I heard Obama yesterday saying the rise in gas prices was "not as gradual I would have liked." I wonder why? Could it be just that the dems feel the need to control all aspects of your life without your knowing it? So they're not "squeaky clean" either.

Maybe if people would listen to more than one source that gives BOTH sides of an opiinion they would be better informed. But that would take effort and an open mind.

enough: I never said I was a Ryan guy or that I was republican. Bush and republicans have made their share of mistakes, I don’t argue that. However, it is short sighted to blame Bush or republicans in general for all of the big three’s problems or America’s problems. Other auto makers have managed to maintain for flourish under the current circumstances. Honda’s profits are up. Every president since Carter should have known we needed to get off our dependence on foreign oil and find alternatives, but none did so. Emerging economies in China, India, Brazil, and many other parts of the world have created higher demand for oil. Thus, prices are higher and speculators are betting on the continued demand. It would be great to shut off the oil flow tomorrow, but then the economy would go even further in the hole, because most people can’t afford the alternatives. There needs to be a slow transition into alternative energy. For example, GM is coming out with the electric powered Volt. Great idea, but it’s going to be coal fired electricity that fuels most of them. Is that any better for the environment? Eventually solar powered stations will help fuel these cars, but this all takes time. Environmentalist think this should all happen overnight and that it won’t have an effect on the economy, yet it already has. Having alternatives will do no one good, if we’re all out of work and cant’ afford the new efficient homes, cars, bikes, appliances and other consumer goods that are coming to market. Is going from pro capitalist policies to pro socialist going to help us when we have record deficits? We can’t afford the taxes or the programs we have on the books now. I think a balance needs to be made between the republican policies and the democrat’s policies. The extreme right or left of either party is only going to continue causing us problems.

Sorry ...I am an Independent, you ask what have the Dems done. They increased miminum wage, they have insisted that the war fighters get the equiptment they need, they exposed the conditions at Walter Reed, They have proved that Bush Lied us into this War. They exposed Gonzales and he resigned. The reason he resigned was he was in the process of being Impeached. They have been trying to push us into Alternative energy plans. They just passed a housing bill which will help people that are being forclosed on their homes. You can not fight two Wars and not raise Taxes, one of the reasons our economy has gone to pot. Bush one was not re-elected because after Desert Storm he realized he had to raise Taxes. There is so much more. Do you watch C-Span? Its the only TV source I use to get political news. Of course I also use Drudge. The News Stations are not giving the straight talk. They are projecting the view of their owners. And the views you hear depend on what political Party thier owner belongs too. There is no such thing as Fair and Balance. I form my own opinion after much reading.

enough your Dems have been in power for thel ast two years, what have they done? I can't think of anything either. Quit blaming just one party, it all falls back on GM itself. Last time I looked they have a research and development depart like Toyota and Nissan maybe they should have been using it instead of spending all there time in the design building.

I ALWAYS bought GM products, and ALWAYS had problems with them, until 2 years ago. I admit I bought a 2005 Camry with 100,000 on it, a former company car. BEST car I ever owned. All I've done is replaced the tires and just got new brakes 2 weeks ago. Sorry, but I'd never buy GM again.

OSHAWA, Ontario, July 28 (UPI) -- General Motors Corp. (NYSE:BGM) workers facing the closure of a Canadian truck plant will get severance deals and maybe more work, company and union official said Monday.

In addition to severance packages worth up to $100,000 plus $45,000 toward a new GM vehicle for the most senior workers, the U.S. automaker said it will pay pensions of 65 percent of their wages until they reach retirement age. GM also said it would commit to adding more product lines at a new car plant being built in Oshawa, Canwest News Service reported.

The agreement reached between GM and the Canadian Auto Workers union covers about 2,600 employees affected by the planned July 2009 closure of its truck plant in Oshawa.

GM said two new models will be built at the new car plant in Oshawa, in addition to earlier commitments.

"I don't know how many jobs will be created," union spokeswoman Shannon Devine said. "We can't put a hard number on it but the idea is that the intention is to offset the loss of jobs."

The Oshawa pickup truck plant is one of four GM facilities expected to be shuttered in the coming year in North America

and we're suppose to buy American? Why would anyone buy a GM product if it's not made by Americans? Toyato and Nisson products are made by Americans, guess what my next car will be, HINT- it WON'T be GM!

to all those people of GM that are out of a job and would like that type of money BUCYRUS OF MILWAUKEE IS HIREING MOST JOBS ARE $20.00 an hour starting and go up to 30 pluse an hour.

