies Bush has, even a hint of his doing anything improper (i.e. manipulating the price of oil, which is impossible for him to do, despite your ridiculous conspiracy theories) would be jumped on instantly. Do you really think that the vehemently anti-Bush media would not crucify Bush and demand his immediate resignation? Trust me Rick, they would.

Another thing, Bush did lie. I saw it myself. When trying to rally support for the Iraq war he said he had proof that Iraq had weapons, recently he admitted he didn't. I didn't realize it until after the war had started but he also broke the treaty his father signed with Iraq. We were not to invade Iraq unless the UN inspectors said they could confirm that Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, they never did say that but in-fact said they didn't. When I realized that I felt betrayed. Something that apparently a majority of the 62 million Americans that voted for him are beginning to feel, judging by his job approval ratings.

I think you are grasping at straws here, and it's sad. Iraq violated that 1991 treaty when they refused to allow weapons inspectors into Iraq, beginning in the late 1990's. Once that happened, the treaty was null and void, thanks to Saddam Hussein. Saddam certainly did have WMD's, he just didn't have 'tons' of them when we invaded in March, 2003. They have been found - but only in small numbers. Still, he had them, just as the president stated. Bush did not lie and saying he did, again and again and again, with no evidence, simply ruins the credibility of those making that false accusation.

Frankly, when I see all these hysterical rants on the internet about 'Bush lied' I have to wonder why the bitter congressional Democrats have not started impeachment proceedings. Could it be because they have absolutely no evidence of all these alleged 'lies' Bush told. Hmmmm?

The ones that think things are going great just haven't been affected yet. I suspect this summer, with the rising price of gas, that many more will be affected. Maybe when those with decent jobs can't afford to fill their tanks it will begin to sink in. Maybe those tax cuts will help.. Those making over $26mil a year will save approx. $500,000 while those making less than $50k a year will save around $10. Hmm... maybe not.

Rick, your negative attitude based on sheer class envy is unfortunate. However, I will not waste my time attempting to dissuade you from it, as you obviously feed off of it and enjoy playing the poor, blue-collar 'victim' of the 'evil' Bush administration. I think that attitude is uninformed as well as pathetic - and exactly what the Democrats want you to think - but it's yours to live with, if you choose.

Say hello to Al Franken for me.