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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
Just by chance I saw this a few days ago.
Awesome and terrifying, you can see men on the burning USS West Virginia.
Full size,http://www.shorpy.com/node/2079?size=_original
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
I'll bet all the kids and "appliance motorists" driving the Toyotas and Hondas are really moved by all of this. . . .
Awhile back I posted in a discussion at Seeking Alpha (http://seekingalpha.com/article/1289...-american-cars) "Five reasons NEVER TO BUY A SINGLE THING FROM A JAPANESE AUTO COMPANY":
1. Protectionism -- Japan's car makers incubated in protectionist climate which prevented the Detroit 3 from making more than token investments in Japanese OEMs or selling cars in their market.
2. Predatory Business Model -- Japan's car makers were only profitable because of exports, which created huge trade deficits.
3. Lack of Domestic Content -- Just because a Japanese invader car is assembled by non-union labor in the U.S. doesn't mean the parts come from here. American cars support hundreds of thousands more OEM parts supplier jobs than do the invading Japanese transplants.
4. Lack of soul -- excluding a handful of limited-production sports models, Japanese vehicles have all of the driving panache and "soul" of a refrigerator. Buying a Japanese sedan is like wearing a $20-80,000 badge proclaiming that "I'm a self-centered weasel who wouldn't know an exciting car if it ran over me."
5. Government Subsidies -- According to Toyota-ex Jim Press, the Japanese government virtually paid for all of the electric hybrid technology that the tree huggers are ramming down our throats. And its well documented that the Japanese government has provided scads of subsidies and incentives for Japan's invasion of the U.S. auto market.
6. (Just like Joe Isuzu, I lied -- there are more reasons not to send any more American money to Tokyo)
Buying Japanese deprives the Detroit 3 and their suppliers of necessary investment capital.
7. Bataan Death March.
8. Battle of Midway.
9. Iwo Jima.
10. Guadalcanal
11. Battle of Leyte Gulf
12. Saipan
13. Battle of the Java Sea
14. Kamikazes (not the drink)
15. Nanking Massacre (300,000 Chinese People Killed, 20,000 Women Raped)
16. Causes thousands of quality U.S. jobs to be outsourced to Asia.
17. Destroys many American communities who depend on manufacturing.
18. Subsidizes the . . . sexist, and zenophobic Japanese culture.
19. Increases the trade deficit.
20. Hurts the value of the U.S. Dollar
21. Multiplier effect (dollars staying in the U.S. will keep circulating in the U.S. economy, creating more jobs and improving the standards of living)
22. National pride -- Let's act like AMERICANS!
23. There are plenty of excellent vehicles sold by Detroit (don't buy into the sycophantic pro-Japan bias of the elite media and the self-selected, methodologically-invalid "Consumer Distorts" surveys.
24. Your grandchildren -- you won't have to look them in the eye and explain why you selfishly helped bankrupt the U.S. auto industry.
25. The Japanese are apparently incapable of making a Mustang or a Shelby GT500, or a Corvette, or a "real" Challenger, or any legitimate performance car that isn't festooned with a hideous "body kit" and/or a stupid "boy racer" wing.
26. When left to their own devices, Japanese styling is "Tokyo-at-night" terrible. The bland exceptions to this rule are from Western collaborators. Thus, if we give the auto business over to the Japanese, we'll get more bland and hideous vehicles.
27. Safety. For example, Toyota trucks have been recalled for fatal steering, brake and airbag defects. Thousands have been killed in undersized, understructured Japanese cars over the years (just look at how some of them fold up like a cheap suit when crashed). Toyota has been sued over the defective seat belts and deadly door latches of its Corolla models. And this is just the tip of the safety iceberg.
[UPDATE: Here's some more "love" courtesy of Caddy-V -- a reader over at Autoblog:
"They're only looking at the Toyota's because there's a sign on one end that says
'Please be very quiet and listen carefully and you can hear our frames rust.' [ http://www.toyotaframerust.com/;http://www.tundraheadquarters.com/bl...ra-frame-rust/]
on the other end a sign reads 'Toyota will not be held responsible for any injurys from any display cars that accelerate unexpectedly.' [http://www.safetyresearch.net/2009/0...ation-problem/]
And then the sign on the Tundra. 'Please do not sit on Tailgate. 25# weight limit strictly enforced. Our rugged Truck that is changing it all is designed for all show and no go.' [http://www.tundrasolutions.com/forum...lgate-facts-2/]
And last but not least is the sign on the Camry. Guaranteed not to sludge for at least two oil changes.'" [ http://www.autosafety.org/toyota-oil-sludge; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fs7WI2s-CVw]
28. Repair costs. When they do break down (and they're machines, they all do -- have you ever seen a Japanese traitor/invader dealership without a service department?), Japanese cars are horrendously expensive to repair. One study found that building a typical $20,000 Japanese car out of replacement parts would cost $60,000 (excluding labor, of course). And when was the last time you saw a 20+ year old Japanese car still on the road?
There's probably about 500 more reasons NEVER TO BUY FROM A JAPANESE CAR MAKER!
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
Thank you to all of You who have served or continue to serve in our military
- each and every American owes you a debt of gratitude.
... some are unfortunately too dense to understand this.There's always something new to learn.Comment
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the dedicated servicemen & women who defended our country against our enemies in WWII, particularly at Pearl Harbor on Decemer 7.
