Fbodfather ALERT-Pls. send a note to the White House

[z28camaro2471]

Done.

[nester7929]

I doubt that Scott would do that, at least in the sense of speaking to the White House as a GM employee. GM probably wouldn't like him going around their other staff like that.

[TFord]

Done!

[Chocolate Apocalypse]

Why arent we sending letters to the leaders of the UAW telling them to get their heads out of their asses?

[kanys]

Originally Posted by Chocolate Apocalypse

Why arent we sending letters to the leaders of the UAW telling them to get their heads out of their asses?

Yeah this might be the next step. Oh and I sent a modified version of yours a6pk2go, hope you don't mind.

[zebra]

done. i wrote this:

Originally Posted by zebra

To Whom it May Concern:

I am requesting that, in consideration of the current state of the American automobile industry, money from the TARP funds be used as a repayable loan to help keep GM/Ford/Chrysler from having to file bankruptcy.

Studies have shown that, if the Detroit companies go under, it is not only the automobile industry that suffers. Along with the corporate offices and manufacturing plants, the companies that supply the plants, dealerships, service shops, and even the restaurants the employees frequent, will certainly lose business and employees. With more people out of work, this economic recession will only continue to decline.

When the Wall Street executives requested to be GIVEN $700 billion in support to keep their businesses alive, that request was graciously honored. Why should a substantially smaller LOAN be withheld and placed under such scrutiny? I agree that the companies need to restructure their spending habits and consider alternative approaches to current policies, but this does not need to all be completed and sent through 10,000 committee hearings before an answer is reached. By then, it will be too late, and our domestic vehicle companies will have been sacked too hard to prevent serious injury to our hurting economy.

Thank you for your time, and Merry Christmas.

hopefully it does some good

[LS 1st gen]

Turtle,

Mind if I borrow some of your text?

[Mr. Wyndham]

Here's what I sent...

EDIT: Wouldn't it be neat if GM took note of it's Camaro community's efforts on their behalf?

Mr. President,

I want to show my support for the American Automotive Industry (hereafter the “Big 3”), and tell you that I want the treasury to approve the $34 billion in loans and credit lines to the automakers; or at the very least, approve the $14 billion dollars in loans. They play a tremendous role in our country’s economy. In addition to supporting nearly 5 million former and current employees in this country, they are the driving force behind the majority of our technological innovation; as one of the number one buyers of computer chips, and investing tens of billions of dollars into other forms of research and development. This R + D eventually does find its way down into our mainstream society, and if our country is to compete in this new global economy, we need to have a “home team” capable of innovating the way Americans can. The Big 3 make up that home team.

There is much talk about reducing our dependence on foreign oil, reducing our vehicles’ emissions, and increasing miles per gallon. Such goals would require a monumental undertaking the likes of which have not been seen since the Manhattan Project on the mid-1900s. The Big 3 have already started! For instance, many site Japan’s Toyota Prius hybrid sedan as the route our vehicles should take. I say that is not enough. As great as this vehicle is, General Motors did it first and they did it better. The EV1 was the first electric vehicle on the country’s roads, and it was not produced by an import company. Unfortunately, the associated costs and parts-availability coupled with low consumer interest at the time for this technological marvel rendered it dead. But GM’s doing it again with the Chevrolet Volt, and once again, they are doing it BETTER. It has the very real potential to never use a drop of gasoline so long as you live within 40 miles of your destination. And after that, it can provide anywhere from 50 to 100mpg…more than double what the Prius is capable of. Further, this vehicle employs cutting-edge Lithium Ion battery technology. The Toyota Prius still uses old-tech Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries because they are unable to figure out how to use newer batteries. GM can, and has. CEO Richard Wagoner drove a prototype Volt to Capitol Hill not too long ago. That was a real electric-drive car using the new Lithium batteries.

