Don’t Buy American

by John Galt

July 13, 2009

Don’t buy American!

That is something that I never in a million years I thought I would ever utter, type or think about in my lifetime. As a life long Ford or Dodge truck owner at one point or another, I always dreamed of buying that next pick up with the big V8 or the small one with a four or a six when I felt practicality surpassed power, comfort or luxury. Yet here I am, at the point in my life when luxury, power and comfort should be my only concern, probably facing my last chance to purchase a new vehicle and I have no desire to do so. Especially since the companies I once knew and loved have become the nemesis of everything I grew up understanding what America stood for. Sadly thus, when it comes to purchasing a new vehicle, if it assembled by the United Auto Workers I must say:

Don’t Buy American.

Why the harsh statement? Why sound so ‘un-patriotic’ in some people’s eyes? I don’t care if I change any minds or not. But if I were to go out and buy a new vehicle, it would be assembled by Americans in Ohio or Kentucky, Alabama or Tennessee, but not by anyone who is a member of the United Auto Workers or the companies that formerly made up the “Big 3″ in our nation.

The bankruptcy process used by the government to take over two of our auto manufacturers was done not to preserve the manufacturing base nor done to fulfill any legal or Constitutional obligations. In fact the U.S. Constitution only provides for bankruptcy as an option and no where does it state that the Federal government has the implied right to take over corporations and impose contractual settlements on private parties. Yet this administration in one of the boldest and most blatant violations of the Fifth Amendment rights of the secured bondholders elected to use the power of the gun and intimidate and impose a settlement to benefit a group of union thugs as payback for their election support.

In the Chrysler bankruptcy settlement, the U.A.W. which held no secured debt nor equity received a 55% stake in a company they only worked for before the process began. In the General Motors bankruptcy, once again the U.A.W. held now secured debt or equity yet receives a 17.5% stake in the new company. In both cases the taxpayer is guaranteeing that the U.A.W. health care and pension programs are guaranteed in full by the taxpayers via bond issuances from the new company that have the backing of the U.S. government, something unheard of in any corporate bankruptcy proceeding prior to this time. Meanwhile school pension funds and little old ladies who purchased the debt from these two corporations are essentially being told that it would do them some good to bag groceries or greet at WalMart instead of sitting at home retired at age 80 as they had prudently planned their retirement by buying G.M. or Chrysler bonds and the legal obligations of those bonds would insure a safe flow of income. The U.A.W. did not even comment on this aspect of their thievery beyond saying “paper or plastic” to those elderly souls.

And you want me to buy what?

What the government, in this case an out of control administration usurping its Constitutional authority much like the prior group of clowns, is imposing is a new type of corporate structure where all decisions flow via Washington, D.C. instead of through the previous organizational ideal with bondholders and shareholders steering the direction of corporations. What makes matters worse is that technically you and I are now no longer supporting freely run companies when we purchase an American vehicle. It is only a matter of time until Ford is forced into a similar agreement as there is no indication that the economy will recover to the point where auto sales will increase to numbers high enough to keep domestic manufacturers viable on their own.  When you buy a vehicle assembled by the U.A.W. you are not only paying a bunch of leftist thugs and bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., you are paying the union directly and indirectly. Your monies are now flowing into their coffers since they have considerable ownership stakes in two of the manufacturers. When you pay your taxes you are also funding the U.A.W. and supporting their anti-Constitutional cooperative agreements created by America’s stealth Socialist regime.

Essentially speaking, when you buy American, you are insuring that the instruments of our own destruction via a left wing cabal which finances anti-American leftist candidates funded by unions like the U.A.W. and now has a guaranteed supply of funding thanks to the tax structure. Vehicle purchases from Chrysler, Ford or General Motors create bonus monies which can be used to funnel even more money to the radical left wing agenda which does nothing to improve the nation’s competitiveness nor America’s economy.

Thus from this date forward, I can not buy an American assembled vehicle and those talk show hosts and other endorsers of their products are doing nothing more, in this writer’s opinion, than funding a further expansion of government which eventually will be used to silence their voices and insure a future which further deprives Americans of their freedoms and ability to enjoy the fruits of their own labor and creativity. I am not telling you what to do. But by supporting the U.A.W. you are paying for the future destruction of America as we knew it and guaranteeing we will forever be subjected to a socialist agenda far more expansive and intrusive than the plans being implemented now by this administration.

