Well, just thought I'd post a note for those of you on the periphery of the Auto Industry. Chrysler's filing in Bankruptcy Court was not unexpected as the leaks ahead of time made it anti-climactic. And it made headlines for a day or so.

Meanwhile, the country goes off the deep end on the swine flu scare. Schools shutting down, panic setting in regarding anyone who has travelled to Mexico and discussions about a "pandemic". This followed by talk about closing the border. Then...... Yesterday I hear that we have more deaths annually from the REGULAR flu. (From the swine flu: 2 reported so far, 1 an elderly lady with medical problems). This was followed by a backdown from the CDC on the severity of it saying that it is "milder than anticipated". Most of the hysteria was fueled by the hyper-active media, blowing it out of proportion.

Anyway, back to Chrysler. Having their thunder stolen by the pig flu, not much has been headlined. But.... the fallout has started. Mass Layoffs at suppliers are happening but not being reported. Mostly because they are happening at smaller companies where maybe only 25 people are being laid off. Not much, unless you consider that the total employment at the company might be 30. It should be interesting to see next week's statistics on the number of NEW filings for unemployment.

Plus, many people say the Chrysler trip through Bankruptcy Court is a test case for the Obama administration on how to handle GM next month. If THAT happens, multiply the fallout by several orders of magnitude.

Scary times we're in.

And yesterday I got a letter from Pontiac telling me not to worry about service and parts for my vehicle, how warranties will be honored, etc. Very upbeat. Kind of like telling the passengers on the Titanic not to worry as the band will continue to play for the rest of the voyage. [img]/forums/images/icons/frown.gif[/img]