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Bailout and Detroit and Conditions SOURCEAmy Goodman and Naomi Klein talk about the bailout. SOURCE
Hillary & Detroit, Suck It Up & Live With It
There’s an old theological saw about loving the sinner and hating the sin. The fact of the matter is that without forgiveness there is no world. It really does end. ZAP.
For my take on forgiveness and related matters, check out Bonhoeffer’s Ghost — a work in progress.
My point today is that we have every right to harbor resentment against Hillary Clinton, but we never have a right to believe a person cannot change or do the right thing or otherwise redeem themselves.
We have in fact praised Hillary when she conceded and when she campaigned for Barack. And we gave it up for Bill big time when he spoke in Denver and gave Barack his endorsement over a pile of his own resentment.
Suck it up and live with it.
If Hillary decides she can accept it, she will be Secretary of State and she will know that her future is inextricably intertwined with that of Barack, and that Barack does not intend to fail, or to go back on his word, including his word about a team of rivals approach. Or about being a Christian. Sorry, but Christians are instructed to pray daily for forgiveness to the extent that they are able to forgive others.
Similarly, we can find in Michael Moore requisite resentment to throw at GM and the other two. Detroit’s wreck of mass transit, the oil wars of the past few decades, the death of Johnny Carson’s son and James Dean and uncounted thousands each year, the endowment of anyone who could get one with a mega-weapon, more armor than ever a Medieval knight ever enjoyed, the clogging of OUR roads with these lethal entities. Whatever you want to rage at, rage away.
But when you come up for air, suck it up and live with it.
We are going to bail out Detroit, sooner or later. We are going to do it because they are going to suck it up and live with it too. They are going to make cars that are a little less lethal, a little less polluting. And until we evolve some more as a global community, that is the best we can expect. We are not going to send Hillary to China with a hangdog look that says we just bankrupted our basic industry and set off a tsunami of further depression in an already depressed land.
You will note that I have not reserved forgiveness for Joe Lieberman. That will require another sleepless night of spiritual struggle.
My reasoning on Lieberman is that he comes with McCain. If we are dealing with John, we also get Joe. And if Barack says, humor the man, who am I to question?
Is my judgment infallible. Hell, no. Am I right about the above, Hell, yes.
We used to have a year of jubilee when we would let bygones be bygones. We will want to think of this season that way. That is what Barack is about. Hating the sin because too many sins can sink the whole world.
But making amends with sinners. Practicing reciprocity. That would be each and everyone of US, whether known or unknown, big deals or small potatoes. That is as close to the purpose of life as anything that has ever been suggested.
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Anonymous said,
November 18, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Thanks, Stephen. What a great voice of reason you are. After listening to Ed Schultz today, I even mustered the ability to accept Joe into the fold. (Not yet ready to “forgive and forget”, but ready to accept him into the fold in order to achieve a bigger purpose.) Ed said that the Dems scored a “touchdown” with their vote — which can easily be understood if you tune in to any right-wing talk show today! (They sooo wanted Lieberman to be kicked out…for their own purposes!)
Fred said,
November 18, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Wrong.
1. We aren’t dependent on auto manufacturing as a basic industry anymore.
2. My Nissan Sentra was assembled in Smyrna, TN, so we would, in fact, still have an auto manufacturing industry even if they shut down.
3. A company in bankruptcy doesn’t mean they’ll shut down. If GM filed chapter 11, they could reorganize and get out from under those union contracts that are killing them, while also holding their creditors at bay while they develop some new cars.
Citi just announced they were laying 50k. Now, financial services is actually a major industry in this country. If Citi doesn’t need a bailout, then neither does the auto industry.
Anonymous said,
November 19, 2008 at 3:57 am
First of all, I’m a car enthusiast who follows all carmakers carefully. I own two Toyotas. Small ones. But in my opinion, GM and Ford have gotten screwed by their own legacy, which is partially their fault. But the reality is different from perception.
I know I’m going to sound like a advertisement, but it is true that they actually make more cars that get over 30MPG than Honda, Toyota, or Nissan. Honda, Toyota, and Nissan are also not un-guilty of getting into the huge truck and SUV game either.The Tundra, Sequoia, Titan, and Highlander are all massive vehicles that actually get worse fuel economy than the equivalent GM or Ford product. Even some of the mid-sized trucks Toyota makes, like the Tacoma gets horrible fuel economy- as in 15-18MPG for the V6 model. Meanwhile, the full-sized Chevrolet Silverado gets a respectable 21MPG.
But all you hear from people is: ” All GM and Ford makes is gas-guzzling behemoths” Its just astounding that Americans are in many ways hostile against their own brands.
lastly- whether you work in automotive or not, if the big three go under, we’re talking something along the lines of 13 BILLION dollars in lost revenue nationally for the nest 3 years. We’re also talking the loss of close to 3 million jobs, as well as the loss of the biggest consumer of steel, copper, rubber, plastic, and computer chips ( That’s right Silicon Valley).
So yes- I agree. They made some mistakes in the past. But to simply let them go would be an enormous financial and economical bomb for the country.
Wade Hudson said,
November 19, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Your comments on forgiveness are well-taken and we can once again learn from Barack with regards to emotional competence. My first instinct was to boot Joe, but an attempt at healing is wise and just.
Concerning Hillary, I thought Friedman makes a good point. Can Barack have her back and can she be loyal to the point that others know she is speaking for the President? I suspect so, and assume that they discussed the matter.