Ford CEO cites yen worry, opposes free trade talks with Japan

[Art_from_Ark]

18. In other words, you have no interest in learning about conditions here in Japan

You accuse me of "believing in Santa Claus", yet you have shown absolutely no interest in knowing what conditions are actually like here in Japan, from an American who is actually living in Japan. Do you have any idea why Japanese companies will accept unions in Japan (did you even click that link? 700,000+ members of the Japan Auto Workers) but aren't particularly enamored of the UAW? Do you have any idea about what was happening in the US in the '70s and '80s with regard to automobiles, both US-made and Japanese? Any idea?

Have you heard about the Chinese guy getting shot and killed in Michigan in the '80s because he was mistaken for a Japanese? Have you heard about all the trouble Sanyo had with the union at its microwave plant in Forrest City, Arkansas, of all places, back in the '80s? It was practically a daily headline in the Arkansas Gazette back then.

The relation between unions and management in the US is basically confrontational. And I can understand that, because I once worked at a factory that had a bunch of managers from Michigan who were real jerks. On the other hand, the relation between unions and management in Japan is much more cooperative, because they both know that they will sink or swim together.

Get a clue, please.