Autos Blog Posts

The root of Indiana's myriad problems

November 22, 2010
Comments(37)
Longtime economist Morton Marcus says the objective truth is that Indiana is in decline. He also insists the solution is a change in the culture, not just job creation.
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Indiana bombs in rankings of 'new economy' states

August 25, 2010
Comments(8)
State has a dire future if Business Facilities' latest lists are any indication.
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Hyundai hole in Indiana

August 9, 2010
Comments(4)
The rising Korean industrial giant is building another plant in the U.S., but not in Indiana.
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Is alternative energy sustainable in Indiana?

July 7, 2010
Comments(4)
An economic development observer questions what will happen after the feds turn off the tap.
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Downstream problems with professionals

June 2, 2010
Comments(7)
Should engineers be required to spend time in repair shops, and architects with the lunch bucket crowd?
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Time to bring I-69 downtown?

May 28, 2010
Comments(43)
Dusting off the original plans to extend the highway from I-465 to downtown would ease congestion. But, oh, the downsides.
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Shaking up the Indy 500

May 26, 2010
Comments(5)
Looser restrictions, and the potential for more innovation, could bring back some of the old luster.
 
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Carbon Motors, the anti carmaker

April 6, 2010
Comments(3)
The upstart cop car manufacturer is doing lots of things differently, including the way they track your car.
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Will easy commutes linger?

January 29, 2010
Comments(3)
Traffic counts are rising, but the jobless are still at home.
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Falcone mourning Saab

December 18, 2009
Comments(4)
Former dealer saw the end coming, but says customers are following him to Volkswagen and Subaru.
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Even Bentley sales are down

December 16, 2009
Comment(1)
A Zionsville dealer says the economy is influencing its wealthy buyers, but things would be worse under Rolls-Royce.
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Don't confuse Toyota for GM

November 25, 2009
Comment(1)
Toyota isn't about to grow complacent like GM did in the '60s, an analyst says.
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Saturn's loss, Byrider's gain

November 3, 2009
Comments(2)
J.D. Byrider, the Indianapolis chain of used-car lots, is courting Saturn dealers to come into the fold as Byrider franchisees.
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Chrysler sticks it to Kokomo

August 21, 2009
Comments(0)

Officials in Kokomo and Howard County are in a tough spot. The “new” Chrysler created after its bankruptcy sale to Fiat contends it‘s no longer on the hook for $12.9 million it owes various local taxing bodies this year and $12.3 million it will owe next year.

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Questions about â??clunkersâ??

August 6, 2009
Comments(11)
â??Cash for clunkersâ?? has sent lots of gas-guzzlers to the scrap yard and helped car dealers move the metal. But as Congress considers adding $2 billion to the initial $1 billion earmarked for the program, both the political right and left...
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GM's looming bankruptcy

May 29, 2009
Comments(4)
So, three decades of decline has come to this for General Motors: a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition expected to be filed Monday. Lots of problems contributed to its downfall, but now the carmaker faces an extremely steep climb. The bankruptcy...
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Return of the gas-guzzler?

April 29, 2009
Comments(7)
Americans are gravitating toward the kinds of vehicles theyâ??ll be buying for the next several years, says one of the nationâ??s leading automotive forecasters. John Wolkonowicz, senior auto analyst at IHS Global Insight, says the dominant vehicle of the future will...
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Mass transit potential

April 27, 2009
Comments(13)
For an interesting take on how mass transit could help revitalize Indianapolis, see IBJ reporter Chris Oâ??Malleyâ??s story this week on the topic. Ball State grad students dreamed up several concepts for plunking new rail stations along existing...
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Tax commuters for marketing?

February 24, 2009
Comments(14)
How do you feel about taxing commuters to supplement promotion of the cityâ??s convention industry? The idea was floated in an article by IBJ reporter Anthony Schoettle about the Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association asking for more money...
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Can Saturn be saved?

February 18, 2009
Comments(9)
As just about everyone expected, General Motors and Chrysler are back asking for more bailouts. Instead of $17.4 billion, they now want $39 billion. As part of its turnaround plan, GM plans to jettison Saturn, the brand launched in...
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Private attention to mass transit

January 29, 2009
Comment(1)
For another example of why Indianapolis works better than a lot of other places, read IBJ reporter Chris Oâ??Malleyâ??s story about yet another look at mass transit in central Indiana. Mass transit has been studied to death even as...
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Can anyone drive in this stuff?

January 28, 2009
Comments(15)
Thereâ??s nothing like a good snow storm to bring out the spectrum of driver skills. In the past couple of days and now today, youâ??ve probably seen it all, too. Creepers. Speeders. Lane-straddlers. Rubberneckers who nearly cause their own spin-offs. Should more...
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The future for diesel cars

January 19, 2009
Comments(3)
A number of car companies have introduced, or plan to introduce, clean-diesel engines to cater to buyers wanting better fuel efficiency. Diesels from Volkswagen and other manufacturers boost mileage by about a third, but much of that advantage in the past...
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Questions about Detroit's bench

December 8, 2008
Comments(7)
Politicians are about to step in for directors and force sweeping changes on the Detroit car companies, judging from the direction of talks in Congress. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd yesterday called for the firing of General Motors...
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Gall about the jobs bank

December 4, 2008
Comments(6)
The jobs bank has come to symbolize whatever the general public thinks is wrong with the United Auto Workers and Detroit car companies. For many years, the UAW contract has stipulated that laid-off workers be paid nearly their entire compensation. Now,...
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  1. liek the rest of America

  2. These quaint,obsessed musings by the stalkers are certainly entertaining, but I'm trying to figure out what, if anything, all the yelping below has to do with Zak Brown.