Speedy, many of your comments are innapropriate and offensive. By your reasoning, the Japanese have plenty of reasons to never buy American products: the firebombings of Kobe and Tokyo, the a-bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki... we killed millions of Japanese soldiers and hundreds of thousands of civilians while suffering a fraction of those losses ourselves, especially at the civilian level. Your kind of logic will only spark more disastrous wars sparked by trade disagreements. We need to put the past behind us and learn to put disagreements aside in the interest of peace and ultimate self-preservation.
Our pointing fingers are bloody while condeming the Japanese for the Rape of Nanking; the US has committed atrocities in the name of expansion and used the crutch of religion as justification. The Japanese should be ashamed of themselves for invading China which led to the US oil embargo to which they responded with an act of war; the US should be ashamed of itself for setting the example for them by invading Mexico and numerous other small countries and running over the Indians, all in the interest of expansion.
I am glad to be born an American. I am grateful to the armed forces for preserving our way of life. But I refuse to gloss over our dirty laundry.The official Bangshift garage door guru. Just about anything can be built using garage door parts, trust me.Comment
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
please thank them all again
do your part..
buy more junk made in commie countries
come on say it with me
"WE WILL NEVER FORGETI have 3 POW's from that war in my family, 2 still kick'n. and they get sick when tey see an American flag on a commie product.
sorry, some don't need a day to thank them..some thank them every day..
peace. and good dayComment
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
I've been to Hawaii and stood on the USS Arizona memorial and watched both US and Japanese veterans observe the remains of that day, and deal with their own horrible memories.
Some shook hands, as the Japanese apologized for their transgressions, and others glared at the other with hate, who could not leave their anger behind.
Either way, it was a lose that neither side could really afford - and for nothing gained.
I will always remember .... those that served their country with honor and patriotism !!!Comment
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
For those who forget the transgressions of the past are doomed to repeat it...Editor-at-Large at...well, here, of course!
"Remy-Z, you've outdone yourself again, I thought a Mirada was the icing on the cake of rodding, but this Imperial is the spread of little 99-cent candy letters spelling out "EAT ME" on top of that cake."Comment
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
2xOriginally posted by Schtauffer
Sorry. That's one of the risks of having an opinion. BTW, what kind of Japanese cars do you own/lease/sell/covet? ;DSpeedy, many of your comments are innapropriate and offensive.
They started it!By your reasoning, the Japanese have plenty of reasons to never buy American products: the firebombings of Kobe and Tokyo, the a-bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki... we killed millions of Japanese soldiers and hundreds of thousands of civilians while suffering a fraction of those losses ourselves, especially at the civilian level.
They could have surrendered at any time it was getting to "hot" for them.
Our strategy minimized the loss of human life (Had we invaded Japan, losses would likely have quadrupled). Also, don't forget that Japanese strategy often devalued the lives of its individual soldiers in a way that would have likely been unacceptable to most 20th Century Westerners (except perhaps National Socialist elements in Germany and the Bolsheviks).
Besides, an important part of my argument is that the JAPANESE DON'T BUY MUCH FROM US ANYWAY! (See protectionism point above)
Wait! We have to let the predatory, protectionist Japanese destroy our domestic automotive industry just so they won't attack us again? Is this Bangshift or the Trilateral Commission? ;DYour kind of logic will only spark more disastrous wars sparked by trade disagreements. We need to put the past behind us and learn to put disagreements aside in the interest of peace and ultimate self-preservation.
I guess we should move to Canada . . . . ;D Assuming your unproven statement to be true and the respective body counts to be proportional, obviously there is a difference between intranational "atrocities" and international ones. One could hardly boycott his or her own country (although the self-centered "Consumer Distorts" class of "appliance motorists" and Japanese auto invasion collaborators are doing a fairly good job trying). As citizens, we can petition our own government for reparations if we feel strongly about historic injustice. But what could an American citizen do with respect to Japan's policies? Our only vote in Japan is with our pocketbooks!Our pointing fingers are bloody while condeming the Japanese for the Rape of Nanking; the US has committed atrocities in the name of expansion and used the crutch of religion as justification.
Wait! WWII was OUR FAULT? I must have missed those days in the fetid left-wing colleges I attended . . . . Is the "infamy" of Pearl Harbor Day ours now?The Japanese should be ashamed of themselves for invading China which led to the US oil embargo to which they responded with an act of war; the US should be ashamed of itself for setting the example for them by invading Mexico and numerous other small countries and running over the Indians, all in the interest of expansion.
What the Japanese really should be ashamed of is how they've taken advantage of our trade, investment, reconstruction, labor and currency policies to build a predatory automotive industry, turn what's left of Detroit into a ghost town, corrupt an entire generation of American consumers, and to help the Chinese gut what little is left of our industrial base.
2x (Obviously)I am glad to be born an American.
2xI am grateful to the armed forces for preserving our way of life.
How is supporting our own most important industrial concerns, protecting quality American jobs (many of which are/were held by Latinos and indigenous Americans), and rejecting Japan's predatory automotive practices "glossing over our dirty laundry?"But I refuse to gloss over our dirty laundry.
I'm sorry that "blame America" and "buy Japanese" have become the touchstones for several myopic generations of Americans. I suppose when we've become such an industrial "paper tiger" that we're completely beholden to imports, the "me-firsters" who buy Japanese and Japanese invader (transplant) vehicles will provide us with another comforting rationalization to ponder in the soup kitchen line.
I just hope the soup kitchens aren't serving sushi . . . . ;)Comment
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Re: BangShift.com Tributes the Americans Who Lost Their Lives 68 Years Ago Today
One statement says it all - "All gave some and some gave all." Let us never forget those that have paid the ultimate price for our freedoms.Hauling ass & sucking gas are the best uses for a truck.Comment
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