Unidentified..Gm is manufacturing electric cars in Africa. Cheap Labor. Bush did nothing to help the big three. I am an Independent I have a tendency to see the corrupt more clearly then those that are loyal to a Party. So Ryan is your guy. I will vote for anyone else on the ticket that is not named Ryan. Ryan voted no to the GI Bill. Ryan Voted No to the Bill to pay Medicare. Ryan voted no to extend unemployment, for those having a hard time finding a job. Ryan voted yes to the Pharmacy bill which now has the elderly having to chose between medicine and food. Ryan voted No more times to benefit Bush than any other Congress man. Why don't you take a look at his voting record. Ryan wants you to put money in a savings account for your health care. You can't do that if you are unemployed or if you only make minimal wage. Look who support Ryan. Pharmaceuticals. Ryan's plan A and B are Baloney

Enough: I understand your dislike for republicans, some of it is reasonable and some of it is merely partisan bickering. However, GM did a good job of screwing things up all by themselves. Bush didn’t twist GM’s arm and tell them to build gas guzzling trucks while Toyota and Honda were building hybrids. I don’t think I’ve seen someone go further off topic, but I’m sure Obama thanks you for your support. You can stop by the Obama head quarters down at the corner of Milton Avenue and Mount Zion for your free bumper sticker.

Pickens drives a car that is fueled by natural gas. Its a Honda that is made in Germany. He had the gas line from his home converted so he can fill up at home. Canada is building a plant to make alternative fuel from garbage. Toyota is installing solar panels on the next toyota to run the air conditioner. It may come out in 2010. What have we done here in the USA, Callifornia is trying to do stuff but Bush is preventing it. The Alternative fuel tax exemptions expire this year. Companies do not want to invest in anything in the US. Why? Bush and Ryan are preventing a move forward to Alternative energy.

You can thank the Bush Administration for companies like GM moving to Africa , where the labor is cheap. Bush has pushed more Trade Deals then any other President in history. Ryan has voted with Bush 95 percent of the time. You may like him , but when Congress was pushing to extend Workmens Comp, he voted No and on the finance com, his explaination was that the people where to lazy to find new jobs. The US economy is no longer manufacture based. They based our economy on our home Loans that they sold to other countries and now that has collapsed because people have lost their jobs and can't afford their homes.

Gm is building electric cars in Africa. Per Pickens during his Congressional hearing to push his Plan. seen on c-span. The one citizen who wrote to Pickens did good by that. On his site you will find a map that indicates the Wisconsin lake wind is a good idea. I know Pickens from his testimony in Congress wants to build his Wind infrastructure down the center of the US. Visit his site it is a learning experience. This site will tell you about what the rest of the world is doing.--- http://www.nextenergynews.com ---- Ryan is setting up his propaganda about this fairytale Plan B so he can win relection. He doesn't deserve to be in office voted with Bush 95 percent of the time. Picken a multimillionare Republican Oilman says you can't drill your way out of this crisis. I don't know what Janesville is going to do. But don't think the Republicans are going to help you with this one. They have filibuster 90 times since the Dems gain their minimal majority. When they filibuster no voting gets done. Drilling won't help for ten years.

Excellent post biggirl. Some of the soon-to-be-terminated GM employees are loyal to a fault, and can't recognize how poorly GM has been managed. GM was once the biggest auto maker in the world. The anger here is certainly misplaced by some.

All I can say is there are some mean, vindictive people here. Why begrudge people there salary, especially when decent salaries are what made America great? Good luck having a decent economy on WalMart salaries? And, as far as the UAW goes, they've made many concessions over the years. GM has known for years that gas prices were artificially deflated; thus, they have known for years that they need good, fuel-efficient subcompacts. Did they build them? No. Why? Greed, lack of imagination. While these workers will be laid off, the current CEO and his fellow cronies will leave with their golden parachutes. Why don't some of the mean-spirited here get angry at them? They didn't build the company from scratch. They didn't have any ingenuity. They were simple parasites off of the workers, many of whom were begging them to build fuel-efficient cars. My next car will be a Nissan, and this will be the first foreign car I've ever bought. I'm sick of being loyal to companies that aren't loyal to the United States.

Tallman you posted that same message over 10 hours ago. You just waking up or just like to hear yourself?

