Temporary, Again Part II
When a word keeps bubbling through my thoughts and finally jells into another topic, it must be time to put it on paper. Once again, I have temporary on the brain. It seems that so much in life is temporary, that maybe that is what life actually is. It is a continuous set of temporary occurrences. Some sets may be significantly longer or shorter than others, but none the less temporary.
What drives me to the brink of temporary insanity on this occasion is where I am currently. I have traveled to a sister facility that will be closed down shortly. This is nothing new in America as plants close down daily as things become more efficient or processes non-competitive. I have been through two plant closings in my short existence and neither was a highlight of my life. Both ended as sad occasions where relationships ended and goodbyes were said. They also opened up new doors that led to happy times. The Muppet Christmas Carol says it best. Scrooge’s girlfriend is breaking off the relationship and says to him, “Life is full of meetings and partings.” I think that sums it up better than I could.
Temporary could also be cyclical in nature. Although the cycles are never the same, there are always some similarities. I guess that is the reason I am visiting a sister plant today. The American automobile industry is in the process of self destructing. GM and Ford are in a fight for their lives because they chose to negotiate heavy legacy costs into their labor contracts. It was a case of the greed of the unions and the large profits of days gone by clashing to create situations where it was easier to cave to union demands than face a possible strike. In the end, it benefited those who were there for the event. In the long run, it damaged the automobile industry and has led to what could end up being a blood bath for the entire US automobile industry. Both assembly plants and their suppliers are going to feel the full fist in the face as the industry struggles to regain profitability. All of this pain will come about because of the temporary days of wine and roses. It is easy to give in when you are 50% of the domestic market. But once the Japanese came in and ate our lunch and we let them, the party was over. That was the time to rein in the contracts and concentrate on making cars. Now they have an uphill battle against both the foreign hoards and their employees. The competition will continue to push to take over the domestic US market and if the labor unions don’t open their eyes to the reality of automobile assembly in the 21st century, we could have the extinction of domestic automobile production.
All for the price, of tea and a slice, the old man died. Go get um Pink.
Icool
Cobb
What drives me to the brink of temporary insanity on this occasion is where I am currently. I have traveled to a sister facility that will be closed down shortly. This is nothing new in America as plants close down daily as things become more efficient or processes non-competitive. I have been through two plant closings in my short existence and neither was a highlight of my life. Both ended as sad occasions where relationships ended and goodbyes were said. They also opened up new doors that led to happy times. The Muppet Christmas Carol says it best. Scrooge’s girlfriend is breaking off the relationship and says to him, “Life is full of meetings and partings.” I think that sums it up better than I could.
Temporary could also be cyclical in nature. Although the cycles are never the same, there are always some similarities. I guess that is the reason I am visiting a sister plant today. The American automobile industry is in the process of self destructing. GM and Ford are in a fight for their lives because they chose to negotiate heavy legacy costs into their labor contracts. It was a case of the greed of the unions and the large profits of days gone by clashing to create situations where it was easier to cave to union demands than face a possible strike. In the end, it benefited those who were there for the event. In the long run, it damaged the automobile industry and has led to what could end up being a blood bath for the entire US automobile industry. Both assembly plants and their suppliers are going to feel the full fist in the face as the industry struggles to regain profitability. All of this pain will come about because of the temporary days of wine and roses. It is easy to give in when you are 50% of the domestic market. But once the Japanese came in and ate our lunch and we let them, the party was over. That was the time to rein in the contracts and concentrate on making cars. Now they have an uphill battle against both the foreign hoards and their employees. The competition will continue to push to take over the domestic US market and if the labor unions don’t open their eyes to the reality of automobile assembly in the 21st century, we could have the extinction of domestic automobile production.
All for the price, of tea and a slice, the old man died. Go get um Pink.
Icool
Cobb
posted by Cobb at
8:22 AM
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