Apparently, Toyota has known of many of its problems for years. Deaths have occurred, and Toyota has blamed the placement of floor mats. But now, under testimony, Toyota has had to admit that it first authorized repairs and new designs two years ago, without publicizing either. The regulatory agencies have the power to severely fine and punish Toyota, including the prohibition of selling cars in the US for a while. That’s not such a bad idea. It will revive the local industry, and show that we resent people being killed by corporate cover-up. We condemned American companies for such acts (Remember exploding fuel tanks?) and if Toyota were American-based, we’d be a lot more upset. And why hasn’t the CEO of Toyota resigned yet? Where does that buck stop exactly?
Meanwhile, up here in Providence, each major local affiliate—NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX—has at least five “meteorologists” (weather people). (I’m reminded of the one great line in a short-lived TV sitcom about a TV station, where a sportscaster calls the weather woman a “weather babe.” She says, “I prefer meteorologist.” He says, “But you don’t even have a college degree.” She says, “I said I PREFER it!”) Dr. Frank Fields, the famous NBC “meteorologist,” had his degree in, I believe, optometry.
In any case, these stations up here have more “meteorologists” than they do street investigative reporters, I am not making this up. They are highly paid, have segments far longer than the content dictates, and are notoriously inaccurate. They all predicted a huge snow storm here today, and while it’s been snowing for about seven hours, we have about a three-inch accumulation. Yet schools were cancelled, meetings postponed, offices closed, people given days off, public needs unmet by closed government offices, and so on. The State of Rhode Island has probably lost $50 million to $100 million in productivity, performance, and production, because these 15 clowns read their radar, and reports, and other nonsense but divined the tea leaves incorrectly. Where is THEIR performance review? I guess it’s alongside all those stock market analysts who brag when they’re right and are never held accountable when they are (usually) wrong. Since when is snow in New England a major happening? Or maybe they believe we’re in the age of global warming?
To end on the bright side, let’s hear it for Germany, taking the lead to bail out Greece and other struggling economies before a domino effect set in. It’s nice to see people taking accountability, especially when it’s an entire government. Of course, we’re dealing with out own important matters here, such as what Sarah Palin writes on her palm, the content of SuperBowl commercials, and the President’s inability to pronounce “corpsman” correctly.
© Alan Weiss 2010. All rights reserved. Oh, heck, I’m disgusted, you can have these rights.
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