Edit to add 7/13 1630 ET:

Thanks to a friend at Frugal Squirrel’s the list of domestic and foreign vehicles assembled by the UAW and CAW is available. Boycott them all.

2009 VEHICLES BUILT BY UNION MEMBERS IN THE UNITED STATES & CANADA

11 Comments »

1. I 100% agree with you. I have no plans to buy a GM or Chrysler product again, ever. I hope they fail, permanently.Comment by Fred — July 13, 2009 @ 6:59 am
2. “John”,I am so sorry you feel the way you do about the US Auto companies. What you fail to realize is that there are a number of people in the US who work for the Big 3 and Auto Suppliers that are not associated with the UAW. The destruction of the US industry will do nothing to keep Americans working.Also, the purchasing of foreign auto vehicles does nothing but destroy the standard of living in the US.

   So many people believe that they are actually helping Americans by buying the foreign vehicles assembled in the US. However, the R&D, financing, engineering, and testing are usually done in the Home country. These are the high-paying non-union jobs that will be lost in this country by people buying foreign vehicles.

   I ask you to reconsider your stance.

   Buy GM and Chrysler products!! This is the only way they can pay back the loans and free themselves from more Government Tyrany.

   Comment by Tim — July 13, 2009 @ 11:57 am

3. As a bonus, all ten of the top ten “most overpriced autos in America” (per Forbes magazine, Consumer Reports, and JD Power) come from the failed Detroit 2.8.
   http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22496801
   I’ve bought “American” for most of my life, but with so many “domestic” vehicles now Hecho en Mexico and similar, 30 years of lackluster quality and shortsighted decision making, and with the Chrysis Co and Gov’t Motors firmly on the taxpayer’s teat, I just cannot continue to do so.

   Comment by American_patriot — July 13, 2009 @ 12:56 pm

4. Wolverine, these suppliers got stiffed and are going BK as a result of this decision also. Do you really think they have a future serving as slaves to a Government money laundering operation? They will be forced to unionized before it is all said and done to qualify to be a “supplier” when the Obamanation is finished.Standard of living? Don’t you think the last 20 years has done that since wages have DECLINED (Per the BLS, not me) when you account for inflation adjustments.If you think that buying a GM or Chrysler does anything but line the pockets of the anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Constitutional actions of people who support the imposition of Marxist restrictions on your economic and personal freedoms, then you sir are extremely naive.

   My stance is unchanged.

   Comment by John Galt — July 13, 2009 @ 4:13 pm

5. Time for you to consider a Subaru built in Indiana by non union workers. Their factory site is a model of the “green” industrial future movement. Besides that, the Outback and Forester small SUVs are some of the safest you can buy for collision protection. The sturdy horizontal 4 cylinder engine even with all-wheel drive gives me over 30 mpg on the highway (2007 model).Comment by Bullpasture — July 13, 2009 @ 5:40 pm
6. Bull, I actually like the Suburus. Well built cars like Nissans, Toyotas and Hondas. They are much more durable than any American make, IMHO.Comment by John Galt — July 13, 2009 @ 6:01 pm
7. JG,I understand your frustration, but since when is buying a foreign vehicle pro-Christian, pro-Constitution, or pro-American. There are plenty of people who make their living from the US Automotive industry that support local churches, Conservative think tanks, and the American economy. Do you think foreign auto companies will support those causes? Do you cut your nose off to spite your face? No.Your frustration with the UAW management is blinding you to all the other people who are affected by this turmoil.

   Remember, by buying foreign autos you are sending the profits back to the home country. Therefore, you are exacerbating the economic chaos in this country. I have enjoyed and agreed with many of your articles in the past, but this time you are way off.

   As for quality myth. I have had many GM vehicles. Everyone has lasted atleast 150,000 miles and ten years. Don’t be a sheeple. The MSM is anti-American and will destroy every American company. Don’t follow the media’s anti-Americanism.

   FREE Chrysler and GM from Government Tyranny!!! Buy Chrysler and GM cars!!

