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Post by chilipepper on Sept 30, 2009 16:11:58 GMT -5
Taken from the Minneapolis StarTribune website:
DETROIT - General Motors Co. said Wednesday it would shut down its Saturn brand after an agreement with Penske Automotive Group Inc. to acquire it fell apart.
Penske, citing concerns of whether it could continue to supply vehicles after a manufacturing contract with GM ran out, ended talks with GM Wednesday to acquire the brand.
GM CEO Fritz Henderson said in statement that Saturn and its dealership network will be phased out.
"This is very disappointing news and comes after months of hard work by hundreds of dedicated employees and Saturn retailers who tried to make the new Saturn a reality," Henderson said in a written statement. "PAG's announcement explained that their decision was not based on interactions with GM or Saturn retailers."
In a statement, the Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based auto retailer says an agreement with another manufacturer to continue producing Saturn vehicles after GM stopped making them fell through, leading Penske to terminate talks with GM.
Penske said it negotiated terms and conditions to make Saturn cars with another manufacturer, but that company's board of directors rejected the agreement. Penske spokesman Anthony Pordon would not identify the other manufacturer.
"Without that agreement, the company has determined that the risks and uncertainties related to the availability of future products prohibit the company from moving forward with this transaction," the company said in a statement.
In June, GM and Penske agreed to take over the Saturn brand and related dealerships, although GM would produce the vehicles for a limited period of time.
GM said Saturn vehicle owners can still go to their Saturn dealer for service and would be able to go to a certified GM dealer for service once Saturn dealerships are closed.
It was expected that GM would announce the completion of Saturn's sale to Penske in the coming days.
Share of Penske fell $1.93 to $17.25 in after hours trading. They rose $1.32, or 7.4 percent to $19.18 in regular trading Wednesday.
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Post by ricklou on Sept 30, 2009 16:19:34 GMT -5
That is very big news Chili. Real big. It is a shame in that Saturn makes good vehicles and they look good to.
The contraction happening in the Automobile Industry is far from over.
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Post by songsmith1950 on Sept 30, 2009 18:09:03 GMT -5
Very sad especially for employees and their families. That little part of Tennessee was so proud of that plant and the way it built thier community. I don''t know a lot about it but it seemed so great.
Prayers for all of them.
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Post by revilo on Sept 30, 2009 22:27:23 GMT -5
I'm starting to understand more and more why they called it the "Great Depression". I think it has more to do with psychology than finance. Listening to the Dave Ramsey radio show I hear less people talking about being debt free, and more people trying to figure out how to cope with job loss, upside-down mortgages, short sells, and bankruptcy. There seems to be a feeling of pervasive hopelessness creeping across the nation, despite the best efforts of the "Hope Candidate" who was elected president. People are figuring out that bailouts and buyouts and handouts will not get us out of this mess. We need entrepreneurs, hard work, and determination to put this mess behind us, just like the last time. The employees of Saturn and their families are the latest victims of the greed and dishonesty that took over our financial institutions. May God help them through to the end of this mess.
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Post by ricklou on Oct 1, 2009 5:55:30 GMT -5
So true Don. Many blame big business, Wall Street and the oil companies for greed some of which is true but....
Our Congress is in contempt with their actions. An example of this is health care. The newest wringkle is to raise your premiums by up to 50% if you smoke or are overweight. Another wrinkle, If you do not purchase health coverage with the new plan you can be fined and possibly jailed. Just the tip of the ice burg.
The Liberals in this country are dead set on shaping our lives through laws and regulation. The good news is that people are waking up and smelling this garbage and it stinks. Even that fat obese slob Michael Moore is pounding on the Dems now.
What was the deal with this school kids last week in New Jersey. Their teacher hae them sing a religous song putting Obama's name in place of Jesus ! The school superintendant has no problem with it. If my child was exposed to this kind of socialism I would have a melt down. You cant say the pledge of alegience, no prayer in school, no Christman or Halloween .....OK ....but they can brain wash our children ?
There are poeple that buy into this kind of garbage but for a teacher to reach out of the boundries of moral ethics is rediculous.
They want to control us while sleeping in comfortable beds. Michael Moore must have a Temperpedic Matress to absorbe his Capitolistic money making FAT ASS.
