You would probably agree that David Brooks is one of the more astute observers and commentators regarding changes in America’s social and political outlooks. In a recent New York Times op-ed piece he noted that those having been reared in “least attractive places to live” expressed an almost inordinate loyalty and attachment so those areas as compared to those who were bought up in more desirable areas.
Guilty! I love Detroit.
But this story isn’t about Detroit. Rather, the story is immersed in and influenced by Detroit, its culture, the mindset of its industrial operatives and its idiosyncrasies. I was born and raised in middle-class Detroit, went to its schools and was inculcated into a set of values to which you will be exposed. In somewhat the same manner, like most Americans, I love cars, but not particularly from the standpoint of design or features, but from the ease and comfort provided in getting to the place of one’s personal choosing.
But this story isn’t about cars.
What I really, really loved was being immersed in the business of making American cars, starting at a time almost 60 years ago, when particularly the American automotive industry basked in almost universal admiration. Simultaneously lurking, however, were various influences, public and private, that sensed that they were being “stiff-armed” by the industry, whereas they felt that their own sensible ideas must be embraced and embodied into that industry. The “real” story here is the saga of how these six or seven new outside influences
affected the American automotive industry. It generally follows a timeline of events, describing these events, the players, their purported motivations and the subsequent brittle and temporary equilibrium that ensued from each event.
Let’s take a forensic look at these interventions of the last 50 years, assessing rationality of the goals to be accomplished, whether they were fulfilled and did they bring the appropriate benefits. (Author’s note: editors tend to discourage pointing out issues
that might offend a certain portion of readers, thereby the words like “idiocy” & “lunatic” don’t appear in the text. They will, however, appear in our blog here when it’s appropriate. Accordingly, you probably will appreciate the sensitivity when discussing my boss giving “chicken-crap orders” or of having been of Ford Financial’s “crap-list”.
It’s hard to imagine how any American is pleased with the current overall outcome, particularly from an economic standpoint. As the old saying went, “when the industry catches cold, Chrysler catches pneumonia,” a new mega-saying might be, “when the American automotive industry catches pneumonia, Detroit crashes.”
Let’s follow the treadmill of the industry and its Detroit host to their current status and attempt to find them a re-emergence to a sustainable position of respect and prosperity.
Guilty! I love Detroit.
But this story isn’t about Detroit. Rather, the story is immersed in and influenced by Detroit, its culture, the mindset of its industrial operatives and its idiosyncrasies. I was born and raised in middle-class Detroit, went to its schools and was inculcated into a set of values to which you will be exposed. In somewhat the same manner, like most Americans, I love cars, but not particularly from the standpoint of design or features, but from the ease and comfort provided in getting to the place of one’s personal choosing.
But this story isn’t about cars.
What I really, really loved was being immersed in the business of making American cars, starting at a time almost 60 years ago, when particularly the American automotive industry basked in almost universal admiration. Simultaneously lurking, however, were various influences, public and private, that sensed that they were being “stiff-armed” by the industry, whereas they felt that their own sensible ideas must be embraced and embodied into that industry. The “real” story here is the saga of how these six or seven new outside influences
affected the American automotive industry. It generally follows a timeline of events, describing these events, the players, their purported motivations and the subsequent brittle and temporary equilibrium that ensued from each event.
Let’s take a forensic look at these interventions of the last 50 years, assessing rationality of the goals to be accomplished, whether they were fulfilled and did they bring the appropriate benefits. (Author’s note: editors tend to discourage pointing out issues
that might offend a certain portion of readers, thereby the words like “idiocy” & “lunatic” don’t appear in the text. They will, however, appear in our blog here when it’s appropriate. Accordingly, you probably will appreciate the sensitivity when discussing my boss giving “chicken-crap orders” or of having been of Ford Financial’s “crap-list”.
It’s hard to imagine how any American is pleased with the current overall outcome, particularly from an economic standpoint. As the old saying went, “when the industry catches cold, Chrysler catches pneumonia,” a new mega-saying might be, “when the American automotive industry catches pneumonia, Detroit crashes.”
Let’s follow the treadmill of the industry and its Detroit host to their current status and attempt to find them a re-emergence to a sustainable position of respect and prosperity.