I think one of the points the author wanted to make is that the Big Three--as currently configured--is already a major failure. On top of that, the rather timid steps offered in their plans as told to Congress would, in a phrase, be like "putting lipstick on a pig." I hope Congress insists on much bolder restructuring plans before any of my money is committed.

But even if GM and Chrysler are forced into Chapter 11, your conclusion about depression and its attendant calamities would likely be a few years off. Would a lot of people lose jobs? Sorry to say, I hope so, because these companies are so bloated, not only in production workers who don't work, but management people who also don't work on much besides preserving their jobs and departments.

When the Asians and Germans began to make cars here--cars that people wanted to buy, incidentally--did Detroit's management go into crisis mode? Nope, just lit up another cigar. Remember the steel industry or railroads in the past. Those companies went through enormous changes, many disappearing, because they hadn't responded to changes in the marketplace here and overseas. Yes, local depressions were a result, and our President-elect worked to help Chicago workers adjust to the disappearance of steel plant jobs. But Pittsburgh and Cleveland and Gary are still around, although they went through tough times.

Ironic isn't it, that many of Detroit's products have finally caught up to foreign carmakers in quality, but the products themselves are out of touch with the needs and desires of the consumer. Part of the problem is that Detroit needs high-profit vehicles to cover all the layers of the supply chain, especially the excessive dealer network. If some of the money spent on this broad network of dealers over the years had been plowed into research into more efficient vehicles, like Dr. Deming's Japanese makers did, maybe the cement shoes today would be on Japanese feet.