Gm's Volt: Made In China?

Well, is the bubble the fault of Toyota, of predatory easy credit policies, ignorant Sheeple consumers, vote rigging politcians, or secretive societies that pull our strings?

You will find the "true" answer - if there even is such a thing - far more complex then simply blaming Toyota for all that ills the US economy

Yes I entirely believe the sad plight of the average sheeple. Unless you have leveraged yourself up to your eyebrows, what concern is that of yours? My folks taught me a saying that was already old when they first heard it: "You can lead a horse to water ..."

For example, before I left on my business trip I was in FutureShop just browsing. Happened to walk by the plasma tv section, and overheard a young couple talking to one of the salesfolks about "needing" a 50 inch plasma, but wondering how they could qualify for financing

I was dumbfounded, thinking I could whip out my checkbook and buy 10 of the things on the spot. If I was dumb enough to do so.

I just don't get it. Nobody "needs" a widescreen plasma tv. Nobody "needs" a new car (Ok, I can depreciate mine so I now don't mind driving new cars). Nobody "needs" a bunch of s*** gadgets (If I couldn't write it off against my business, I wouldn't even own a cell phone). Nobody "needs" a McMansion

There is a lot of blame to go around here. Politicians from both sides of the aisle twiddled their thumbs and smirked at us. The media has the sheeple so dumbed down they think electricity works by magic or Jeebus.

So if you expect the economy to have some sort of "soft landing" dream on. Canada will fair slightly better as it has many desirable resources to exploit and "share" with China

 

I think this will be a fairly short-recession, the fed will use ultra-low interest rates to get consumers building Mcmansions again and everyone will need the blu-ray and hd tv or whatever it is.
I think we will enter another recession in the next three years and that will be when the bottom falls out. I will get cut to pieces on here for this but I think the next recession will be worse than the great depression and hopefully the US and the world will find a better way to pull itself out of the great econmic abyss than a war that kills tens of millions.

 

Jayman, I noticed you now also have an '07 fj cruiser. How do you like it. I ahve to admit I liked the retro-look at first and thought it would be a smash until i drove it, obviously I am not the most objective guy in the world, but the ride and drive left me cold.

 

So you are a "Dealer" ? you did not take the "bubble" money from those and selling them your cars and making a killing on each one? Now, after taking their money, you feel sorry for those falks "financial situation"..You put them in the "financial situation there did'nt you? Zees, you made a lot of money on them but now are you feeling sorry for them...You shouldn't be "scared" you have their money already!

 

They wanted to buy a car. If it was not from me it would have just been form some other dealer. The problem is not in buying the car, the problem is that real wages have not kept up because of the trade deficit.

 

Trade-Deficit? Government creates them and go along with the World politics, consumers just choose their spending dollars where it is worth..
In case of vehicle purchase, be it GM or Toyota..
How about applying for a Toyota franchise for yourself. It will be safer bet
for your next generation...

 

If consumers knew what was going on with the US economy, the dumping, the unfair trade practices, the targeting and subsequent decimation of industries, most would change their practices. They have been told over and over again about the merits of "free-trade" and then many have no idea what the trade deficit means to them.

 

Are you talking about the auto-dealership industry...? Oops

This argument is like beating a dead horse. Hate to say it, but some of your economic understanding is somewhat muddled. Must be an Obama supporter....

 

So you are saying we the citizens, don't know what the "free trade" means? Do you know what it means? I would like you to teach us and enlighten our future understanding of this subject.

Who is targeting and decimating its industry? I think business goes bust due to lack of non-foresight of its business.

 

Yes, I agree. It would be best to have an isolated area to retreat to (Check, already stocked) that is completely self sufficient (Check, no need for utilities, high ground, no worry of floods).

 

And, check, you already got the FJ Cruiser, which can go on rough terrain, and is, above all, built to last

 

They recently started a logging operation around 6km north of my hobby farm. My hobby farm is at the end of a very windy gravel road with many small hills, I'd call it more of a path than a true road. Very washboardy at the best of times

Now with the logging traffic the road is in pretty tough shape, very badly rutted. Even if the Trac worked perfectly in my Prius, there is no way I could take it now due to the ruts.

I test drove a wide range of SUV or AWD vehicles before settling on the FJ, which incidently was my cheapest choice. My priority was a soft cushy ride and something that at least pretended to be practical

Subaru Outback. Only way to get stability control was to spring for the top of the line Premier package: leather (No thank you), nav, enormous glass sunroof, other toys. I actually very much liked the road manners and ride quality of the Outback. Just didn't like the leather

Land Rover Range Rover HSE, not the supercharged one, but with the Luxury Interior option. This was *very* nice even though I hate leather. My butt sticks to it, so you can use your imagination there. Ride quality was superb with the 4 wheel air suspension. I was worried the very pretty interior would get trashed, especially transporting two cats with me. If I applied my company logo to the vehicle, I could have easily written it off

BMW X5. The ride quality was too stiff.

Lexus GX470. A fancy Land Cruiser, which is not sold in Canada anymore. For the money, not as nice as the Range Rover. Probably more reliable though, but it's a write off so who cares?

Lincoln Navigator. Very nice ride quality, didn't care at all for the seats. Too much Bling

Buick Enclave CXL. Kind of pricey here in Canada, especially if I wanted backup camera. Actually very well thought out. Liked the interior. Ride seemed a bit stiff for a Buick, my parents 2003 LeSabre was cushy

I think what sold me on the FJ was the very spartan interior. Some folks are really put off by the plastic floor, but I now wish my Prius had the same feature. I can hop in with slush/dirt on my boots, so what? It washes right off

The FJ handling reminds me of a late 60's or early 70's sedan. Lot's of body roll. No way in hell it would be a daily driver for me. Seats are comfy enough.

Once off the highway, it soaks up the ruts and washboardy roads no problem. I've rarely had to use 4wd, the Trac is very well engineered in the FJ and with the winter tires, no problem.

If my 2000 Sierra hadn't given me so much trouble I'd still have it. I had the SLT option, and those were the most comfy seats I have ever sat on.

 

Deleted double post

 

Maybe we need to put this thread on our border signs as a warning. After reading it, immigrants (regardless of legal status), will want to return to utopia. (Wouldn't they?)

As crappy and inept as our financial "planning" is (personal and governmental), you need to see how it is done in other parts of the world. 'Nuff said.

 

I do agree our enormous debt burden is going to harm us. Both Canada and the US are carrying a lot of debt, some of it sneaky such as the Crown Corporations created during the Liberal Gov magic budget "surplus" days to get the debt off the books

Ask anybody in Ontario who has a "Debt Retirement Charge" on their Hydro One bill if such sneaky tactics work in the end

 

You are definitely one step ahead of me, I have the land but have only been dreaming of the self-sufficient retreat. Did you use photovoltaic's for power, or generator or no power?

 

It really is enlightning (and depressing) to see how other governments do just as bad. If you have lived in both Europe and the US, the difference between a sales tax and a VAT would be eye opening. The missing part of the "trade imbalance" is the hidden "financial imbalance" of most other economies. Two wrongs do not make a right... the U.S. cannot hide the budget balance sheet, but many other countries (e.g. China) can. Take this into account. The assumption is that the "trade imbalance" numbers reflect cash flowing out of the US into other countries is not the full story by very big amount.

 

The vast majority of folks think "free-trade" = "fair-trade". If they really understood the implications of an $815 billion deficit it would change overnight. They are continually told it doesn't matter and that somehow the US benefits from our trade agreements.