“First of all, I’m not your pal. Only my friends call me pal and I don’t consider you a friend nor will I ever.”
Looks like I hit a soft spot. Is it no longer polite to be friendly? In that case, should I greet you next time with a nice serving of “F^ck off”? Seriously, don’t get your panties in a bunch.
“GM has some half decent people but they are stretched doing with what they have now.”
This is a simple matter of business. Pontiac and Saturn detracted from core brand (Chevrolet) sales, while Ford, Honda, et al. held a laser focus and delivered long-term brand value and trust. There is also a dealer value aspect that didn’t exist when Pontiac, Saturn existed.
In any event, the goal of a (public) company is to be profitable and to deliver value to its shareholders; having more brands won’t necessarily help accomplish this goal… nor will it necessarily detract from it. As for being “stretched”, what’s your point? More resources can always be obtained to achieve whatever goal necessary… most of the time, doing so alters the profit equation. They may be “stretched” now, or they may not be. But they sure as heck are delivering on the goal of a public firm.
“They are trying so hard to impress the American public that it’s halfway pathetic but then again if you are in such a bad way PR wise then it’s understandable.”
What’s understandable?
GM’s focus is on making the best products on the market… the PR aspect is secondary and exists thanks to people like yourself who don’t realize that fact. Every company does PR, some more than others. And GM does less than most, even today. Not sure what’s so pathetic about making excellent products and spreading the word about them via whatever means necessary.
“You’re right, never mind that. I guess it makes people who aren’t supportive of GM un-American. Should they revoke their citizenship as well?”
Good way to take things entirely out of context. Look, if you — as an American — don’t feel like supporting an American company that’s a worldwide force in an important industry, then that’s your choice. But don’t expect me to support you in doing so. GM is as American as most companies get. Whatever happened to patriotism? (Ironically, this is coming from someone born in the 80s).
“Plenty of people had to pay to save GM from their sorry ways and many of those people wouldn’t dare by GM. For them, it was their hard earned money forcefully being taken from them. They would never get a return on their investment. I love Dan Akerson’s quote “GM was saved by the extreme generosity of Americans.” Really, if you want to praise the Americans (and Canadians) for compulsory generosity then so be it. It was probably best that GM was bailed out but that doesn’t mean that everybody wanted to. Chevy runs deep but not in my family (BMW runs very deep).”
Did they now? How did you, personally, pay for GM’s “saving/rescue”? How did your hard-earned money get forcefully taken from you? Did someone go into your bank account, charge your credit card, withdraw from your IRA, or steal it from under your mattress? No… you already parted with the money you paid to the government, at which point it ceased being yours and at which point you have no say in how it gets spent.
In that light, you will never see a return on investment because it wasn’t your money being invested… it was the money you owed to the government, fair and square.
And to that end, how do you know that the Treasury won’t walk away with a profit on the “GM bailout”? Hint: they don’t need to sell their remaining stake today or tomorrow. They can wait for several years if they so desire and actually turn a profit. But then I’m sure you’ll wine that you deserve a cut of whatever that profit may be.
“You can’t have your cake and eat it too.”
I most certainly can. Just did, actually.
“Thirdly, you don’t know what Pontiac I want so that makes your entire point irrelevant unless you are a mind reader.”
and then…
“You expect GM’s dead brand supporters to be happy that GM is successful and buy their vehicles as well.”
No, I don’t… so quit your assuming. Are you a mind reader yourself?
So ultimately, you’re looking for a sporty compact that handles well. Chevy is working on something that may be suited for you…
http://gmauthority.com/blog/2012/01/chevy-130r-concept-will-be-the-most-balanced-car/
Not that you should wait for it… have you considered a 1er?
