Festering Chigger Bites

Something has been bothering me like festering bothersome chigger bites under my skin.... gas prices, fuel efficiency, the future of the auto industries and new technologies. I had a recent conversation with the wife of an engineer from one of those failed automakers. This engineer works in the new technologies department - hybrid, fuel cell etc etc. I made sure to ask how they were managing given the fact the bailout and bankruptcy must be causing some stress, and of course it has but the engineers wife felt confident given the position the husband holds.

The wife quickly showed the resentment of the government being "in" the company and was looking forward to that relationship ending. She went on to proclaim "this is the land of the free and if we want to drive big cars we have the right" and "I don't drive far so I'm not worried about gas." Also an obvious concern was given to their company car, a large SUV type may be taken away, which includes free gas I might add.

I found the tone of this conversation strange, given the failures of the company and the fact that the obvious mindset of this person and very possibly the mindset of the new technologies engineer had little regard for raising the bar with new technologies and improved fuel efficiency - Why be concerned when we get the cars free along with the gas? The environment.... well it did not even come up in the conversation.

Maybe the source of the real problem with these automakers is the fact that they are brainwashed into the big car theory - even the new technologies engineers and management. I expected some urgency in this aforementioned conversation towards the need to change, to develop new ideas and provide something for the future of America and the world and I received was the same old "big cars are good" and the government trying to save us is bad.

Maybe this company needs to clean house completely to truly enact a new corporate culture.

I won't be purchasing stock in this company.