Wind turbines won't happen, a back-up source of at least 90% capacity is mandated. Because winds vary that source has to be running and available at all times. That's coal, gas, hydro or nuclear. The environmentalists won't allow that. Catch 22, I guess.

GM is gone folks!!! The one writer is correct. Absolutely no company who's management has a half a wit or brain bigger than the size of a nat are coming here, build, or re-build and then expect to take over that rediculous contract from the former GM workers. It is sad GM is gone but the reality is that all those way over paid dinner bucket carriers with little to no education better get ready to live on far less period. No more tax breaks, no more insentives and no more finnacial handouts to GM.

Build aircraft in Janesville? It was'nt long ago that Blackhawk Tech was prevented from building a law enforcement driving course at the airport. The reason was diesel fumes and the sound of sirens. Imagine the noise and smell of turbine aircraft being tested.Just look back to all the noise complaints about Airfest, and that was for only one week.

Hmmm...I thought 43 percent of Toyota's NA sales last year were SUVs and light trucks. Gm has a competitive product in every segment Toyota is in except the small hybrid Prius. But in 07 Toyota only sold 183,000+ Prius models (due largely to a shortage of batteries.) The halo effect of the Prius has benefitted the entire Toyota brand even though it really has been a small part of the mix. My take is that Honda is actually the company that read the market the best in terms of product planning. Their only mistake was a radical design for the hybrid Insight that short-circuited sales. You might note their sales have actually increased in '08.

hatch: Are you on the right topic? What long winding road are you heading down? Bush has been a failure in many regards, news flash. However, as much as the entire world would like to blame him for everything, I’m not sure GM’s problems can be pinned down to one administration. I think this has more to do with GM’s own failures then anything. GM knew the rules of the game (both bad and good) and didn’t play them well. Toyota has flourished during the Bush administration. While GM was making large SUV’s Toyota was developing their hybrid. Ten years later the Prius is selling stronger than ever. This is coming from someone who never has and never will drive a Toyota (unless they are the only company left). I think GM’s quality, design, and efficiency have improved; now they just need management that gets ahead of the curve rather than play catch up. Hopefully GM Janesville will be a part of their future plans.

We have a class act hardworking people who have made the best vehicles for a lot of years. They made the money that they were offered. Those vehicles they made were very profitable and they were able to pay good wages. The site where the plant is is probably contaminated and will need major clean-up. I like the idea of bringing in Oshkosh. They make a great product and we have a great workforce sounds like it would be a good match.

Hope....That's all we got right now people. Oh that and a record debt and our status as world leader of democracy has been severly tarnished thanks to the last 8 years of Republican Corporatist rule. G.M. and all of it's supplier jobs are soon to be but a memory......Hope.....And how Slithery Paul Ryan(R) is for bringing his corporatist arse up to speak of an idea that is in it's "infancy" still so he "can not comment further at this time". Get the he77 out of here you Big Oil money taking neo-con. Janesville needs Hope and last I checked you aren't on that ticket.

How about a train, rail car, or even bus manufacturer? Seems to be where the future is going.

Intersting point jdtrucker. After the GM plant closes, I wonder how much opposition there would be. The high paying jobs won't be coming back, so why not increase our chances of attracting new businesses?

how about a wal-mart supercenter.

Unidentified...that last post was AWESOME!!!! My dad worked, retired from GM. He admitted back some years ago that his job was gravy. But, then when GM retolled, he said his job was very hard on his back etc...but never complained because he was very thankful to have such a good paying job.

To tallman: You know nothing.

The best way to bring interest from GM or any other company would be to pass Right to Work Laws in our State ASAP. States that protect these rights have much lower unempployment rates. It really is that simple..

tallman: How many years ago did you work at GM? The workforce at GM has been cut in half over the years, yet the production numbers are relatively the same. As a result, the efficiency of the workforce is far superior to previous decades. People who work in materials have more free time than do line workers, but even those positions have been consolidated and made busier. To make an opinion based solely on your experience many years ago is unfair to those who have worked at the plant in recent years through various job combinations and reductions. This is the underlying problem with the anti GM crowd, who bases their opinions on a short stint during the 80’s and 90’s as summer help. What used to be three jobs is now combined into one. Then the comeback is always, “there are lots of factories that work just as hard for less money.” Ok, which factories have workers who put in nine screws and two pushpins in less than fifty seconds while the product is moving with two different types of screws five hundred times a day in 120 degree heat? I can’t respect opinions that aren’t backed up with more than a few lousy examples from a decade ago. Granted, the pay scales at GM are high, which was being adapted with a two tier wage, but to lump all GM workers into one lazy label is untrue, unfair, and uneducated. Having worked in factories across from different parts of the country I can say, at least in recent years, that autoworkers do some of the toughest manufacturing jobs in the country. I’d take any one of the GM, Lear, or LSI workers in a foxhole over the pansies that talk cheap on these blogs. It’s people who work in factories that built this country. A college degree alone doesn’t automatically make someone a better person. Unfortunately, there is no amount of education that can stop some people from being complete idiots.

