Let Detroit Go Bankrupt

That's the name of a NY Times editorial article penned by Mitt Romney. I'm not sure what to think about the issue yet, but I found that Romney makes some very salient points. Here's an excerpt,

"If General Motors, Ford and Chrysler get the bailout that their chief executives asked for yesterday, you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye. It won’t go overnight, but its demise will be virtually guaranteed.

Without that bailout, Detroit will need to drastically restructure itself. With it, the automakers will stay the course — the suicidal course of declining market shares, insurmountable labor and retiree burdens, technology atrophy, product inferiority and never-ending job losses. Detroit needs a turnaround, not a check."

You can read the entire article here (short registration required - use guerilla mail). One of the points he makes is that the price of labor in the Big 3 is disproportionately high due to unreasonable union contracts. Check out this graphic (data supported/cited in this article):