I'd be willing to let them travel with the Rockefellers...
Posted on 11/19/2008 7:33:33 AM PST by Dukes Travels
So let's decrease taxes and eliminate your pension...
Yes. Absolutely. Bad leadership at the head of a corporation absolutely can (and does, and has) result in the demise of a company, of all sizes.
The private jets are an example of wasteful spending. They could have contracted with NetJets and chartered a flight for all three of them at once. They would still have arrived on a G5 (if they wished) and not had this money pit depreciating asset on their balance sheet. They could generate cash by selling their livery and simply chartering, which becomes an expense that they can take immediately. They can also fire their pilots and depend on the charter pilots - another expense (with bennie packages) off their books.
Fact: GM has EIGHT corporate jets. All of them could be replaced by charter aviation.
The fact is this: the CEO’s of the Big Three are just plain stupid. The outlandish extent of their stupidity is more apparent to those of us who have run our own businesses.
Fly? They build cars! They should have driven to Washington. The few extra days of travel time and not being at work might save their companies money. We've seen what they can do when they are at work....
If the sales of the foreign competition are down 25-40%, they aren't seeing a profit either...
I agree that the Unions are a huge part of the problem.
However, the unions are sanctioned by federal legislation which enables their behavior. Furthermore we have just elected a set of people knowing full well they plan to strengthen the unions even further with legislation.
I think we ask too much of the executives when it comes to the union, the deck is stacked against them on this issue.
If the bailout money is not granted they will have the best chance in many generations to force the union to agree to a reasonable contract. We will see then if they earn their money and they executive luxuries.
I look at the corporate jet as a problem, an indication of gross stupidity and lavish spending on the part of executives.
ALL of your concerns can be handled with charter business aviation now.
http://www.executivejetmanagement.com/default.asp
Owned by Berkshire Hathaway, BTW.
By using charter aviation, you’re paying for only those flight hours you actually need/use, and you’re not paying the upkeep on your own aircraft, nor the pilot salary, training expenses to remain current, etc.
Ownership of a corporate jet any more is prima facie evidence of incompetent management.
They have no sense of responsibility. They are begging for your money and mine yet flying hideously expensive private jets.
Would you be inclined to contribute to a charity that spends 90% of funding on expenses or 5%? The concept is the same. These clowns should start showing some responsibility and humility.
I'd be willing to let them travel with the Rockefellers...
Wanting billions, with a "B", from taxpayers when they show the average working stiff that money they spend is no object leads to disdain from those same working stiffs.
It is stupidity on the execs' part.
When you go to your parents' house to borrow money it's not a good idea to drive up in your Rolls Royce and get out in your Armani suit. They'll wonder why you don't just give up the toys instead of begging for money.
LOL... being about 2 hours from Iron River, I am somehow not shocked.... things are different here in the UP...LOL! We are trying to get our small business going up here cause its so darned cheap, its slow going, especially with no bailouts for us...LOL
It was more out of frustration of the problems at hand not being dealt with in a logical, head on fashion.
The hypocrisy of criticizing CEO's for their expenses vs. elites is just too much for me to handle anymore. Until the real reasons for our economic woes are identified and dealt with in a way that is going to fix them instead of political posturing and CYA crap, well to me it's all a big joke.
Unfortunately, the punch line is going to be far from humorous.
I was solely commenting on the people wish to see these guys in line at the check-in counter.
As for your point, I have no idea if the business model supports chartering or not.
One interesting thing is that the Ford Family owns one of these business charter companies, you'd think they would want to throw business to themselves and yet they still own corporate jets... Hard to tell from the outside.
But in regard to your comment about government funding pensions for teachers - I pay taxes to professionals who invest for the teacher's pension fund. They should be held accountable, just as someone in the private sector should be held accountable. They take risks with investments and should have to suffer the consequences for those risks. Instead, I have to pay higher taxes to make up the shortfall. It happened in the early 90's when the market took a dive and I am certain it will happen again. Why should teachers be treated any differently than any other working person? No one made them take that job, just as no one made an auto worker take his/her job. The pension fund should be handled just as any fund in the private sector - if it does well, great, if not, it is their own problem, not mine.
But that isn't the way it works - they gamble knowing the taxpayers will pony up for any losses.
For Wagoner, it was GM's plane, one of eight they keep.
Ah, so you want students to grovel for school loans, too?
I wouldn't suggest showing up for the application wearing a $100,000 diamond saying you desperately need the money. But if you're in a decent financial situation and aren't looking to borrow money from me, please, wear as many diamonds as you can afford. I won't begrudge you.
fire the Big Three CEO's, and replace them with better businessmen... as if it's government's choice who is on the boards of the Big Three...
He who writes the check makes the rules. Management leads, make them layoff #1, sans golden parachute, before they layoff any workers.
Barak Obama flew a private jet to vacation in Hawaii...
Anyhoo, it's worth mentioning that my old company....and many like it....were a part of the Corporate Angels charity. There were rarely any empty seats on the flight, any that were not needed for employees were taken up by (usually) terminally ill children and their families, flying to or back from treatments. Only time that we had empty seats is if the flight was on very short notice, or if we were headed out to the boondocks.
Just something to ponder. The Evil Corporate Jets don't carry just cigar chomping evil white guys.
Actually, Honda (which is traded on the NYSE) made $1.50 per share during the last 12 months while GM lost $38.74 for the same period.
Cry me a river,,
Its as much about “want” at least as much as need. Its a fun perk. It’s one of the first things cut when a company downsizes,, kinda odd to do that for such a moneymaker,,huh? You’d expect em to buy more when they get in trouble.
If it was about need, then modern internet teleconferencing is more efficient, cheaper and faster.
Thats why they are flying into Aspen and Jackson to go ski,,etc.
Read the log of the GM jet last year and you’ll see plenty of flights to hunt pheasant in nebraska, ski the rockies, or catch a show in NYC. Lots of GM business to do in Aspen and Telluride, huh?
And of course,, they are masters at having a “meeting”, “conference”, or some such excuse to cover the *actual* pleasure purpose of the trip.
Knee jerk defense of every jackass CEO isn’t conservatism. Things like this are how they got into trouble in the first place, it isnt all the unions fault.
The poor CEOs,, they are sqeezed like a lemon for every drop of efficiency,, why, they are even acting irresponsibly when they fly first class! Ohhhh the misery.
It’s absurd to say the Bizjets are merely an example of the “efficency” of GM.
Maybe if they were at the factory more,, and lived where it all happened,, GM wouldnt be imploding.
What does a community organizer do? We will soon have one in the White House doing his thing. GM etc. are responding to this situation.
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