Some Thoughts on Buying a Kia Soul Yesterday

[A HERETIC I AM]

130. Having read the sub-thread that follows this comment, I just have a couple things....

I would like to say;

First of all Romulox, I appreciate your passion regarding buying American. I lived in the Detroit area all through the 1990's and know where Romulus is (which is, if I am not mistaken, where you have mentioned you live in previous posts) as I lived in Dearborn (3 different addresses) , Farmington Hills, Inkster, and Redford. While I have never bought a new car in my life, I am a fan of General Motors vehicles and have owned several in my life, including a Vette, 2 caddys and a Buick.

You know, it's tough being a liberal, isn't it? I mean, we have to be so many things in order to be called Liberal.

Like being Pro-Choice.

I am Pro-Choice on more than one subject, however. I am a firm believer in a persons right to do as they please as long as it doesn't hurt anyone else and to spend their money in any way they wish.

But just for the record, (and I KNOW I am not going to tell you anything you don't know) MANY of the major auto manufacturers of the world have facilities in the US.

Mercedes Benz
Toyota
Nissan
Honda
BMW
Kia
Hyundai
Volvo Heavy Trucks
Volkswagen (I'll load at their new plant in Chattanooga tomorrow, 7/19)
Subaru

And I am sure I missed a few.

The larger point is, the automotive industry is worldwide these days. The VW Passat's I'll load tomorrow will have engines made in Germany, transmissions made in Japan, assorted other bits made all over the planet and assembled in Tennessee.

Granted, the plants of the companies I listed above are for the most part, Non-Union. Is that the fault of the workers? Or the OP? Or anyone else that bought a Subaru made in Indiana or a Mercedes or a Hyundai made in Alabama?

It sucks that the UAW has not been able to organize those plants, I'll give you that, just as it sucks that I can't get a Teamster Car Haul gig in the Southeast. It isn't "Right to work". It's 'right to shoot yourself in the foot". But that's the world we're living in, man. The opposition has done a better job of scaring people away from organized labor than our side has done in promoting the idea of collective bargaining. And the southern states just throw railcar loads of money at those manufacturers to build plants in those states. It sucks, but that's how it is.

But to bust a guys chops because he decided to spend money on a car that you don't approve of is ...well...kinda silly, in my opinion. If he had bought a Sorento or an Optima, would you still have had the same vitriol? Those are the models made in Georgia. By presumably....Georgians.

What if he had bought a Ford or a GM vehicle that was assembled in Mexico?

"If it ain't a big three, it ain't worth buying" is a notion you can't POSSIBLY expect everyone on DU to adhere to. People can be perfectly good progressive thinkers and decent liberals while buying and owning brands that aren't Chrysler, GM or Ford.