I worked there one summer while going to college and there were alot of the workers on the roof and in boxes off the line, all SLEEPINg INSTEAD of working. If you had enough time in you didn't do crap!! Don't tell me it wasn't still going on and that's why their out of a job sooner than later. Where is Mike Sheridan when you need him union workers who put him in his nice new cushy government job plus his retirement.

I agree WCM4life. I am commenting that a new plant will most likely never happen. You obviously never worked there if you think three did one job or they didn't work hard for the money.

I just do not see why everytime. There is an article about GM it becomes a way to bash the workers. Give them a break. They have families, bills and things they have to pay for. Why is it your business what they made or did not make. NO I am not a GM worker. I am a working person who believes. You get what you work for. Say what you need to say and you probally even believe it. There are people out there with a piece of paper that says "I can do this because I went to school" check again.

When it takes 3 people to do the job of one, and the one gets the pay and benefits of 3 people you can see why the united auto workers union has priced these people out of a job. Instead of going on strike last year thay should of worked with General Motors to find out ehat it would take to keep the plant open.

How about tearing the plant down & moving the Fairgrounds there?

GM is gone folks!!! The one writer is correct. Absolutely no company who's management has a half a wit or brain bigger than the size of a nat are coming here, build, or re-build and then expect to take over that rediculous contract from the former GM workers. It is sad GM is gone but the reality is that all those way over paid dinner bucket carriers with little to no education better get ready to live on far less period. No more tax breaks, no more insentives and no more finnacial handouts to GM.

There were rumors of Oshkosh Truck comming into Evansville and taking over the Stoughton Trailers plant. We can see now that a year after that closure the property is up for lease on the open market.
Before I would invest in a military contract I would want to know who the next prsident would be.

Why would anyone turn away Oshkosh Corp.? It's better than the land sitting empty.

...and that airport idea is absolutely hilarious. I wish I knew the name of that Pewaukee real estate developer, to avoid doing business with them in the future.

Non-union plants are the main reason the transplants set up factories in right-to-work states, not incentives. That's why the UAW had to accept reduced wages for tier 2 workers.

GM is reducing overall capacity, and has no reason to build car parts in Janesville, far away from the car assembly factories. When Kenosha closed, the state was able to negotiate an engine factory to keep some jobs there. GM is in a much worse financial and economic condition now than Chrysler was then.

Yeah, bring on Tata motors LOL!

GM has also been overpaying people for the jobs they do. I do not say this out of jealousy as I make good money. The fact is that jobs like that come and go and if you pay top dollar to someone that does not have any other skills than assembling a car you are setting them up for failure in the long run. These people have a certain standard of living based on their pay but their skills do not match the pay. I'm not saying that they aren't talented but you can teach anyone to build a car. So GM closes down and you have a bunch of assemblers that are making 3-4 times more than comparible factory jobs in the area. It doesn't matter how much experience these people have they won't make that kind of money anywhere else without an education. I believe the UAW pushed too hard for wages that high and now these people will be paying for that.

It is a sad fact but the union will keep other businesses from coming here!

Oskhosh truck would be a great option but governement contracts end or go to the next best bidder all the time.

Stick with the generators for wind turbines, it is the way of the future. It is only a matter of time before the people complaining about them won't have a choice in the matter.

Well, unless you are the original Billy Durant, that will never happen. GM, Ford and Chrysler have so much excess capacity they don't know what to do with it. Not to mention the fact they need their cash to keep from filing Chapter 11. Maybe Kia or that $2500 Indian car? I give that airport on 250 acres a better chance of happening.

They will build that complex (assembly, stamping, engine) I was speaking of if they have a great local contract supported by great incentives from local & state governments. Other than being right to work states in the South, why do you think transplant automakers are choosing the sites they do? Because they can get the most incentives from the governments by enticing them with thousands of good paying jobs. That is how the game is played. Basically a bidding war on who can give the best deal to the company. Works in all industries. The Tribune Company is not going to sell the Chicago Cubs/Wrigley Field to the lowest bidder are they? No.

