Auto Bailout... quick thought..

Chad brought up a good point the other day when he pointed out that the Big 3 have been profitable up until recently when the storm of the global warming scam and outrageous gas prices collided leaving the US in a heap of a mess. They had been successful despite the 10 ton weight they have on their ankles named UAW. They had been turning quite a profit based on the US consumers drive for trucks and SUV's up until gasoline prices devoured American citizens hard earned dollars faster than Kobiyashi can down a hot dog.

On the flip side however, Amtrak, has been given billions of dollars in subsidies over the years and still has yet to turn a profit. Like the interstate highway system, the Federal Government has a vested interest in keeping the railroads functioning. Railroads and highways are the backbone of an interstate commerce system. This however, does not incorporate people moving. Yet, why, in the age of highways and competition driven airfare markets, do we continue to subsidise an archaic method of people transportation?

Nearly everyone involved expected the experiment to be short-lived. The Nixon administration and many Washington insiders viewed the NRPC as a politically expedient way for the President and Congress to give passenger trains the one "last hurrah" demanded by the public. They expected Amtrak to quietly disappear as public interest waned.[18] Proponents also hoped that government intervention would be brief, but their view was that Amtrak would soon support itself. Neither view has yet proved correct. Popular support has allowed Amtrak to continue in operation longer than critics imagined while financial results have made infeasible a return to private operation.

~Wikipedia, Dec. 15th 2008; Amtrak

In the face of economic meltdown, I believe that all of these practices must be looked at. Every dime of money that gets spent, NASA, Amtrak, AIG, Agricultural grants... ALL of it, must be looked at and ALL of it must come under severe scrutiny. If it isn't immediately necessary, put it on hold or cut it all together. We do not have the luxury of continuing public welfare programs such as Amtrak when there is negligible benefit to the American taxpayer.