Posted on 06/13/2009 3:03:43 PM PDT by DemforBush
HOBART, Ind. – At the end of the 81-year marriage, the Isaksons said goodbye by turning off the lights. The partnership was over.
The Chrysler sign went dark.
It was an unceremonious finale to a four-generation bond between one family and one company, but it was not a surprise. Rob Isakson had known for weeks his dealership was on a Chrysler hit list — the cuts were part of the troubled automaker's survival strategy...
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Shame to see a family-run business go under, especially like this. The youngest Isakson pretty much nailed it, I think:
"What has irked the Isaksons even more is the Obama administration's intervention in the auto industry.
"Starting in Washington and going to Detroit, all the way down, I blame everybody for this," says Eric Isakson, Rob's 32-year-old son. "How can someone tell us when we've done everything that we're supposed to do that we can't keep going on? It's a big slap in the face."
I hope most of the good dealerships change brands. Go to American made cars, like Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Hyundai.
This is a “white” dealership isn’t it?
What they’ve done to these dealers is nothing short of fascist thuggery and theft.
Man that is sad all those years of hard work.They did not deserve this end!
This is a very, very bad precedent and opens the door to widespread Gov’t abuse of those who are not in favor.
Consolation is both Chrysler and GM will probably go out of business in spite of this.
I am sure that is another auto manufacturer who will be glad to sell them cars.
Run by the government is the kiss of death.
New CEO of GM admits he knows nothing about the auto industry. Enough said.
Roger Penske is rumored to be buying Saturn. That's something we could all support.
I don't know Penske's politics, and really it's not that relevant, but he is a true American entrepreneur and he has been a great success in all things automotive.
It would give an American Car company a chance to succeed with American investment and free from the yoke of the UAW.
“How can someone tell us when we’ve done everything that we’re supposed to do that we can’t keep going on? It’s a big slap in the face.”
Not under yet. They will continue in the used car market. Used cars may be where it is at when the new cars being mandated by the govt turn out to be so crappy that they are unsellable.
More like a "family-run business PUT under."
Are they republicans?
So what if a few dealerships have to be closed down? It’s all for the good of the Democrat unions and their jackpot retirement plans. People need to get their priorities straight.
I wish the closed Chrysler dealers, all of them, would host tea parties at the dealerships and let the angry attendees take a sledge hammer to the Chrysler signs. Maybe even topple those tall Chrysler dealership signs and run them over with a FORD. Sort of like Sadaam’s statue in Baghdad was pulled down.
Invite the media (sarc) or at least take pictures and post them on youtube or blogs.
If Chrysler and GM had gone through bankruptcy via the regular route, new owners could have come in to market various lines and maintain relationships with the existing dealers. And, if there hadn’t been buyers able to pick up on that in time, at least the dealers would have closed down as a regular result of the market.
By having Obama’s guys come in and pick and choose which dealers stay in business (rather than letting the weak dealers have to close on their own), the government has made a farce out of all levels of our supposedly free markets.
Study up on Ed Whitacre. He was CEO and Chairman of the Board for Southwestern Bell; which incidentally went on to purchase Pacific Bell, Bellsouth, and finally the old AT&T. Under his guidance all of these heavily regulated entities were driven to profitability. Something that GM never learned. Business is business, and shareholder value is important. By the way, Mr. Whitacre moved the SBC headquarters from Missouri to Texas over onerous government taxes.
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