   Comment by Tim — July 14, 2009 @ 10:46 am

8. Whooops! I forgot to mention, your information regarding the Suppliers getting stiffed is completely untrue. There is NOT ONE Supplier who got stiffed. I have first hand information to substantiate that fact. Payments were delayed to some, but every Supplier is being paid. The change in the debt structure regarding VEBA helped to solidify the Balance Sheet of the new GM.Your assumption that the Suppliers went into BK because of the Big 3 is wrong. The reason why the Suppliers were going BK was because the domestic automakers began to sell fewer vehicles. So it was the decisions by Americans to abandon the American auto industry that drove those Suppliers into BK.Foreign vehicles “assembled” in the US continue to have a higher content of foreign parts compared to the Big 3. The Naivete of people who believe just because a $15 worker puts all the pieces together makes it an “American” car is laughable. Come on look at the facts.

   Comment by Tim — July 14, 2009 @ 11:14 am

9. Tim, you’re being misled, as usual, by the union thugs.The union members VOTE for the leadership.
   The union members VOTE on the contracts.
   The union members by a wide majority VOTED for Obama and Democrats.
   The union members GOT bailed out by taxpayers.

   The union can GO TO HELL.

   I stand by my position.

   FWIW, your second comment is factually untrue. Read the BK filings yourself. The suppliers are listed as unsecured creditors. But keep believing the bullshit.

   It’s your choice. If you wish to buy a car assembled by UAW employees who support candidates that support Pro-Abortion, Anti-Gun, Anti-Christian, Anti-American and Anti-Constitution positions that is YOUR CHOICE.

   I do not support Marxists. In any form. You keep right on believing those purple dinosaurs will shit gumdrops and lollipops on your head as they fly by.

   Because that’s what the Obamamarxists WANT you to believe.

   Comment by John Galt — July 14, 2009 @ 3:51 pm

10. I’m a new reader here but I think I’ve seen enough. You think the unions scored big with their stakes in two companies that hold nothing of value even after their debt was reduced?You think Obama bailed out the unions but forget how Bush bailed out the banks? Are you boycotting them too?You are anti-abortion? What frigging right do you have to dictate what a woman you have never met must or must not do with her own body? Now it should seem clear why the right keeps getting blasted in the elections for Congress and the White House.

    People are waking up to what religious extremists do and say here, and how little difference there would be between living here and in Iran if you douchebags had a free run of things.

    Oh, and using ‘’John Galt’’ shows a lack of imagination. And since he was a fictional chracter in a novel where the outcome was determined in advance, making what led up to it sound really smart, shows the lack of original thought on your part, and why Rand’s case means nothing in the real world. We got a load of Randian thought from Bush and Greenspan. How did that work out?

    I’ll bet you even voted for that circus clown Sarah Palin, didn’t you?

    Grow up.

    Comment by bob — July 14, 2009 @ 5:49 pm

11. Bob, I’ll say this slowly for you because it’s obvious you’re new to my blog and of somewhat diminished mental capacity.1. I did boycott the banks. So I do put my money where my mouth is. Ask the poor bimbo who answered the phone at Senator Martinez’s office when I blasted them about his position on the TARP. If you bother to read all of the posts you would realize that I’m a died in the wool Libertarian.2. Nope, I’m a state rights advocate, you know that old 10th Amendment thing. I could care less about individual choice as that was not dictated in the Constitution, it should be left to each individual state. So you’re 0-2 thus far in trying to pin a label on me.

    3. I am not a religious extremist by any stretch of the imagination. You’re just making an ASSumption and you’re looking the fool by doing so. Perhaps you should quit drinking the water from the douchebag and read the rest of the blog to get an idea of where I stand on things.

    4. Rand’s case is being made daily in this world and coming true. Greenspan was no Objectivist despite his early admiration for Ayn Rand. In fact he turned out to be more of a Mitterand than a Rand philosophically. Putting him in the same camp and slopping asinine comparisons and attacks only illustrates that you have won the Democrat Underground ‘Tard of the Week Award’ at least twice in your life.

    5. No, Sarah Palin was not qualified. I voted for Bob Barr.

    Perhaps when your Mom wakes you up in the morning and you read how much of a fool you made of yourself you can cry to her and get her to change your diapers for you. I’m sure you still enjoy that even on your 23rd birthday.

    Comment by John Galt — July 14, 2009 @ 10:10 pm