Healthcare provider GM caught between a self-destructive union and producing cars at a loss

The HMO known as General Motors has been hit with a strike.  Among the UAW union beefs is that GM isn’t picking up enough of employees’ healthcare costs.  Weird I thought Robertscare was supposed to solve all those problems. 

No. Wait Lil’ Barry The Empty Suit exempted unions from Robertscare’s fees that other large group healthcare plans had to pay.  TES passed those fees on to Americans insured through non-union plans. Now the UAW is bitching about that arrangement?  Dumb.  I’d not be calling attention to my sweetheart healthcare deal that most Americans would salivate over. 

Auto workers are not in decline in America.  Union auto workers are.  The smart money is on car manufacturers moving operations to right to work states. The big three apparently have no “smart money.”  GM, among other things, has agreed to hire 5,000 more UAW agitators.  Instead of hiring more employees intent on destroying the company, what GM management should be doing is buying out existing UAW workers who refuse to face economic reality.

PDJT pilloried GM for building auto plants in Mexico.  It was an economic reality of exorbitant UAW contracts that forced GM to move.  Is anyone at the UAW capable of recognizing the economic reality that GM cannot support a contract with the union that will drive the price of cars past market value?  Is the union a partner or an adversary?  Are they interested I long term solvency of the company, or are they happy to destroy the company in the interest of short term gains?

The UAW needs to understand that selling cars at a loos to fund gold-plated healthcare plans for the employees is not a sustainable business model.  The GM brass needs to understand corrupt UAW brass will destroy them in the interest of short term union gains. 

I don’t know how this whole thing will play out.  My sense is that if the two sides don’t come together in an effort to save the industry, the American car industry will die a slow and miserable death.  The sad news in all of this is that America needs a robust car industry – SLA Marshall’s load of a soldier and the mobility of a nation and all that.  It seems to me the UAW is like a parasite that kills its host that in turn guarantees its own death.   

Today’s JG rant

Lex do you ever tire of tilting at the JG windmill?  No. Not really.  But today I’ll try a bit of a different tack. Instead of having my letters thrown in the spam folder at the JG, I’ve decided to e-mail the source.   I’m interested to see the reaction.

Hello Ms. Francisco,

Given my current ban from the JG’s letters page, I thought I’d try to address you directly.  Does the JG believe the state of Indiana and all 6 million or so of its inhabitants are racists as alleged in Chris Francois’ editorial (Hoosier inhospitality, Sep 4, 2019) and letters supporting her allegation?

I thought painting with such a broad brush, trashing the whole for the actions of a few, was sort of the bottom line quintessential definition of racism, bigotry, small mindedness and intolerance.

Francois alleges that she was subjected to “physical and verbal threats, property vandalism and assault.”  Did the JG send any of its crack investigative “journalists” to look into those allegations? Were the incidents reported to police?  Were there witnesses?  Charges?  Hearings? Trials?  Convictions? If not, why not?

Is this story the JG’s Jussie Smollett, Nick Sandman, Justice Kavanaugh goldmine of confirmation bias and just too darn good for the JG to risk checking it out?  Goodness, what if it turns out the only racist in the story is Francois?

Just wondering.  Cheers.

Wednesday, September 04, 2019 1:00 am

Hoosier inhospitality

Haitian finds state's natives less than welcoming

Chris Francois

Chris Francois is a senior this fall at Manchester University, with a focus in peace studies and French.

“This is your last year. You can do this!”

Those were the words my aunt whispered to me softly, holding me in her embrace as I cried. I was getting ready to board my flight from LaGuardia International Airport, thereby leaving the comfort of New York, a city which made me feel closer to the Caribbean during the summer months.

My reason for crying? The crippling realization that I had to return to Indiana for another year.

This sentiment is not new. For the past two years, each return flight I have boarded has been an exercise in severe anxiety management, as I dreaded returning to a state that seemed overtly hostile toward people who look like me.

There have been a few positives from my experience living in Indiana: I've made lifelong friends, found my passion for social justice and enriched my soul with academic experiences I probably would not have gotten anywhere else. At the same time, returning to Indiana is always dreadful because of a single thought: “What ignorant comment will I have to deal with this time?”

I came to understand quickly that living in this state meant being asked questions such as: “Do airplanes land on trees in Haiti?” Remarks like this are a glaring reminder that, in many people's eyes, I don't belong in this community. These comments have also been made personal. On one occasion, as I spoke to my mother on the phone, our conversation was tainted by a stranger yelling at me to speak in English, because this is “America.” Being thousands of miles away from the Caribbean, the last thing I want to tell my parents is that I am depressed because I'm being mistreated by my peers.

I did not leave my country so I could be subjected to harassment, physical and verbal threats, property vandalism and assault. Such inquiries and comments, while they may not appear harmful to some on the outside, can be detrimental to someone's career and personal life.

People have been judged on the basis of their name, skin color, hair texture, accent, national origin, ethnicity and culture – all characteristics we cannot choose for ourselves.

Unfortunately, I am not the only person suffering the consequences of overt racism and xenophobia while living in Indiana. I had the opportunity to speak to alums of color from various Hoosier institutions over the summer, and almost all of their stories echoed mine: Our mental health was severely affected by our experiences navigating racism and other forms of discrimination while in college.

To other immigrants and people of color: You are worth it.

To those community members who interact with us: One small act of kindness will brighten our day.

I am now a senior in college and, sadly, I am contemplating never returning to Indiana after graduation.

Diversity is not a threat; it's what makes our communities stronger. As more people not feeling welcomed leave the state, I urge Hoosiers to be hospitable to every person they encounter. I will always cherish some of the experiences I've had in Indiana; however, as I embark on my last year of college, I've become doubtful that those experiences were worth the trauma I and many others have inflicted on us during our time in Hoosier communities.

Student eloquently argues for diversity

Reading Chris Francois' piece in The Journal Gazette (“Hoosier inhospitality,” Sept. 4) broke my heart. No one should be subjected to the discrimination, abuse, and violence that she describes in her letter and which I know she has been subjected to repeatedly, since I have known her at Manchester University.

I think about my own college days in the '60s. It was a period of massive cultural change in the U.S., and I was not always able to navigate it smoothly. But if I had also faced threats, harassment, discrimination and bigotry from my peers as well as from adults in the community – well, I am not sure I could have survived that.

Yet, Chris is a brave survivor. She has been able to thrive and become a leader and a role model for others at Manchester. Her courage and grace in the face of undeserved hostility and immense pressure are an example to us all.

I had the privilege of having Chris as a student in a peace studies class I taught last fall. She was among my very best students. Her academic scholarship was exemplary, and I looked forward to seeing and hearing from her every day in class. I have been a teacher for 40 years, but I have had very few students of her caliber who manifested her level of academic integrity, performance and compassion for others.

Chris is right: Diversity is not a threat. The compelling insights she shared with me and her classmates which derived from her experiences in her native Haiti enlivened and illuminated every topic we discussed. I am deeply sorry that Indiana and its inhabitants have not been as kind and gracious to her as she is to others. There are many at the university and in the greater North Manchester community who wish to offer her their support.

Linda J. Troop

North Manchester