“President Barack Obama asserted unprecedented government control over the auto industry Monday, bluntly rejecting turnaround plans by General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC, demanding fresh concessions for long-term federal aid and raising the possibility of quick bankruptcy for either ailing auto giant.

Obama took the extraordinary step of announcing the government will back new car warranties issued by both GM and Chrysler, an attempt to reassure consumers their U.S.-made purchases will be protected even if the companies don’t survive.”

Has anyone had the experience of buying a car for the first time and needed a down payment from your parents?  I didn’t, that is another subject, but I could imagine my father maintaining some control over what kind of car that would have been.  After all, if parents are helping with their money it makes sense for them to make sure a sensible car is chosen.  That makes sense right?

Well, President Obama has put the US government in the role of parent to GM and Chrysler LLC.  If these two automakers didn’t need money from the government they could do whatever they want, but since the government is giving them some cash, for now, “Uncle Sugar” is going to have a say in what goes on.

I’m really counting on someone (hint, Ryan) to come in and say why this is a bad idea – I see why this is more of the same in a bad way – but I’m going to briefly talk about why I think this happened in plain terms.

Both these companies have been relaxed, sitting in Detroit like some fat cats, and haven’t kept pace with the industry.  Many Americans only buy American cars and that has pretty much kept these companies going until now.  Value is such a huge aspect of buying with the current economic situation and I would say the majority of American cars just don’t offer good value:

Reliability – American cars are not as reliable as foreign competitors.  The irony is many foreign cars are built in the United States.  Basically, the technology is foreign and the cars are built here.

I have had experience with American (car) reliability myself.  In March of 1996 I purchased a Dodge Avenger brand new.  After going to the dealership for a few problems, the person who drives the cars around said, “You are here all the time.”  Needless to say, that was the end of that.  I traded that car in, purchased a 1996 Honda Accord and…it is sitting in the garage right now.  That brings me to my next point.

Value – Cost of ownership should be an important factor when buying such a substantial purchase.  The cheaper it is to own something over the long haul, the better.  For me, I have driven the same car for almost 13 years.  I would say it has been worth it and that means it is a great value.  On the other hand, one of my former co-workers has a Chevy truck and he talked about how “loose” and “sloppy” it felt.  The truck is a 2003 or 2004.  With the right deal, he would sell the truck in a hearbeat.

Performance – American cars are simply lacking in performance, due largely to old technology in the vehicles.  Things like 6-speed transmissions, direct fuel injection and vehicle weight mean gas mileage is comparable or worse than foreign cars with the latest technology.  Keep in mind, old technology does not mean lower sticker prices.

Trucks/SUVs – People think they need large trucks and SUVs so that is what American companies built.  Those vehicles aren’t so attractive to some people anymore because of gas prices.  When the price of gas went up, some people tried to trade these large vehicles in and got a rude awakening.  Guess what?  The value isn’t there in those vehicles so people were faced with the decision to keep paying high gas bills or losing up to $8,000 trading them in.  Not a good position to be in.

Besides all of this, my brother has been impacted by the US automotive industry.  He was laid off and it really upset me.  These companies could have been making better cars for a long time, but just didn’t.  Why make the product better when you have a loyal customer base?  That is what they are paying for now.  If they would have made better cars, they would still be in a bad situation like the rest of us, but it wouldn’t be as bad as it is right now.

Now that I got all of that off my chest, I’m waiting to hear why government control is a bad thing.  It is essentially the same reason, but something that needs to be said anyway.

NOTE: I would like to apologize for some of the visual problems and technical difficulties we are experiencing.  I’m currently looking for someone to help us through these problems, but I wanted to keep rolling with content.  Please be patient with us.  If need be, send me your comments and I will post them on your behalf.

Hey 7DayBuzz Readers,

Happy Monday to you! Below is a YouTube video. I would really love your feedback on it.

Today is my father and nephew’s birthday.  My father is 75 and my nephew is 25.  There is going to be a big celebration in South Carolina for my father; I couldn’t make the trip due to my recent move.  While not there physically, I will be there in spirit and I hope to see both of them really soon.

I was 13 when my nephew was born and we have been tight ever since.  Some would say I’m a father figure to him, I would probably say we are more like brothers, but either way we are tight.  He is one of the people in my life who get, and ask for, my raw opinion.  Happy birthday buddy.