  3. It's evident that Moffett was pushing the right buttons and corporate America is now trying to squash him. He just wanted to withdraw the free pilot services provided to the company by the pilots to try and put some pressure on a company that has not been interested in negotiating a contract in over 5 years. The company does not provide a contract because not having one has saved them a bundle of money. Shame on any Republic pilots not standing behind their union leader just because things are getting tough, can you not see such strategic moves by the company as putting the last union president in a corporate position and into THEIR pocket. Do you really believe the last union president is so appalled at the attempts by Moffett, do you not remember his oppositions to the company? We stood behind him. It has been proven over and over again for thousands of years without fail, a man cannot serve two masters. Anyone that believes people vote contrary to their paycheck and livelihood deserve to be taken advantage of, the recent statements by the former union president are laughable as he denounces the current union president from his new corporate position. Have you ever seen a drafted sports player score points for his previous team, it cannot be done, he is not on the pilots side anymore, he gets his money a different way now than you and I do, and he should not be allowed to remain on the seniority list. A drafted player brings strength, credibility, tactical knowledge, and a strategic advantage to his NEW team, he would not be drafted or paid were it otherwise. We are all forced to choose only one side to play for and support, not doing so has many references in life such as insider trading and shaving points, all illegal for good reason. This basic fact is why corporate moguls, scientist, and engineers all sign non-discloser agreements and non-compete clauses, as protection in case they are lured into switching sides as our former union president has done. No NFL coach ever drafted a player so that both teams could benefit and better understand each other, they are recruited to win the game against that former team, period. Likewise the company does not recruit the former union president by accident or mutual understanding, its strategy. Don't confuse playing the game with good sportsman-like conduct in support of common business and prosperity goals, with the requirement to only play for one side. Good men we all love and favor fall subject to this manipulation, often without their knowledge, and it is not a betrayal of their friendship to oppose them when they switch sides. If we did not love and trust them, they would not have been chosen and lured to the other side in the first place. The deception by the drafted player is not made at a conscious level, it's just human nature and it's all about money and power which corrupts our ability to be objective and loyal to two masters. This is why our court system created the defense attorney, and why our military created counter intelligence. Its strategy and its propaganda, and it works, and that's why the "powers to be" manipulate the chess pieces by sometimes changing their colors. Some players know they are being manipulated when their color is changed, but it brings them more money and power so they do not care. The rest have good intentions but do not even realize they are being manipulated. This tactic is also known by another name, Divide and Conquer. In battle sending an imperfect message with an imperfect team is obviously not ideal, but it's still being sent by YOUR team, your union leader, a leader that has common goals and common rewards with you, they are the best, because we have elected them to do a job for us. If you are not backing Moffett but believing the spin by those that have recently switched sides, you are taking food out of your own mouth. Showing unity and backing an imperfect situation still results in taking just as much ground, it's about unity and bargaining power. It's not necessary to wait around for that perfect attack because it will never come, the company will spin and attempt to destroy anyone that gets in their way. Ultimately it's not about any specific attack anyway, ASAP or whatever it makes no difference, it is and always has been only about power. If this company cared about safety it would not build pairings with 8 hour overnights, come on, are you that naive? Besides, do you really think Hoffa cares, no, he got a call from corporate America and was squeezed into denouncing Moffett. If he didn't they would spin the safety card against him and the Teamsters National with implication for truckers, future contracts, insurance rates etc...saying something like the Teamsters use safety as a bargaining chip, blah blah blah... Do you really think any pilot is going to do something unsafe for the contract, absolutely not, the only ones threatening safety here is the company with reduced rest, fatigue, and poverty. Do you not find it odd that Hoffa and the Teamsters are opposing a Teamster president publicly? Would the Teamsters National not normally support and work with one of their own? Why did they not sit down and help him strategize, correct any mistakes, and charge ahead? Would the Teamsters National not normally support and leverage a contract for all those pilots that have been paying Teamster dues, isn't that why we have all been paying Teamster dues in the first place? I sure haven't been paying dues so that the Teamsters National could come along and write this kind of an article undercutting our union leader and our unity. Whose side is the Teamsters National really on, it's obviously not the Republic pilots side.

  4. No matter what Moffatt does the company is going to spin it like he is the terrorist and brainwash people like you into believing it, wake up, back your players that are trying to change things for you and your livelihood. Where has Hoffa been for the last 6 years, except collecting our dues. Seriously, do you really think an FO going for upgrade, signed off by a checkairman ready for the upgrade, who then fails, is not even capable of returning as a First Officer.

  5. whoa!

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