Jennifer Granholm Sensitive to Criticism of the Volt

Aug. 17, 2010 - PRLog -- Given my recent comments on GM's new Volt, the above video seemed particularly interesting. In it, Michigan's Gov. Granholm wonders how one could not be supportive of a policy that "saves" American jobs and calls such criticism un-American. There are, of course, several issues with her comments. The first is that it seems to almost advocate for a sort of trade protectionism. Protectionism has a funny habit of rearing its ugly head anytime a nation heads into economic difficulties. Rather than improving the economic situation of a country, such trade protectionism tends to make things worse. When one combines it, as Granholm does, with the attitude that it is the government's business to create business (through economic stimulus or other means), the results are particularly devastating. Such protectionism has led to things such as the Smoot-Hawley Tariff, one of the prime causes of the Great Depression.

There is also her attitude that any criticism of the Volt is un-American. This is simply a attempt to silence any criticism of GM, particularly the unions and government bureaucrats that currently run the company. While such attempts at stifling dissent are concerning, what is more concerning is the way that such stifling has become commonplace for the Democrat Party. Put simply, the Volt is an overpriced, bad car that rather than being completely independent of the use of gasoline is in fact, entirely dependent on it. But the people who currently run the company can not tolerate any sort of criticism of the car for political reasons, so they attempt to brand their detractors as extremists. Instead of playing the racist, homophobe, or xenophobic card, Granholm is playing the un-American card. If she'd actually read the Constitution, she would see that her comments fly right in the face of the First Amendment right to free speech. Just how American is it to attempt to silence your opponents?

Read more at http://www.marcseelinger.com!

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