For a majority of its time here, GM has been the biggest and best paying employer in the area. I recall hearing quite a bit about Parker Pen when they closed down. I agree there are other employers recently announcing that they were closing down that don’t get as much coverage, but only GM has potential to maintain thousands of jobs.

Why is it always about GM? There are several other companies that have or are closing and you hear very little about them. Parker Pen is the company that put Janesville on the map NOT GM. There was not nearly as much written about Parker Pen as there is GM. If you really realize that not even half the people that live in Janesville work at GM. How about helping the other companies in this town that are closing down?

Ten years from now this will be a weed choked fenced in brownfield site, one hundred years of industrial activty.means know one has any idea what is deep in the ground The EPA regulations ensure that know sane person would take a chance that someday the government will make them clean it up. The same type of save the planet thinking that broght the end of operations will prevent any realistic redevolopment.

No one is going to build an auto, stamping and engine facility here. As for warehousing jobs, we can't replace all of the lost jobs with $28 an hour positions. They still pay more than a burger joint or unemployment and have benefits.

I-90 would be used as an advantage as said in my previous statement. As for warehousing, Nike has some of the most advanced warehouses both here and in the Netherlands and Belgium. The warehouses themselves may be hi-tech, but the jobs are not and the pay scale is certainly not. Have you ever seem the newest GM assembly plants in Lansing? Those are certainly as hi-tech as you can get for auto manufacturing. For all the green folks out there, Delta Township Assembly is also the first Gold LEED certified auto facility in the world. That's right, besting our Japanese friends.

A new assembly plant? An airport? What we really need is to be realistic. We need to move to the 21st century and look at technology, hi-tech manufacturing, food processing and other agricultural businesses, medical, warehousing. Use our access to I-90 and our central location as an advantage. Let's diversify and spread our business base.

The coalition should focus on the new local UAW contract along with some sort of incentives for taxes, land, training, etc. to offer to General Motors. A new assembly plant (right off I-90 along with stamping & engine plants) would be the ideal situation. This would offer flexibilty to produce a variety of new GM models depending on the market. The old GM plant could be used as a supplier park for Lear, Johnson Controls, LSI, Magna, TI Automotive, Continental, Brose, Autoliv, Valeo, Guardian, etc. There is already an adequate rail infrastructure in place as well.

Lets keep trying and not give up hope. There are always new ideas we can pull together.

Who's dreaming up this stuff. Wind turbines and airports?? Have you not been following the news. Local leaders all over the area are fighting wind turbines. Airlines going under due to the high cost of fuel. Is the city and state going to put up more money to buy the surrounding land so there is 23,000 acres as needed for the airport? The state is already out the money they put up for GM to stay. Let's face it maybe it would make a good spot for that skate park.

I'm kidding just turn it into the Skate park

Just build a strip mall of bars, four wheeler dealerships, strip clubs and a casino. That would keep all the GM workers here in town for a while

This article isn’t entirely encouraging. The Oshkosh Corp idea would only put us right back here again years down the road once the contract runs out with the government. The airport idea is beyond ridiculous, because there is no clearance in that area and we’re (according to this article as I read it now) 22,750 acres short of the space needed. How could this location even be considered if we only have 250 acres? Besides that who would want airplanes flying directly over the city all day long? I think the reader who wrote in the idea for building wind turbine generators would be the best long term idea. However, T. Boone Pickens is a very tough business man (don’t let his interest in alternative energy fool you). As a result, I wouldn’t expect to see him make the investment in such a large facility or to pay a wage that would increase the standards of living in the area. Moreover, he’d be likely to stay clear of union organization, which would be tough to avoid. However, anything is possible.

"The only hitch might be that the Peotone proposal calls for 23,000 acres of land. The GM parcel is about 250 acres." I would say that is a pretty big hitch! I think converting the plant into a manufacturing site for some type of green energy product might be a good solution. Might be nice to be ahead of the curve.

Airport? Airport?
Rockford is losing flights as is Madison.
"The only hitch might be that the Peotone proposal calls for 23,000 acres of land. The GM parcel is about 250 acres"
This is no small "hitch." Not to mention you would be replacing One failing Fuel based industry with another Struggling Fuel based industry.