Robert Samuelson writes: >Since 1948, the UAW and GM, Ford and Chrysler have crafted contracts that turned the companies into mini-welfare states... Now comes the reckoning. The market and the welfare state collide.<
that's right. The auto industry was like some leftist's image of "Fordism," with high wages and benefits helping to maintain morale and a skilled labor force, while often providing a market for the cars. This conflicts with the new, neo-liberal, "stage of capitalism" (or SSA or "mode of regulation"). Samuelson presumes that the "market" (the neo-liberal system) must win. But what about extending and deepening the welfare state? That's extremely difficult, but that option can't be rule out ahead of time. Nationalized medical care and pension plans would help save the auto industry, among other things. -- Jim Devine "Learning is Good." -- motto, Faber College (modified).
