Stlaurent Mr Steven <STLAURENTS@mctssa.usmc.mil> wrote:
: HAHAHAHHAHAAHAHA.
: This is why I put the MB initial there....LOL
: Jon, I know what you mean. Actually the turn around for Chrysler was the
: Viper and the Ram. From there it was down hill until Shrempp came into the
: picture and the top brass bail from the ship.
The Viper definitely put Chrysler back on the map. The Ram was
another important milesone. However, I didn't see any downhill progress;
from my point of view, it was getting better and better! What do you
mean by "it was down hill" from there?
This is actually a huge part of why this takeover really burns me up.
It would be one thing if Chrysler was floundering, but they were on
a HUGE comeback, and poised to explode into the new millenium. At this
critical time, Schremmp came by and snuffed out the fire and the passion
before it had an opportunity to really blossom.
To think that MB played a role in "turning around" Chrysler is
quite frankly, insulting. Chrysler fought long and hard to come back
from near extinction during the Iacocca years, and just as they were
about to come back better than ever, MB came along, raped Chrysler of its
talent and money then put their puppets in control. IMHO, any short term
success Chrysler may enjoy is in spite of the takeover, not because of
it. I fear the worst years are ahead of Chrysler. The pool of talent
that had been assembled was quite remarkable, and it jumped ship when MB
came along, along with company morale. It will no doubt be hard work to
duplicate the magic that Chrysler had. If it isn't done, Chrysler will
suffer in the long term.
I cringe to think that 20 years down the line, people will think
that Mercedes Benz saved Chrysler. It is important that we never
forget what happened, and HOW it happened. Fortunately there is a
good amount of written material out there which tells the true story,
but people being what they are will just parrot what they hear, and time
will make memories fuzzy.
This isn't just some automobile manufacturer we're talking about
here - this is Chrysler! Or... it was. :-(
I apologize for ranting about this (once again) but I don't think that
many people realize just how heinous this so called "merger" was! If
anyone reading this wonders why I don't seem to let this drop and you
are at all interested in Chrysler, please do yourself a favor and
read "Taken for a Ride: How Daimler-Benz Drove off with Chrysler",
written by Bill Vlasic and Bradley Stertz. Right now, its only $6.99
for the hardcover version at amazon.com. That's about what you might
spend on lunch. Its a really great read, and will give you an
excellent inside look at what happened during this critical time. Spend
some time browsing through chryslertakeover.com for additional info and
news stories about the takeover. I don't think there is anything that
can be done at this point, but I figure the least we can do is to
remember the facts of the matter rather than to gloss over the subject
and try to invent excuses and suppositions in an effort to get it to
"make sense" somehow. The takeover was nothing less than criminal,
and I feel we owe it to Chrysler (and ourselves) to remember that.
The Chrysler we knew is dead and we have to live with that, but lets
not let the victor re-write the history books on this one!!!!
---Jon-
.---- Jon Steiger ------ jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com ------. | I'm the: AOPA, DoD, EAA, NMA, NRA, SPA, USUA. Rec & UL Pilot - SEL | | 70 Cuda, 90 Dak 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dak, 96 Intruder 1400, 96 FireFly | `------------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com ----'
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