Mr. Moore, I am severely troubled by your latest diary on Daily Kos. I am a Detroit native, so I also know the pain of the car industry's woes firsthand. I don't know how you can possibly come to the conclusion you have come to in dancing on the grave of GM. You manage to be cruel, misleading, and woefully impractical all in just a few paragraphs. I have to admit that I am generally a fan, and have seen all your films with the exception of "Roger and Me." However, your post on dKos has really shaken my faith in your ability to be a force for good in America.
First and foremost, you are happy to spread a negative perception about lack of quality in American cars that has very little basis in fact. In the 70's and 80's there was certainly a period where US cars had very serious issues with quality control. But that was 20 years ago. In the last decade GM (as well as Ford/Chrysler) cars have quality that is on par with European/Japanese cars in pretty much any objective metric you can come up with. At this point, the American car companies' problems are mostly image and marketing problems, and it really angers me that a figure as prominent as Michael Moore is working to keep the reputation of some of our country's largest companies in the toilet.
Did US car companies screw up with their decision to put all their money into gas guzzlers? Yes. Are they horribly short-sighted with their hiring lobbyists to keep mileage standards low in the US? Absolutely. Are there numerous other flaws in GM? Sure. But at the same time, I can't stress enough that millions upon millions of people in this country would be affected by a complete failure of the car companies. It's not just GM employees - GM is surrounded by hundreds of companies that provide door assemblies, steering wheels, windows, sunroofs, etc. And each of these supplier companies has suppliers of their own, and all of these people working for all these companies fuel the economy of Detroit and many other communities of this nation. I can't stress enough the horrible domino effect the failure of a GM would have on this country.
Now of course Mr. Moore would say "But I want GM to succeed! I laid out my plan!" BS. You laid out a plan that you know GM will never follow. Anyone with a shred of business acumen knows that a company the size of GM will never be able to make such a massive change in direction, especially in such lean economic times. And that's assuming yours is a good plan, which it is not. Mass transit is great where it is practical, but realistically most areas of this county do not have the population density to support it. Europe and Japan are great models in some ways, but due to fundamental differences in population density we will never match them in public transit coverage just as they will never match us in, say, farm output. There is a very good reason that much of this country is not serviced well by mass transit, and it's not because there's a ton of money to be made off of it and companies are choosing just to pass by the opportunity. You can definitely make an argument that a stronger mass transit framework is needed in the US, but is moving into that market the answer for a struggling large company? Only someone who is seriously blinded by an external agenda could even try to argue "yes".
But you might ask, why would Michael Moore lay out a plan that will never be followed? Simple. He has no intent on supporting GM through its troubled times and wants to make sure he covers his ass. There is simply no other explanation for his post. He is not helping the situation, as his steps are impractical at best and totally boneheaded at worst. I know that GM isn't perfect or necessarily even good. I know it has taken steps that have weakened communities, especially Moore's hometown of Flint. It's a hard company to get behind. But I would argue that letting anger and frustration override a natural sense of what is good for the country is a nasty habit to get into. And I think Michael Moore is guilty of this in his attitude toward Detroit automakers.
If you can overlook the mess GM has gotten itself into, there are positive signs ahead. Through all its woes, GM has kept up its commitment to the development of the world's first commercially available plugin hybrid vehicle, named the Volt. This car will go on sale next year. It doesn't use any gas at all for 40 miles after a full charge, and is truly world class in terms of engineering prowess. I would hope that those who complain about the car industry's lack of innovation and forward thinking would check this out, as by all accounts it makes a Prius seem like a Navigator SUV in terms of fuel efficiency. It's a nice start towards an American car industry that leads in environmental innovation, and I hope the progressives and environmentally conscious people that frequent dKos are among the first to support it.
I guess what bothers me so much about Mr. Moore's post is his insistence on the perfect (in his mind at least) over the good. All signs are pointing to the fact that GM is trying to get its act together. It, and the millions of Americans tied to it, need us to support progress. This is not a time to give unreasonable and unrealistic demands and then turn our backs if they're not followed. Change can be made, but it will likely be incremental and slower than we hoped for. Don't get frustrated. Because if we give up and let GM go down it's not just some unlucky chumps in Detroit that are going to take the fall. The shockwaves will be felt around the country, and your job may be next.
**edit** My first rec list! Thanks everyone!