Uncertainty over bailout casts a pall over Detroit

[babylonsister]

Uncertainty over bailout casts a pall over Detroit

Consumers, suppliers, workers and dealers all worried about the future of the US auto industry

KIMBERLY S. JOHNSON and BREE FOWLER
AP News

Dec 13, 2008 17:59 EST


Even amid the festive atmosphere of a downtown ice skating rink, it's impossible to escape the worries the Motor City faces as the U.S. auto industry waits to see whether it will get a lifeline from the federal government.

"People are scared to death. You can't have a conversation without it coming up," said Jeff Doyle, who was watching his children skate at Campus Martius Park, just a few blocks from General Motors' headquarters and its giant blue GM logos that loom over the city. "Everything here is related to the auto industry."

Nearly everyone in the Detroit area has a family member or knows someone involved in the industry, and the uncertainty of its future, along with the recession, is painting a definite pall over the holiday season.

Doyle, the only person in his immediate and extended family working outside of the auto industry, said Saturday that there's an "underlying tension" among his relatives and friends with the fate of GM and Chrysler up in the air. Everyone's trying to remain upbeat during the holidays, he said, but family gatherings "certainly won't be as extravagant."

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http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2008/12/uncertainty_over_bailout_casts.php

[DJ13]

1. Merry Christmas Detroit!

-Signed,
Your friends in the GOP

[Night_Nurse]

2. I've lived here for all of my 40-something years...

I remember my dad getting laid off back in the 70s (he worked the steel plants), and how scary it was. That was nothing compared to what's happening right now. All of my life, I've grown up with, and known people who worked either directly or indirectly for the Big Three. Good, hardworking people. GM/Ford/Chrysler... it's in our blood. It's so surreal, witnessing the demise of what made Detroit the "Motor City". It feels like Michigan is getting it's heart ripped out. Perhaps that sounds dramatic or overly sentimental, but if you lived here all your life, you'd get it.

[FarCenter]

3. I thought there had been a pall over Detroit for the last 40 years

Bars over windows.

Abandoned houses and junked cars.

Blocks with vacant lots where houses had been bulldozed.

Abandoned factory buildings.

Streets in disrepair.

I've visited occasionally since '68, and it seems to have been going downhill ever since then with only small pockets of improvement.

[B Calm]

4. First off we need to stop calling it a fucking bailout, it's a loan!