I cannot imagine what it is like to be born in 1934 – my father always has stories to tell and things he remembers.  As his youngest child, I’ve seen some of the things he’s gone through for more than half of his life.  He has done things his way with honor and integrity.  Happy birthday Daddy!

Thank God it’s Friday!

Is Rush Limbaugh Good for the Republican Party? A JealousBrother Guest Post by Robert Barr

“…And I think the GOP knows that they need to be a bit more progressive too, but they also know that that can never happen as long as the face of the party remains that of Rush Limbaugh’s.”

Click here to go to the site and read the rest of the story.

Vote For Cutest Baby

My daughter has been entered into a cute baby contest.  Click here to see the picture and vote for her.

What is the one thing you would change about our country, your city, your state, the world or your neighborhood?  If you had the power to make one significant change, what would it be and why?

My change would be to double teachers’ salaries across the board.  I think this change would make our nation smarter and it is what teachers deserve; some people have some bad kids.

If teachers made more money, it would draw those who left the profession because of low wages.  The change would allow those good teachers, who have a passion for the field, to go back to doing what they should be doing.  On the other hand, some bad teachers would be shown the door.  There are some teachers out there who have no business being near children period.

The end result would be smarter students.  Better teachers would teach our children with passion while currently there are teachers in it for all the wrong reasons and they really don’t care.

I know my change would include spending more money, but I think this would be an investment.

This is part of what President Obama had to say last night: “Bankers and executives on Wall Street need to realize that enriching themselves on the taxpayers’ dime is inexcusable, that the days of outsized rewards and reckless speculation that puts us all at risk have to be over.”

Are we headed in the right direction?  By the right direction I’m talking about the changes and budget proposals coming from our President.  I think it is safe to say that he, President Obama, is doing things differently than President Bush.  Sometimes change is good and sometimes change is just…change.

It seems like changes are being made daily, many of which involve spending more money, but are those changes necessary for our economy to recover from the hole we find ourselves in?  It could be too early to tell because we are also being told to be patient and it will take months, if not years, for the economy to recover.  Well, if we wait months we could find out that we could be worse off then than we are right now.  It doesn’t matter who it is coming from, we should listen to differing opinions – a lot is at stake here people.

We have some regulars on 7daybuzz who aren’t enamored with President Obama and they give sound reasons.  I would ask people with similar opinions a simple question: do you think we need to continue down the same path we were on for the past 8 years or do we just need to get on a different path than the one President Obama has us on?

Right now, more than ever, we need to put some of the political affiliation aside and worry about how we are going to recover from this thing.  A Republican with the same job, working beside a Democrat, could find himself/herself in a bad way and their party affiliation will not matter one bit – and the other way around too.  What matters are the decisions made by a government that isn’t going away for at least 3 years and 10 months.

So, do you think we are headed in the right direction?

“Octuplets mother Nadya Suleman has fired a nonprofit group of nurses that helped care for her children, accusing the group of spying on her and reporting her to child welfare officials, her spokesman said Monday.”

The quote above is from another in the long line of articles surrounding the famous mother of 14.  I think we can all agree, we have formed some sort of opinion about her at this point.  Her 15 minutes of fame has seemed to last for 15 years and I’m kind of tired of seeing her on TV.

I would like to know what others think of her, but I don’t think she is really fit to keep all of these kids.  I’ve seen bits and pieces of reports about the physical living conditions the children are in.  We also have to consider the argument she had with her mother on national TV.  Finally, she seems to love the attention she is getting – she seems kind of silly or out of it to me.

For me, all this equals someone who is selfish.  Yes, she has some – 14 to be exact – precious children, but will they be taken care of properly and will their childhood impact how they interact with others in society?  They did not ask to come here, but for some strange reason their mother decided it was best to do this given her situation.  Again, I say this is one selfish woman and I would love to hear a counterpoint to what I believe.

Stripping and adult films are doing well in this economy.

Women who were struggling to make around $2,000 dollars a week are making that much in a good night dancing at a strip club.  Many of these are educated women who are qualified to do other jobs – so much for saying they are working the pole to pay for college.