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Post by donmoos on Oct 1, 2009 9:15:50 GMT -5
Rick,
Welcome to the world of Vocal Malcontents. You are also racist, a war monger, Hater, and willing to destroy america to see Obama fail.
Now, please quit thinking and join in the love fest.................it's all about the " hope "...........DO NOT ALLOW REALITY IN...........it will only make you depressed.
FEEL THE LOVE BROTHER, just feel the love. A few joints may be required to fully embrace this movement. Just toke up and feel the love. Step over to the Left side it is the Right side you know.
Just so no one missinturprest this.................I AM BEING VERY SARCASTIC.
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Post by ricklou on Oct 1, 2009 10:01:28 GMT -5
Its all good Don but give me some of that stuff  that you have been smokin The beauty of this country is that you can be all of those things and it is ok. That is why Michael Moore can be a FAT ASS and make millions. Personally I do not want our President to fail but if he does then we will and are suffering. The deal with Obama is that he has no real substance ...cough cough ... I can say the same for George Bush as he drew us into Iraq for a protracted conflict, They should have left after getting Sadam. None seem to know the middle which is in our best interests but rather it is too much or not enough but the reality it that Capitol Hill and it's power hungry monsters .....have a good Health plan .... The only thing Barak "America is Sorry" Obama has figured out is how to light a cigarette ..... |
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Post by pmossberg on Oct 1, 2009 10:08:58 GMT -5
For the record, I believe what the NJ teacher did was wrong.
But just to clarify the issue, the teacher didn't just replace "Jesus" with Obama's name.
There were two songs. One used the music from "Jesus Loves the Little Children" with new lyrics. Another used the music from "The Battle Hymn of the Republic", also with new lyrics.
So, thankfully, there really were no religious overtones, unless the 2nd graders recognized the music.
What does offend is the singing of songs of praise for the person who is President.
Teach the kids to respect the office, that's OK. But teaching adoration for the person in the office? That's NOT OK. Teach the kids civics sure, but schools must NOT advocate partisan politics.
The school superintendent claims the lyrics were sent home in advance and there were no objections from the parents. If that's true, the parents are equally at fault. The teacher is wrong for taking this approach. The parents are wrong for not objecting.
The teacher retired at the end of the last school year. The video was taken February 27 2009.
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Post by ricklou on Oct 1, 2009 10:37:41 GMT -5
It takes a real nutjob to accept this being done to children, parents or otherwise.
God help us
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Post by stuck on Oct 1, 2009 11:02:48 GMT -5
So, Tennesee will now feel some of the pain... Just look at it as part of your contribution. (Yes, I'm being sarcastic)
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Post by songsmith1950 on Oct 2, 2009 6:44:26 GMT -5
The scariest thing to me is Barack's "Internal Security Force" equal in size, budget and training to the regular armed forces. In the beginning he was saying they could begin with Acorn and SEIU people and then build more. Wasn't one of the first things Hitler did to take over Germany to build an internal security force that he then used to stifle any and all opposition no matter how small? That scares me to death, along with the guy he appointed FCC "czar" of some sort whose philosophy is to take the jobs from white men in power and give them to minorities. He even says it doesn't matter if the guys are doing a good job or not take thier jobs anyway to cause change. Change we can believe in?  Not me. |
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Post by donmoos on Oct 2, 2009 9:53:32 GMT -5
The scariest thing to me is Barack's "Internal Security Force" equal in size, budget and training to the regular armed forces. In the beginning he was saying they could begin with Acorn and SEIU people and then build more. Wasn't one of the first things Hitler did to take over Germany to build an internal security force that he then used to stifle any and all opposition no matter how small? That scares me to death, along with the guy he appointed FCC "czar" of some sort whose philosophy is to take the jobs from white men in power and give them to minorities. He even says it doesn't matter if the guys are doing a good job or not take thier jobs anyway to cause change. Change we can believe in? Not me. One of the first things Hilter did was understand that if you indoctrinate the child, the child can be used to spy on the parent. Couple that with what you said........scary....just might not cover it. those who choose not to study history are bound to repeat it. Just remember that the now ruling crowd was the crowd that started the Question Authority in the 60's. Now that there authority is being question..........they no longer share that message. |
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that you have been smokin
I have Richard petty cars 1/18 1/24 scales! Etc...
