US auto industry FAIL
I was driving down 275 a couple days ago and noticed a billboard for a local car dealership. I think it's a Ford dealership since they frequently occupy the ad space on that particular sign, but I only got to read the first two lines before I quit reading out of disgust.
"YOU depend on US
WE depend on YOU"
Without even reading the rest of it I was capable of understanding how pathetic the sign was. The dealerships and US auto companies can't even be bothered to sell vehicles based on the features of the product. Instead they've decided trying to guilt us into buying their crap is a better idea. Maybe they understand their products just don't have the MPG we want, the appearance we like, or any of the other sensible things buyers would look for in this awkward market.
I think they are also forgetting that lots of "foreign" cars have plants in the US, buy raw supplies from the US, and have dealerships that are run by *gasp* Americans. The "foreign" market also provides an opportunity for specialty "foreign" repair and maintenance shops, also operated locally by Americans.
I feel that this notion of guilting consumers into buying American cars is misplaced. Americans aren't refraining from buying American cars because they hate the workers of the US auto industry. They aren't buying the cars because the banks have tightened their belts on lending and credit is tougher to get, as well as every industry losing jobs, so fewer people can afford to buy a new car. Circuit City just shut down nation-wide, did THEY try to take government handouts and bully people into buying their goods? Homebuilders crumbled and laid off plenty of people, did THEY get handouts or try to guilt people into buying homes they didn't need and couldn't afford? Sure, it's one billboard displaying an "ad" from a local dealership, it doesn't speak on behalf of ALL American auto dealerships, but it certainly echoes their sentiments from what I've seen in the news lately.
"YOU depend on US
WE depend on YOU"
Without even reading the rest of it I was capable of understanding how pathetic the sign was. The dealerships and US auto companies can't even be bothered to sell vehicles based on the features of the product. Instead they've decided trying to guilt us into buying their crap is a better idea. Maybe they understand their products just don't have the MPG we want, the appearance we like, or any of the other sensible things buyers would look for in this awkward market.
I think they are also forgetting that lots of "foreign" cars have plants in the US, buy raw supplies from the US, and have dealerships that are run by *gasp* Americans. The "foreign" market also provides an opportunity for specialty "foreign" repair and maintenance shops, also operated locally by Americans.
I feel that this notion of guilting consumers into buying American cars is misplaced. Americans aren't refraining from buying American cars because they hate the workers of the US auto industry. They aren't buying the cars because the banks have tightened their belts on lending and credit is tougher to get, as well as every industry losing jobs, so fewer people can afford to buy a new car. Circuit City just shut down nation-wide, did THEY try to take government handouts and bully people into buying their goods? Homebuilders crumbled and laid off plenty of people, did THEY get handouts or try to guilt people into buying homes they didn't need and couldn't afford? Sure, it's one billboard displaying an "ad" from a local dealership, it doesn't speak on behalf of ALL American auto dealerships, but it certainly echoes their sentiments from what I've seen in the news lately.