With the job market what it is, many women are looking at dancing as a way get by in tough times; many dancers are making $100,000-$300,000 dollars per year.  When you think about the fact that many of these women were “forced” to the industry as a way to make ends meet I would say their mission is complete: those ends are meeting nicely.

As can be expected, nerves probably play a part in dancing for the first time.  Some women use alcohol as a way to calm their nerves while others use techniques often applied to other nervous situations.  “It is like giving a speech, but instead of imagining everyone naked, you’re the one who’s naked,” said one woman new to the industry.  Yeah, whatever.

On one hand you (may) have morals concerning the industry while on the other hand you have 5 times more income.  I could see where that could be a tough decision, but once a woman is on the pole there is no turning back.  But stripping still isn’t the worst thing they could be doing.

Once a woman dances, those who saw her naked will have that image in their minds forever, but adult films is another story.  Once a film is made, that tape, disc or file can be played over and over again.  Years from now, that decision to have sex on film will still exist for anyone to see.  It is a serious decision to make with immediate rewards.  But what is the real price these women (and men) pay?

These industries have been called recession-proof and maybe it is true.  However, while there is nothing illegal about stripping or working in the adult film industry, those decisions stick similarly to a criminal’s record.  Is it really worth it?

I’m settling in at the new house, I’m getting used to not putting on a uniform and I’m growing a goatee so right now life is pretty good.  I do miss the people I worked with, but I expected that.  Basically, I’m exhausted.  On to what is on my mind.

So my boss tells me I’m getting a $100,000 bonus…then I find out I’m only going to see $10,000 of it.  How should I feel?  Should I be upset that so much of my money is going to be gone or should I be thankful for getting 10%.  Oh, one more thing – my company got the money to give me my bonus from the taxpayers.

Wow.

If the stories I’m reading are true, I have to call a foul (I can do that, I’m a basketball ref) on the Democrats.  I read an article that said some of the Republicans saw something like this happening and their concerns went unheard.

90% is a hefty tax, but it makes sense if the money used to pay bonuses came from the bailout.  I think the tax should be 99.99% especially since some of the AIG employees who received the bonus were allegedly the same people who almost ran the company into the ground.

I think taxing this way sends the correct message although provisions for this could have been in the legislation before the money was given out.  But I think they could have raised the tax 9.99%. 

Sunday evening my husband and I returned from Biloxi, MS. We were there to celebrate my brother retiring from the Air Force. Even after arriving in Biloxi, MS early Friday morning; I nor my husband, my sister, my cousin, her husband and my other young cousin, realized the ceremony we were about to witness, was just for Master Sergeant Sawyer. We thought it was an event similar to a graduating ceremony where many would be honored. Imagine our surprise and unsurpassed pride when we realized 600 airmen, the Air Force band and a host of other officials were all there just for my brother!

Master Sergeant Thomas E. Sawyer retired with 20 years of service to the United States Air Force. Master Sergeant Sawyer began his illustrious career serving at Eielson AFB in Fairbanks, AL and continued on to Luke AFB in Phoenix, AR; Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, NV; Defense Intelligence Agency in Washington, DC and ending at Keesler AFB in Biloxi, MS.

Never attending a military retirement ceremony, I really didn’t know what to expect. It was beautiful! I had to send him a text to ask how many awards he received. Even he lost count. I assure you, it was many! The professionalism and militant fashion combined with the obvious love, respect and admiration by colleague after colleague was phenomenal! The rituals that go along with these types of formal celebrations were impressive. And the icing on the cake was hearing Master Sergeant Sawyer giving his departing speech filled with thanksgiving to those who held him up along the way, appreciation for those he worked with side by side his last years at Keesler and finally, guidance and encouragement for the young airmen he was leaving behind. There were several times I became emotional myself. I don’t know how he made it through it without a complete breakdown, but he made it! He made it through the speech and he made it through 20 years of selfless service for our United States of America!

With his wife by his side, new baby in his arms, a few college degrees and a lot of experience under his belt, Master Sergeant Sawyer will shed the military titles and move to the next phase of life as just Thomas. It’s been a journey, the kind only Uncle Sam can take you on… but now it’s over!  God bless you on your new journey! We know part two will be just as successful as part one!  We love you and we are so very proud of you!  Help me in saying congratulations to the newly retired Master Sergeant Thomas E. Sawyer!