The Big three aren’t so short-sighted as to invest in ONE type of alternative propulsion, either. They’ve got significant experience in Hydrogen fuel cells, the biggest fleet in history of which was deployed by General Motors earlier this year – NOT an import company. They are investing in ethanol-fueled vehicles. In fact, they’ve partnered with two ethanol companies that do NOT produce ethanol from corn or some other fuel. And they are advancing their current propulsion systems through the use of smart engine technologies like direct injection and turbo charging. This advancement allows the big 3 to say that they sell the most models that get 30 mpg or more than anybody on the market. Specifically, General Motors offers twice as many 30+mpg vehicles than Toyota and Honda combined.

There has been talk of change in the corporate structure of these three companies. I would agree that some changes need to be made, but let’s not forget that the Big 3 HAVE been changing over the past years, and we’d all be stupid or blind to ignore it. For example, General Motors has reduced operating costs from 39.6 billion dollars in 2004 to 30.3 billion in 2008, and it will drop down to an estimated 23.3 billion dollars in 2012. They’ve also lowered their hourly manufacturing costs from $18.4 billion in 2003 to $8.1 billion in 2008.

Mr. President, for all the reasons above and more, I am emailing you to show my support for bridge loans to the automakers. They are not failed companies, and their products are far from undesirable. They were a principal factor in winning World War II, and they drive more innovation in this country than anybody thought possible. President Bush, with your last major directive in office, please instruct the Treasury to give the Big 3 the $34 billion in bridge loans and credit lines that they asked for, not this $14 billion joke of a bill that Congress miserably failed to pass.

[SilverTurtle]

Originally Posted by LS 1st gen

Turtle,

Mind if I borrow some of your text?

nah, Gordon, I dont mind at all... go ahead and use as much or as little as you'd like to



and if anyone else wants to just cut and paste my text that I sent, feel free to do so... its not necessary to make every letter to the WhiteHouse different, just as long as we all make a stand

[DGthe3]

sent mine yesterday. Didn't feel the need to tell them that I'm Canadian.

[str8himalaya]

Did it last night! Anything to help!

[josh1147]

Sent my letter off just now....it's a bit longer than probably necessary, but since they never read these, thought I'd go ahead and hit em good....at least it made me feel a bit better, for about 5 seconds!

Dear Mr. President,

While I and many other citizens continue to pay our bills, mortgages, and debt on time without any federal assistance (bailout,loan, or otherwise), there are some citizens and COMPANIES that can not survive this market downturn without support.

The automotive industry has been one of the few long-standing, backbone industries of the United States. They have been there in good times and in bad. They have employed hundreds of thousands of Americans over the years and have developed devoted "legacy" families that encourage generations to labor, both blue and white collar, for the Big-3 to support their families.

Unfortunately due to poor business decisions by leadership, unchecked manufacturing, and wages that did not adjust along with product demand, the current economy has placed at least 2 of the 3 companies into situations that they can not extract themselves from without government intervention.
If one of these companies fails the economic ripple-effect will be a catastrophic blow to the economy and American public.

GM has said for months now that bankruptcy, even arranged, would lead them to a path of liquidation. GM also states that the average American would cease to purchase vehicles if a company entered bankruptcy, even arranged also. Therefore I support GM on this matter and ask that you also support them in their effort to avoid bankruptcy. The approximately $18B they have asked for is "drop in the bucket" compared to the bailout you supported for Wall Street which to this date has been a mediocre success at best.

The auto manufacturers deserve assistance, in the form of LOANS, which will and should be paid back on schedule and with interest to the American public. They should be monitored for their fiscal and ethical use of these monies to ensure future liquidity.

And speaking of fiduciary responsibility, after repayment of the loads any interest monies remaining should be used to shore up Social Security or federal debt paydown...NOT to line the pockets of yourselves, Federal Judges, or anyone else except maybe our men and woman in the Armed Forces.

You still have a chance to save your legacy as President....or you can choose to ignore this and secure your Presidency in the state it is currently in. It is time for you as the Executive of the United States to remind Washington DC of who put you in office, who you should be listening to, and who you are supposed to be acting on behalf of.

Respectfully,