Ford is doing what it has to do.  Same problem GM is facing: a workforce and capacity for a market share they no longer have.

Don't forget the Boomers are retiring by the truck load. (more negative cash flow for GM/Ford)
SSA estimates by the year 2030, 70 MILLION will be on SS annuities.
Time to print mo' money DC!

Quoted: Don't forget the Boomers are retiring by the truck load. (more negative cash flow for GM/Ford) SSA estimates by the year 2030, 70 MILLION will be on SS annuities. Time to print mo' money DC!

That is a lot of SS dollas.

Good for the company, bad for the workers.

Watched the webcam broadcast.  Basically they are saying that North America sucks, and they will be putting their main efforts into their overseas operations.  If you only support North America, you are fucked.

I thought the world was supposed to end in 2012?

Quoted: Don't forget the Boomers are retiring by the truck load. (more negative cash flow for GM/Ford) SSA estimates by the year 2030, 70 MILLION will be on SS annuities. Time to print mo' money DC!

Don't worry.  By 2030, the retirement age will be 90.

Quoted: I thought the world was supposed to end in 2012?

I believe the exact date is Dec 5th 2012.

Quoted: Quoted: I thought the world was supposed to end in 2012? I believe the exact date is Dec 5th 2012.

So I only have to put up with this crap for another 6 (almost 7) years? SWEET!  

The Social Security and pension are a pyramid scam, previous generation of retiree, that retired (as in any scam, the early people got the most benefits), and of course when the boomers come along to get their benefits, they're screwed because the original shysters are long gone.  The number of retirees that retired in such great affluence could've have only been done if there were a great number of people supporting them, is baby-boomers.

Things are going to get read interesting.  The muncipals are going to short about 1 million teachers because of retirements in the just the next 10 years alone.

Ford's, GM's, Chrysler's problem is not too much excess capacity but too little sales.  They have been putting out shit for 20-30 years and they expect the people to buy that crap.  Just look at the overall reliabilty index in Consumer Reports for the USA built cars, and you will see that they have many black marks.  This not just an  anomaly but permeates throughout their products lines.

Quoted: The Social Security and pension are a pyramid scam.

They are only pyramid schemes if you borrow the money that people are saving to pay other bills.  If I'm forced to put aside 3% of my earnings throughout my working career and then I'm repaid those earnings after retirement (which is the way social security is supposed to work), then there's no pyramid scam.  I'm not relying on new "investors" to pay off my benefits.  

The problem is that the US government chosen to raid the social security monetary pool to pay for other things.  Despite the fact that I've been paying social security since I was 13, there is no actual amount of money set aside for me at retirement.  There's an amount that the government will theoretically owe me, but the government has already spent my money and left me with an IOU.

The problem isn't the concept of social security, it's the irresponsible spending that has drained the actual social security investment.